November 2021 - PLAYWORKEATREPEAT

My List Of Favourite Christmas Movies And TV Shows

3 Comments / My Favourite Movies and TV shows

My List Of Favourite Christmas Movie And TV Shows– One of the things I love the most about this time of the year is watching all the fun Christmas movies and TV shows. There’s nothing better than sitting in your cosy lounge room with the twinkle lights on and settling in to watch a favourite Christmas movie, in your pajamas of course! I have put together my list of favourite Christmas Movies and TV shows. Counting down to number one, these are the movies and TV shows that I will always try and watch every December. 10. The Muppet Christmas Carol (1992) This Christmas musical comedy is adapted from Charles Dickens’ ” A Christmas Carol”. It stars Michael Caine and the cast of muppets. It sticks true to the original storyline with a dash of good muppet humour and memorable quotes. I watch this every year with a group of friends. First, we enjoy a Christmas feast and then we watch the movie. It has become a tradition for us now. The Muppet Christmas Carol is a really fun movie to watch, it has some great dialogue and good bits to sing along to! 9. The Brady Bunch-The Voice Of Christmas (1969) I have always been a huge fan of the Brady Bunch. In this episode, Mrs. Brady loses her voice and can’t sing at church on Christmas Day. Her sweet daughter, Cindy then visits Santa at the mall and begs him to bring her Mummy’s voice back. Every time I watch little Cindy pleading with Santa it just makes me all teary. She’s so cute with those big sad blue eyes. Of course, everything works out in the end. Sigh! And then Mrs. Brady sings! Oh, boy does she sing, what a beautiful voice! 8. The Polar Express (2004) This beautiful movie is actually based on the original book, written by Chris Van Allsburg. It’s about a young boy who is having serious doubts about Santa. One night a train with a conductor visits him and whisks him away to the North Pole. I would have to say that the thing I love the most about this movie is the style of animation. It’s almost like looking at an old-fashioned Christmas card. Every single time I watch this beautiful movie I get serious cravings for hot chocolate! 7. Angels In The Snow (2015) This lovely movie is about a family on the brink of separation. The Mum and Dad are having major relationship problems. They go on vacation to stay at a gorgeous cosy looking log cabin that they have recently built when a huge snowstorm strikes. They are then forced to spend Christmas with a loving family who comes knocking on their door one night asking for help due to the terrible weather. There is one major twist at the end that I did not see coming the first time I watched it. This movie gives me all the cosy feels, just think log cabin in the snow at Christmas time and you’ll know what I mean. Can’t get any more Christmas vibes than this. 6. Falling In Love (1984) This movie starring Robert De Niro and Meryl Streep isn’t your usual Christmas movie just like Die Hard isn’t either. But it definitely makes my list of Christmas movies. It’s about two people who meet briefly in the famous New York city bookstore Rizzzolis while they are shopping on Christmas eve. They strike up a friendship and eventually fall in love. There is however one huge problem, they are both married to other people. (Cringe!!) Ignoring the fact that the movie is about infidelity, it still has a lot of Christmas feel to it. The majority of the movie is set during Christmas time. It’s in New York, there’s snow, bustling city scenes, romance (I know, I know it’s still about infidelity). But it has so many Christmassy-looking locations. I just can’t help liking this movie…….a lot. 5. Christmas With The Kranks (2004) This classic Christmas movie is just hilarious! I love the Kranks! Nora and Luther Krank cause a scandal in their neighborhood. Their daughter Blair is away overseas so they decide to skip Christmas and go on a cruise instead. At the last minute, their daughter rings home to announce she will be coming home to join the Kranks for their annual Christmas eve party after all. The loving parents don’t want to disappoint their daughter, so they embark on a huge mad dash to organise the party at the last minute. This movie has so many laugh-out-loud moments and my favourites would have to be the scene with Tim Allen after he has had botox. And of course the hickory honey ham scene. Every time I watch it I think maybe this time Nora will save the ham! 4. Home Alone (1990) I remember going to the movies to see this and the whole movie theatre going nuts. I love this movie because it is very nostalgic to watch, we all know what is going to happen next but it is still funny. Little Macauly Culkin is so charming as the kid who accidentally gets left home alone when his family all go on a trip overseas. The music in the movie is perfect and the McCallisters home is just exquisite! This is just a classic to watch and that’s right you can “Go ahead and keep the change, you filthy animal”. 3. Love Actually (2003) Ahhhhh what a fantastic movie!! I can’t even pick my favourite part because the whole movie is a favourite. This Christmas-themed romance comedy has so many amazing actors. It’s about eight different couples struggling with love and the way you eventually find out how all the characters are intertwined is so clever. The music, drama, comedy, and sad scenes all make this Christmas movie one of the all-time greatest. 2. The Vicar Of Dibley -The Christmas Lunch Incident (1996) This is my favourite episodes to watch at Christmas time. Dawn French

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A Great Weekend

8 Comments / Hello Monday

Happy Monday friends I hope you are all well and had a great weekend. Mine went by in a blink. But I’ve got a few fun snippets to show you for today’s Hello Monday post. Friday Night Friday night I was pretty exhausted after work. I did a few household chores just so as not to fall behind. Then I had a shower, popped my pyjamas on, and settled down on my comfy lounge to watch Steel Magnolias. Ahhhh I absolutely love this movie, it would have to be one of my favourites. I cry every single time I watch it. So good! I love Friday nights because I can stay up really late and not feel guilty. So I did just that, Steve came home from work super late or should I say early morning!! He watched the last few minutes of Steel Magnolias and then we went to bed. Saturday We had a nice slow morning at home and then in the afternoon, I went shopping with Sam. I would have liked to have done Christmas shopping but we went to get Sam some new clothes. He has outgrown nearly everything!! The Black Friday sales meant a lot of things were discounted so we did pretty well. He found a few T-shirts, shorts and a pair of pants. He shops fast like his Dad, I take forever to decide. We stopped to have something to eat in the food court. It was so busy but we managed to find a table. I had a really delicious Vietnamese roll. It was full of crispy fresh vegetables and a strip of crumbed Barramundi. I really enjoyed it and it was quite filling. Sam had a chicken schnitzel burger and he shared some of his chips with me. We had a really nice time shopping together! When I got home I spent some time cooking for the next day as my oldest son was coming for lunch on Sunday with his lovely fiancee. Sunday Sunday morning I made a quick trip to the Gamesmen to pick something up and I saw this Seinfeld lego set. I am a huge Seinfeld fan and although I am very tempted to buy this I am going to resist. I probably would never have the time to put it together nor the space at home to display it. It is very cute though! The Sesame Street one caught my eye too. Makes me wish I was a kid, I love lego! Ha, good thing I work with children, I seem to have many of the same interests as they do!! On the way home I stopped off at the bread shop where they sell really nice crispy bread rolls. This shop is a bit out of the way and parking is always a problem so I don’t often buy my bread from there. But because it was Sunday it was really quiet and I got a parking spot really fast. On the way back to the car with my bread, I took a photo of a couple of things that caught my attention. Funny, I have lived here forever and I seem to take my surroundings for granted. We have a statue of Miles Franklin. She was a famous Australian writer who wrote”My Brilliant Career”. This is a cute little historical museum that I haven’t visited in a long while. I am going to go back when I have some time in the holidays. We also have an old fire station. This is a Civic Centre where my boys used to have their end-of-year school presentation nights. A few years ago Molly Ringwald performed here too! I got home and got everything ready for lunch. We all enjoyed a lasagna that I made the day before. I made a fresh garden salad to go with it. For dessert, we had a Sara Lee sticky date pudding with ice cream. Sticky date pudding is more of a winter dessert which was just perfect because it still feels like winter! It was fun having my family together for a Sunday lunch. In the early evening after everyone went home. Sam did some school work, he has so many assignments due in the next couple of weeks as well as exams. It’s been so rainy and dreary here in Sydney thanks to La Niña. Keeping up with the laundry has been a challenge, to say the least. Thankfully because it was a pretty dry weekend I was finally able to catch up. So this is one of the highlights of the weekend. Dry laundry!! Who would have thought that such a thing could bring me so much joy!! Unfortunately, I do have a massive pile of folding to do. But at least it’s all dry! Monday Monday morning I was the first one up and I walked into the kitchen to find this guy. I was about to let out a huge scream but I managed to stop myself because I didn’t want to scare everyone who was still asleep. So I was very brave and just let out a little squawk. Then I got rid of it all by myself!! I went to work and showed some of the kids this photo. I am now a superhero in their eyes!! That’s about it for this weekend. It was low-key and fun, just the way I like it! I did have big plans to put the Christmas tree up and decorate but that didn’t happen. I just had no time!! So I’m hoping to do it on Tuesday night. Fingers crossed!! I hope you all had a great weekend and are ready for a brand new week! Happy Monday Friends!!! Linking up with My Glittery Heart for today’s Hello Monday post

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lilynflowering for this weeks highlight of the week post

Highlights Of This Week

End Of Year Fun

2 Comments / Family Life

Hi All and thanks for stopping by for this month’s What’s up Wednesday post. I know I say this all the time but friends I cannot believe how fast the time is flying by. I’m sure I’ll blink and it will be Christmas. Woah! I love November and December because these two months it’s all about end of year fun!! 1. WHAT WE’RE EATING THIS WEEK We’ve been enjoying the freedom to eat out! We had a lovely dinner at our local club for our preschool’s annual end-of-year parent committee meeting/dinner. It was fun being able to eat and chat with the parents. Covid restrictions and protocols are still in place at preschool. This means that parents aren’t allowed to come into the preschool to drop off or pick up. We just meet them at the gate and sign the children in and out. I have always enjoyed getting to know the parents and chatting with them in the mornings and afternoons. Sadly this hasn’t been able to happen this year. So on Tuesday night, it was great to be able to get to know some of the lovely parents while enjoying a delicious meal. I had the snapper. It had the most delicious orange sauce. So good! A piña colada! One of our colleagues brought this amazing cake for dessert. Aside from this, we have also been eating lots of salads at home, I keep thinking that if we eat more salads the weather might warm up. But nope, most days it’s been cold and rainy. Spring where are you???? 2. WHAT I’M REMINISCING ABOUT After lockdown, we have gone from zero to one hundred in terms of the frantic pace of life. The chase is on every day to get “all the things” done. Sigh! I’m missing the quieter, slower routine. 3. WHAT I’M LOVING I’m loving going to fun places like The Grounds Of Alexandria and going thrift shopping at Mitchell Road Antiques. A while back I shared how the last time I was there I had loved a pair of brand new and very bright coloured Orla Kiely shoes. But was all indecisive and didn’t buy them. I then spent the next few weeks annoyed at myself because I couldn’t get those shoes out of my mind. Well, I went back to Mitchell Road Antiques a couple of weeks ago with my lovely friend and they were still there!! I couldn’t believe it. This time I did not hesitate and I snapped them up quick smart. They are super bright and not normally like anything I would go for. But they make me happy. Ha! We had a blast trying on some cool leather jackets! 4. WHAT WE’VE BEEN UP TO WORK WORK WORK!! I’m looking forward to the Christmas break. It’s week 8 this week and we finish up in week 11. Preschool will be closed for 5 weeks of glorious Summer holidays. Let’s hope the weather gets on board! 5. WHAT I’M DREADING Hmmmmm, let me think. Nope, I’m not dreading anything at the moment. These last few weeks are when all the fun stuff happens!! Staff Christmas dinner, Children’s Christmas parties, concerts, watching Christmas movies, and decorating the house. Yes indeed, all the fun stuff!! 6. WHAT I’M WORKING ON I have been super busy putting together the preschool end-of-year movie! It used to be a slide show, but now I would say it’s more of a movie. I take lots of videos and photos of the children throughout the year and now I am putting it all together. I found some great music to go with it too which I am really happy about. There’s one nostalgic song and one upbeat song. This project is a fun challenge for me and I have to admit that I get a bit obsessed with making it. It’s always on my mind and I have the music going on in my head constantly on loop. It will be good when it’s all edited and finished. Then hopefully my brain can have a rest. 7. WHAT I’M EXCITED ABOUT Christmas!! As well as the end of year fun and Christmas holidays. I’ve got a few things that I am planning to do during the break. We’re not going away anywhere but I’m excited about visiting local places and doing day trips. 8. WHAT I’M WATCHING/READING Do you know I used to read all the time? When I was at school I used to have to catch the train and then walk. My school was about an hour away by public transport from my home. Well, the whole trip I would be reading. I would even read as I walked. I’m so glad I didn’t get hit by a bus or something. Now I don’t read hardly at all, there’s just no time. I do however like to have a show on while I am cooking or doing chores. It’s the British shows that I have been really into lately. Recently, I discovered a series called ‘Finding Alice’ and watched season one on ABC iView. The lead actor is Keeley Hawes, the same lady who was in ‘The Durrells’. ‘Finding Alice’ is a comedy/drama series and it was so good. I totally recommend it as it had the right balance of humour and drama with plot twists as well as surprises. Now I have to wait for Season two which doesn’t come out until next year. 9. WHAT I’M LISTENING TO I’ve been listening to Crowded House on Spotify and taking a trip back to my high school days. 10. WHAT I’M WEARING So I’m still wearing winter clothes. Why oh why am I still having to wear jumpers, jackets, and thick bed socks. It’s supposed to be Spring but most days I’ve been freezing!!!! I Haven’t been able to enjoy wearing many spring outfits at all! 11. WHAT I’M DOING THIS WEEKEND I think I will be putting up my Christmas tree and decorating for

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A sign saying"you got this" for negative effects of clutter post

Negative Effects Of Clutter And How You Can Change It

2 Comments / Cleaning and Organising

Negative Effects Of Clutter And How You Can Change It– Without a doubt living in a cluttered environment can have negative impacts on your mental health and general well-being. However, there are many positive steps that you can take towards clearing the clutter from your home as well as your life. When you get rid of the clutter you will reap the benefits and rewards of having more living space in your home, increased vitality, and enthusiasm for doing the things you truly enjoy! Negative Effects Of Clutter Clutter Affects Your Mental Health If you have messy cupboards, piles of paper clutter, and overflowing counter spaces around the home this can have a very negative effect on your mental health. Without a doubt, clutter can leave you feeling anxious, stressed, and even depressed. Clutter Negatively Stimulates Your Mind It is really difficult to be productive in your life if you have clutter surrounding you. If you are constantly wasting time looking for things then this means that you aren’t being very efficient. Not to mention how frustrating this can be! Clutter Is A Joy Killer Clutter can stop you from engaging in activities that you enjoy. For example, If you want to do fun things like exercising, crafts, or even want to sit down to enjoy a book. It will be almost impossible if your living area has piles of mess everywhere taking up valuable space. Clutter Stops You Feeling Relaxed Your mind will not be able to fully relax if all you are seeing is mess and clutter. This is because clutter is telling your mind that there is unfinished work that needs to be taken care of. It’s too hard to relax and enjoy a quiet evening if your living space is in desperate need of attention. Clutter Give You The Guilts If you have excessive clutter in your home it may also mean that you are always living in a state of guilt. The thing is, you really don’t want to be living in a mess and therefore you might be walking around with those annoying nagging thoughts about how you should be more organised. So What Can You Do? If you understand the negative effects of clutter and then begin to realise how it can rob you of enjoying your life and doing the things you love. This might just be the motivation you need to begin the journey towards decluttering and organising your home. It’s never too late and it’s never unachievable. Tips For Decluttering 1. Be realistic Have a good look at all your “stuff” and be honest with yourself about whether or not you are ever really going to use whatever it is you are holding on to. Chances are that once it’s gone you won’t even miss it. 2. Donate Give to charity any clothes, shoes, and bags that you haven’t used or worn in a long while. If it really has been such a long time since you have used that particular item. Then you probably never really loved it to begin with. 3. Sell Have a garage sale and make some money from things that have been taking up valuable space. List them on eBay or Facebook Marketplace. This may take some time and effort but there is a real sense of achievement when you do manage to make some extra cash selling unused items. 4. Choose One Project Pick one area in your home that really annoys you the most and tackle that first. It could be as small as one shelf, drawer, or cupboard. Or you could of course do a whole room. Choose whatever you feel you will be able to start AND finish. 5. Ask Yourself Why You Are Holding On To A Particular Item Seriously consider why you are keeping something “for just in case”. Your lovely home is not a storage unit so don’t treat it like one. 6. Stay Motivated Keep motivated by visualising all the wonderful things you will achieve by getting rid of the clutter. Remind yourself that you will be living a much more stress-free life doing things you enjoy without feeling guilty about the state of your home. 7. Toss Outdated Technology. That broken remote control will probably never get fixed and that old mobile phone will never come back to life again. Trust me. 8. One Box Only Designate one box for each child’s artwork. Be strong and get rid of the rest. 9. Throw Out Old Linen Get rid of mismatched or yellowing linen you might be keeping for guests who may never come to stay. Once you’ve gotten rid of the unused/old linen you can use those amazing vacuum bags to create more space in your linen cupboard. 10. Yes, You Can Buy It Again! Try not to be too harsh and remind yourself that it’s perfectly acceptable to buy again later down the track. We often keep things because we don’t want to waste money repurchasing. BUT by permitting yourself the freedom to do this then it will be easier to get rid of something. Don’t forget that once it’s gone you may never have the desire to buy that similar item ever again. Start Today So why not go ahead, take control of your life today, and don’t let clutter control you. Here is a practical list of 20 things you can get rid of to declutter your home. This can help you to start your journey towards a clutter-free home.

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Christmas Gift Ideas For Teachers

4 Comments / Christmas

‘Tis the season to show appreciation and spread some holiday cheer! As a childcare educator myself, I know firsthand the joy that comes from receiving thoughtful gifts during the Christmas season. That’s why I am excited to share with you some amazing Christmas gift ideas for teachers that are sure to bring a big smile to their faces. Christmas Gift Ideas For Teachers 1. A Pretty Teacup and Saucer Quite a few years ago a lovely preschool mum gave me the most beautiful teacup and saucer from an Australian specialty tea shop called T2. If I have had a particularly busy or stressful day and feel like I need to do something special to treat myself and practice a bit of self-care. I will go ahead and use my teacup and saucer. And do you know what? Every time I do, I not only enjoy my tea more but also think of the beautiful mum and her lovely boys who gave me this gift. So special! 2. A Christmas Ornament I love receiving Christmas ornaments! Every time I do I make sure to use a permanent marker to write the name of the student who gave it to me and the year on the bottom of the ornament. I am so glad I do this because every year when I decorate my tree, I can also go down memory lane. Plus, I am sure I would have forgotten who gave me what if I didn’t do this. 3. Candles I just love candles! My home will usually have a soy candle burning in the evening. The sweet scent of a burning candle just makes everything feel cosy. Last year a lovely mum even made her own candles which she then gave to us as Christmas gifts. I don’t think you can ever go wrong when you give a teacher a candle. If you are not sure what scent to choose, I think vanilla is probably the safest. 4. Homemade Granola A few years ago a very clever preschool parent gave the teachers at preschool some delicious homemade granola. She put the granola in a nice mason jar and decorated it with a cute Christmas ribbon and gift tag. I thought this was a really clever gift and I really enjoyed eating the granola. Speaking of granola I have a delicious and healthy granola recipe that you can find here! Maybe you might be inspired to do this for your child’s teacher this Christmas. 5. Wine Wine is a wonderful gift idea! I love getting a bottle of wine as a gift. I have also seen some very funny and clever tags that you can attach to the bottle. 6. Water Bottle Water bottles are a great and really useful gift. One year I was given an R2D2 water bottle with my name on it. Haha, this family knew how much I love Star Wars! I have had this bottle for quite a few years now and I probably need to replace it soon. Lucky Christmas is just around the corner! 7. Personalised Pencils Anything personalised is really cool in my book. I was given these cute pencils with my name on them quite a few years ago. They sit inside a nice wooden pencil holder on my desk and I use them all the time. 8. Bags Teachers always have so much stuff to carry and a bag comes in so handy. Last year a clever preschool mum made each of us a bag. All the love, care, and hard work that goes into homemade presents just amazes me. Not to mention how clever I think these sewing mums are! Of course, it doesn’t have to be handmade. There are many affordable and lovely-looking bags you can find in the shops. So trust me, teachers will always find any bag very useful! 9. Iced Coffee Tumbler I love using my Starbucks Iced coffee tumbler. This was a present from a little preschool friend who knows how much I enjoy going to Starbucks! Sometimes when I take it to work the kids beg me to show them what’s inside. They are convinced I am drinking a milkshake, sorry to disappoint them but I only use it for water or for cold-infused tea. 10. Gift Cards I have been generously given Westfields gift cards and bookstore gift cards, movie cards as well as Starbucks gift cards. Luckily you can’t tell when I am blushing because sometimes the amount on these cards is very blushworthy! So much kindness!! 11. Custom-Made Gifts These are so special too. A few years ago one of my little preschool friends gave me this beautiful custom-made picture that I really cherish. It’s got her name on it and the year she gave it to me. 12. Hand Cream Working in preschool means that I probably wash my hands 3645 times a day. Consequently, my hands are always dry. Moisturizing hand cream is such a great gift that I will always use. One year I received a cute set of little tubes of hand cream. These were great for carrying around in my handbag. 13. Chocolates Chocolates are always a firm favourite and my favourite chocolates are Ferrero Rocher. I usually receive a few gift boxes full of these and they always make me so happy. I always associate Ferrero Roche chocolates with Christmas because that is usually the only time I eat them. They also look so nice when I put them in my Christmas bowls on the coffee table. Happy Shopping! As I mentioned before, I am always thankful and touched by the generosity and kindness of the parents and children from preschool who give me Christmas presents. If you are currently thinking about what to give your child’s teachers this Christmas. I really hope that you find this list of Christmas gift ideas for teachers helpful!

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Some Funny Quotes-For When Life Gets You Down

2 Comments / Friday Favorites

Hi All and Happy Friday! I thought that for today’s Friday favourites post I would share some funny quotes. These funny quotes might just sum up my week and what I have been feeling. I honestly can’t remember the last time I was so happy to see the end of a week. Friends, it’s been a doozy. Blah! I always want to keep this blog happy and positive, but I’m not going to lie, this week was rough and I am grateful to see the weekend. I think I might just hide under a blanket this weekend and then come Monday everything will be new and fresh. Here’s hoping! This is exactly what I did earlier in the week when I was trying to do a U-turn on my way to work. I couldn’t see if I was going to hit a parked car with all that talking on the radio. Sigh! Exactly! Goodness, I thought I might have snapped my neck when I turned my head the other day. Not fair is it? This kind of thinking might have also been one of the reasons for my lack of sleep this week. I wore some pants to work that made me feel like this. Now they have either shrunk or I have expanded. Either way, I am no longer friends with them! Looking after everyone with different schedules always has me eating late. I need to fix this pronto. Most of my friends who know me well know about my constant battle with frizzy hair. I have tried so many products and while some of them do work better than others. I always end up with an annoying kink in my fringe. This week was rainy and humid. Then some mornings it was freezing and then by the afternoon, we were all melting. I applied extra hair product and that was that! It was frizzy but not scary frizzy. Small wins! Amen to this! Well, if I’m completely honest by Thursday this definitely applied to me. Thankfully I get to see my sunny friend nearly all week at work. And because my sunny friend is also one of the sweetest and kindest people in the whole world. She sent me this and so by Friday afternoon I felt much better. It’s such a blessing to have friends who care. Well, that’s it for today. I really hope you all have a fantastic weekend! Although this week was not a favourite, these quotes certainly were. Hope you enjoy them as much as I did! For today’s post, I am linking up with Andrea and Erika

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Easy Pumpkin Risotto Recipe

4 Comments / Recipes

Easy Pumpkin Risotto Recipe– This easy and very delicious pumpkin risotto recipe is sure to be a hit as a main meal with your family or dinner guests at your next dinner party. It would also make a delicious side dish too! With Thanksgiving coming up so soon this recipe is sure to add a little extra zing to your Thanksgiving menu! As it’s a little different from other regular sides and also a bit fancy. I must admit that when it comes to cooking risotto I usually feel a little less than confident. But if you follow this easy recipe and remember a few simple tips. You will end up with a great dish that will be sure to become a favourite. This easy pumpkin risotto got a double thumbs up from my family and my mother even loved it. She was an amazing cook in her heyday and she is a really tough critic! Pumpkin Is Good For You Pumpkin also has so many great health benefits too because it’s packed with nutrients. So adding some into your diet in creative ways is a great idea! Pumpkin contains beta carotene which is a powerful antioxidant Fiber, potassium, and vitamin C that is found in pumpkin is great for the health of your heart Vitamin C, Vitamin E, and beta carotene that is found in pumpkin will benefit the health of your eyes. Pumpkin is a great source of fiber These are just a few of the nutrients that are found in pumpkins. With so many health benefits it’s a great idea to find ways to incorporate some into your weekly menu. Easy Pumpkin Risotto Recipe Ingredients 250g – 300g pumpkin 1 tbsp olive oil 1 large onion chopped salt and pepper to taste 2 cloves garlic crushed 1 ½ cups Arborio rice ⅓ cup white wine 4 cups chicken stock 1 cup of cooked pumpkin 3/4 cup Parmesan cheese grated Fresh parsley Instructions Cut pumpkin into medium-sized cubes and cook in boiling water. Then once it is cooked set aside In a large frypan add olive oil and cook chopped onion and crushed garlic. Cook until the onion is slightly translucent. Add rice and cook stirring often for approximately 1 minute. Add the wine and ½ to 1 cup chicken stock and stir. Cook until liquid is almost all absorbed, remember to stir constantly. Continue until the stock is fully absorbed. Repeat this process until there’s no stock left and the rice is fully cooked. Stir the cooked pumpkin cubes through the rice add the parmesan cheese, and continue to cook until the pumpkin is heated through. Remove from heat and serve immediately. Garnish with more parmesan cheese and chopped parsley. Recipe Notes Make sure to add the stock one cup at a time Stir consistently Serve your risotto straight away. If you prefer you could mash the pumpkin and then stir it into the risotto. I prefer cubes because to me it looks better when it is served. Other Recipes If you are looking for other sides, why not try this recipe for easy and creamy mashed potatoes. References https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/279610#nutrition

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The Benefits Of Water Play In Early Childhood

Leave a Comment / Insights Into Early Childhood Education

The Benefits Of Water Play In Early Childhood– Children love playing with water. Whether it’s in the bathtub at home, at the beach, pool, or in an early childhood setting. Kids just love water play! It is a fun, soothing sensory activity that will provide them with lots of entertainment. In addition to this, the good news is that water play also has many learning and development benefits too. What is Water Play? The simple definition of water play is just playing with water using a variety of tools such as buckets, funnels, waterwheels, and pumps to name a few. In early childhood settings, you can usually find large troughs especially used for water play. They are usually big enough so that many children can stand around scooping, splashing, and pouring. The Benefits Of Water Play In Early Childhood Just like sand, water is another natural resource that is great for purposeful play. Furthermore, just like sandpit play, water play also has many important educational benefits. Some of these are Develop Motor Skills Develop Social Skills Language Development Builds creativity and Imagination Promotes Cognitive Development Develop Motor Skills Water play involves lots of scooping, pouring, squeezing, and filling. These actions are very beneficial for the development of hand and eye coordination as well as for refining fine motor skills. Children will give their large muscles a great workout when they play with water in pools, at the beach or when running through a sprinkler. Develop Social Skills When children play with water around a water trough they will usually be chatting to their friends, taking turns, or negotiating with their peers. Water play is a great opportunity for kids to interact with each other and work together. During water play, you will often observe kids helping each other to achieve a common goal. For example, lifting a heavy bucket of water and pouring it over a water wheel is hard work. There is a lot of coordination and strength needed for this simple activity. Children soon learn that activities such as this are better achieved when one does the pouring and the other holds the water wheel in place. Great teamwork practice! Language Development Water play encourages kids to use definitive words that are used for complex concepts. For example, sinking and floating. The tools used in water play such as funnels and sieves are also probably words that children wouldn’t normally come across at an early age. Children love to chat with their friends, parents, or carers while they are playing. So you could look for opportunities to ask your child intentional questions that will prompt them to think, verbalise what they are doing and predict what may happen next during their play. Water play is just so much more than a fun activity. It also provides so many valuable opportunities to enrich and extend children’s thinking and vocabulary. Learn About Maths and Science Water play is perfect for introducing children to many science and maths concepts. Children can learn about things like capacity, volume and motion. They can also be introduced to terms such as full/empty, more/less, shallow/deep. Water play can also encourage the development of scientific enquiry because it fosters children’s curiosity. It will stimulate their thinking prompting them to ask questions such as “What will happen if ?” Stimulates Creativity and Imagination Water play is a perfect activity that will build a child’s creativity depending on what toys or tools they have to play with. Water play doesn’t need to be limited to buckets, cups, and waterwheels. There are so many other fun things that you can use. As parents and carers, you really are only limited by your imagination in what you provide for your kids. Equipment, Tools, and Ideas For Water Play Water play is such a wonderful open-ended activity with so many amazing learning benefits that kids will enjoy. Here are some ideas and suggestions for things you could provide for your children the next time they enjoy some fun and refreshing water play! Children love to care for dolls and babies during pretend play. Why not add some of these along with some tubs, washcloths, and soap. You could also give them some towels too so they can dry their babies. Think of all the fun imaginary play your kids will have with this favourite activity. Go ahead and add things like small plastic fish or frogs to the water trough or tub you may have at home. Then give your children some safe tongs for them to “fish” with. This is a perfect activity for strengthening their fine motor skills. If you add trucks and cars along with a good splash of mild detergent you will have an instant carwash! Dinosaurs and other plastic animals are also great for washing. If you give children sponges too then this will add further opportunities for them to work the muscles in their hands. Bubbles are always such a firm favourite. If you add a good amount of detergent and glycerine you will get the best bubbles ever. What’s better than normal bubbles? Well, I would definitely say giant bubbles! If you add some hoops then this is exactly what you will get along with guaranteed hours of fun, squeals, and excitement. Adding food colouring to the water is another great idea. Then if you provide different sizes of cups and containers along with other measuring equipment you will have busy scientists at work. The benefits of water play in early childhood are so extensive. It is such a simple and fun activity that children enjoy at preschool and early learning centres. But it doesn’t only need to happen there. Water play is something that could just as easily be done at home in a safe and supervised environment.

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