Open Ended Toys

Open ended toys... say what, toys that open? Ok so this is a common term used by teachers, particularly preschool teachers but it should be a common term to everyone involved in play.  These are not toys that open, well not literally open anyway but toys that open ones brain, imagination and creativity. Stay with me folks this is important! 

Open ended toys = toys that can be anything. Easy right?? Hmm well let me  give you some examples: rocks, sticks, blocks, jewels (one of my faves - these are the glass beads used for flower vases), scarves. With a little imagination all these items can be tons of different things. Neat hey?! 

This was our shelf of open ended recycled items at the preschool I worked in. Mainly used for art and dramatic play set ups. The children often would help themselves and pretend the items where whatever they needed them to be - money, binoculars etc.

A set up that could be whatever you wanted it to be. 

So what toys do toys that are not open ended look like? For Baby T's age group it is often the toys that have specific functions sometimes accompanied by lights and sound. The ones that you push buttons and things happen. So what if you push the red button and it says red in four different languages, it does not really engage the child beyond that. Others have a link to media and characters like Elmo - Elmo will always be Elmo it least once a child knows who Elmo is. As strange as it sounds Elmo has rules. Rules?? Well yes he is a defined character and try telling child who knows Elmo then tell them his name is Greg you will be met with 'no ELMO, ELMO, ELMO". 

push a button something happens - nothing wrong with it but it's not open ended

For older children batman as lovely as he is he is not super open ended. Sure you can make up a million stories about him but there are rules about batman and these rules are often pretty strict when it comes to kids. Let me give you a few examples of batman rules: he is a man, he is strong, he is a 'good guy', he is fast, he always wins.... you see what I mean. Having said that as a parent you can help create a more open ended Batman play by getting involved with your kids play and breaking some of the 'rules' but often kids get a little upset when you 'break' the rules and they correct you. 

So what is so great about toys that are open ended? For one they foster creativity. You have to come up with all the idea of what you are going to do with them, are their going to be rules, what are they etc. For the children who are playing together this requires dialog, communication often negotiation and other social interactions to explain what the items are and what you want to play. In the preschool I taught in there was never  your typical 'toy food' in the dramatic play area, it was a mix of random things. The purpose in this was so children had to imagine what they were going to turn these items into (eggs, berries, a sandwich or perhaps it was not a kitchen and it was gold?) and even better they had to communicate this to their peers and have a dialog.  I thought this was genius when my colleagues explained it to me and it was always funny to watch the expression of those who visited our school when they looked in our dramatic play corner filled with random things like plastic lids, bowls, pine cones etc. 

Open ended toys are timeless, by this I mean you can play with them infinitely through childhood or beyond and they will always be interesting as they can be a zillion different things. So as a mom who lives in a small apartment, needs to work on a budget and who would prefer to have a few quality toys that can do a lot -this is were it's at!  

There is nothing wrong with toys that are not open ended (hmm there might be ethical issues with some of them actually but they won't harm you! - I might get back to that another time, another blog post) but there is so much that is wonderful with toys that are open ended. I personally feel children lack open ended toys as they are not as flashy or gimmicky and often are not even viewed as toys. 

I am working on a post about our favourite toys to hopefully bring to you soon! 

Green Smoothies - getting the raw greens into the littles

I can't believe how crazy life can get with a 18 month old! Baby T never stops, in fact the only thing she has stopped lately (thank goodness only on occasion) is napping and sleeping through the night! Blarg, seriously I hope this is just because she is achieving some major developmental milestones and adding 3 or 4 words a day, a day! 


Back onto task, I wanted to share one of my favourite recipes that is convent but also the best way I know how to get some major good stuff in my little one.  I first got hooked on green smoothies right after Baby T was born and would go buy them at $6 a pop, it was a great way for me to take care of myself whilst breastfeeding and dealing with a newborn. When Baby T started  solids I shared these smoothes which she loved! The problem was my wallet was feeling this love for green smoothies. I decided to make them at home but keeping Kale, mint and spinach in the fridge just for smoothies was taking up too much room and I found that making them was a little too evolved so I decided to make it more efficient. So out of that I started making green smoothie cubes! 

Green Smoothies Cubes 


1 bunch Kale
1 bunch spinach
1 bunch mint
1 bottle coconut water (make sure it is the water and not juice, the ingredients should just say coconut water)




I split the washed veggies and mint two and blend them to a puree in my blender. After blended I pour them in ice cube trays to freeze. Once frozen I transfer them into bags to store in the freezer.

Making a green smoothie: 


2 or 3 green smoothie cubes
hand full of frozen fruit (we always have mixed fruit, blue berries, strawberries and mango on hand)
big piece of banana 
coconut was or juice 
2 table spoons of hemp hearts  




Blend together and it should make enough for a little one and yourself. 


Smoothies are so versatile and you could make tons of different combinations, add yogurt or chia, speralina, add coconut oil for extra fats ,add different veggies? Options are endless. Making them different also keeps Baby T's interest in smoothies. 

Baby T with a green smoothie mustache! 

Learning about Food

If there is one thing that Baby T has taken after me is her looove of food. Since 6 months when we started table food Taya has dug in and eats, boy does she eat! I get tons of questions about it so I thought I would blog about it! 

baby t at 6 months easting an avocado. left part of the peal on so she can grip it. she was amazing at spiting out any peal or even orange casings eating only the insides!  

We decided to go with what has been named 'Baby Led Weening' (BLW) fancy name but what it means is we feed Baby T what we eat and we never mashed or pureed her food - well almost never. Shock horror she lives and we can tell the tale on how it works and what works for us. As a teacher I also feel there is a huge learning exploration involved in this way of food introduction. BLW really lets babies/ children learn about their food taste, texture, feel, colour some of which is lost when pureed and mashed. They develop skills to feed themselves and their fine motor skills develop sooner. Best part is it is fun, messy but oh so much fun

we stared with baby t eating the steamed vegies we had for dinner

So we love baby led weaning because: 

• it's easy (way easier then pureeing then spoon feeding baby)
• it seems natural for us to let Baby T be in charge of her eating
• it lets Baby T explore food in a form that she can be familiar with (unlike purees where only colour and taste differentiates and there is no texture or shape involved) 
• Baby T eats what we eat 
• Watching Baby T build her eating/fine motor skills (this is my fav part!)
• makes us all as a family eat better 

Looking back I fell that added benefits are Taya's ability to eat on her own and with confidents. People I have spoken to about BLW worry about choking which I can totally understand. From what we have observed with Baby T she had  a strong gag reflex at 6 months which helped keep choking at bay. Her reflex to this day helps her deal with food that might be a bit to big or even when she on occasion has been distracted and choked a little she dealt with it calmly and with no problem or intervention from us.  


So here are snack and meal ideas that Baby T loved: 


(please note we often did not follow food introduction guidelines - this was our personal choice as we did not have any food allergies in our family BUT do your own research to see if this is right for YOUR family)


Snacks: 


dippers- viggies, bread sticks dipped in hummus, tzatziki, avocado dip, or this one 
dippers sweet - fruit dipped in yogurt 
Banna pops - cut a 2 inch chunk of banana, stick a popsicle stick in it, roll in yogurt, roll in rice  puffs freeze
Smoothies - options are endless, I hope to share my green smoothie cube recipe with you soon (maybe by tonight!) 
Toast fingers - with either butter, tahini, cream cheese (I mix mine with salmon &herbs) peanut butter, mashed banana & cinnamon
seaweed  - we started with the non salted verity used for sushi
Lara bars
Muffins - I make muffins and breads weekly in my house (we used agave or maple syrup instead of honey or sugar to start)

quinoa, roast veggies and canned mackerel or was it left over salmon (?) that we both had for lunch

Meals:
Meat and potatoes - I roasted or steam vegies cut them and the meat in spires (1 inch or so) and let baby go at it
Pasta - I found elbow or the twisty kind the best to start with
Quinoa - I would make a salad with fish and roasted vegies and Baby T would eat it by the hand full (messy but worth the goodness of the meal)
Scrabbled eggs - mix with veggies 
Boiled eggs - cut in wedges 

so happy eating her favourite meal of pasta! we used to have a specific outfit dubbed the 'pasta outfit' for her to wear as it was sooo messy! 

You can do so much the rule of thumb though is to limit salt intake, eat healthy and as many whole-foods as possible. Start with spires but I soon found Baby T got over that and I cute things into cube shapes. Baby T often let me know that she was ready for the next stage of food or for a whole grape opposed to be cutting it in half. You have to trust your baby on this journey, they are in control and that is ok. My belief is that the child should be in control of their food at this stage it should be enjoyable. Make it about learning and they will love to eat and eat well. You are there as a facilitator, support  in case they need you but really they will show you want they can and can't do. 

by 8 months baby t was drinking water out of a shot glass (it was the best sized cup for her!!)

Few tips to help with the mess - get a bib with arms that looks like shirt, get a splat mat or a picnic table cloth to lay under your high chair (we did not bother as we have hard wood), get a dog to avoid clean up (I wish we could!!). 

Pumpkin Bread - getting the good stuff in the little ones

I love making wholesome foods for my family but more then that I love making delicious food! Well this pumpkin bread is delicious and good for you - double yes but even better Baby T eats it up - Hat Trick! 

So here is the recipe, it is a variation of 'ross's pumpkin bread' in The Good Food Book For Families. 


1 1/2 cups pumpkin puree
1/3 cup honey
1/2 cup melted coconut oil
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
2 eggs beaten 
2 cups whole wheat flour
1 tbs Chia
3 tbs millet 
2 tsp baking powder 
1 tsp baking soda
1 1/2 tsp ground nutmeg
1 1/2 tsp ground ginger
1 1/2 tsp cinnamon 
1/4 tsp salt
3/4 cup raisins 

• preheat oven to 350 F 
• Grease and flour a loaf pan and set aside
• Mix together pumpkin puree, brown sugar, coconut oil, vanilla and eggs and set aside 
• In a separate bowl (confession, I rarely do this as I don't want extra dishes, instead I just pour the dry ingredients onto wet right away - tsk, tsk, but it works!) pour into wet stir in raisins
• Pour into prepared loaf pan and bake for approximately 1 hour or until a toothpick inserted into  the centre of the loaf comes out clean. 
• Cool on wire rack for 10 minutes. Turn loaf out of pan and let cool completely on rack (unless you are my husband in which case you butcher the loaf and smother a pice with butter- yum). 

Enjoy!!! 

Snow play!

We have finally been blessed with some snow where we live. I love the snow, kids love the snow! This year Baby T was old enough to really get into snow - literally and cognitively. 


Earlier in the week it was nice enough to go out side and enjoy the snow at the park. Baby T, her little mate Big A and I got to enjoy ourselves before anyone else came along so it was 'virgin snow'! The slide was the most fun as they pushed the snow down the slide with their boddies - sadly I had to be a spotter at the bottom as the gained so much speed they were flying off the end so no pictures of that.  

I was so glade that I was able to take the kids out in the fresh brisk air. I sometimes wonder if children are getting less and less of these opportunities to interact with the natural world for one reason or another and on a day like today if people are saying 'oh it's too cold to bring the kids out side!'. Anywho I did, snotty noses be damned they needed the experience, the fun and most of all the fresh air - in my opinion anyway. 

Today we did not have enough time to get all bundled up and go outside for what is apparently the last snowy day before we get freezing rain tomorrow - boo to that. Since we could not go out side to enjoy the snow I brought some in.  Enjoying the snow inside was wonderful. Were I used to work we would do it all the time and it does bring a whole new dynamic to play involving snow. The play is much smaller, there is less snow and it is in a confined space. I find it can be much more focused depending on the circumstance which leads to more in-depth exploration. Four our little snow play I gathered some 'clean' snow, a tub to put it in, a bunch of laundry scopes, an old apple sauce container and a penguin.  

This activity entertained Baby T for a substantial period of time, very nice for me to sit back and watch!  During her play she spent time, scooping, transferring snow, playing with penguin making tracks, squeezing the snow, dropping the snow (yes it gets a little messy - get a picnic table cloth from the dollar store if your worried), talking.  

Oh yeah and tasting the snow - who can resist, especially my little T who will put anything in her mouth - clean snow, it is important. 


So what is Taya learning, 


Language - as always I verbally observe her actions 'oh you are squishing the snow' 'does that cold feel cold on your hands?' 'look at the penguin tracks your making' etc  and she is talking to me though often in her own language still


Fine motor - small tools such as the scopes help her fine motor skills


There is tons more that she is learning too but the above are the major ones and my brain is half asleep... so let me get back to it!