Let's Play School!

Based on one of her favorite Barney episodes Manahil and I recreated Baby Bop's school, for pre-preschoolers. Just like Baby Bop we started by teaching our make-believe students the "Itsy-bitsy spider" with a toy spider, then we learnt the alphabet on Manahil's magnetic board, learnt about shapes and colors, read red riding hood aloud (the book contains audio and read itself since Manahil can't read) and for lunch everyone gorged on Baby Bop's favorite, mac and cheese! There was also the bonus gym class where everyone indulged in Baby Bop's favorite exercise, hopping. I think that was Manahil's favorite part by far. To top it all off, since Manahil has a pretty lame mom who can't help but learn kiddie movie songs by heart, we sang all the songs that come in the Barney episode!

To try this at home you will need:
- some poems to sing
- some books to read
- a make-shift chalk board (the magnetic board in our case)
- some shapes and colors to play with
- some home made mac and cheese
- a bunch of stuffed animal students
- one teacher baby
- at least one disgruntled and unwilling student baby (a.k.a Rayyan)

I think Manahil and I will play this again tomorrow!

The Moment All Mommies Wait For

The moment comes quite suddenly. One minute all you can hear is a chorus of wails and the next, you have two little angels asleep on your arms.

I feel a little shaky even as I write this. About half a minute ago all hell had broken loose in my tiny apartment. Manahil was overtired which meant that she neither wanted to sleep nor stay awake (no, I don't know how she was expecting to accomplish that either). Rayyan was extremely sleepy but had already fallen asleep and jerked awake several times so now he was ready to be disturbed at the slightest sound (and let me assure you, Manahil's wail goes way over and above a slight sound). So, there I was, in utter confusion, singing lullabies, playing good cop, playing bad cop, essentially trying everything under the sun to get Manahil to calm down long enough for Rayyan to fall asleep but fate had something worse in store.

As I struggled to feed Rayyan and get Manahil to lie down at the same time, Manahil stumbled and hit her head on the side of the bed! There was tons more wailing as I left Rayyan to his devices to cuddle my poor little baby. Three and half minutes later Rayyan was snoring soundly and so was Manahil.

How does it go from complete chaos to complete peace in the space of a few minutes? It baffles me. I guess it's a teensy reminder of armageddon; from our peaceful lives we'll be jerked into complete chaos. Ok, enough philosophizing. Mommies out there, I beseech you, please tell me this has happened to you before and help me overcome this massive guilt.

But anyway, let's end this on a happy note. We made a family trip to Jarir bookstore today and here is the haul!

-Cardboard books for manahil (so that Rayyan can't chew them up in her absence) especially red riding hood because Barney reads that one out loud
-canvas. Lots and lots of canvas. *big grin*
-gorgeous moist water paints courtesy of Fatima Hassan (you give the best presents ever!)
-chart paper and double sided sticky paper for my next activity with Manahil
-blue spray paint that I accidentally bought, thinking it was fixer *face palm* (never mind, I'll think of a way to use it)

Can't wait to get cracking!

The Impromptu Game of Dance-tag

Let me introduce everyone to: The Impromptu Game of Dance-Tag. This is the kind of game that comes in real handy when you are sleep-deprived, with two vaccinated babies on your hands (who cannot seem to forget that their thighs are sore) and artwork has been suspended indefinitely *big sigh*.

It involves turning on any random song, (in our case this was old mcdonald on Manahils counting train), then everyone can just pick up a freestyle dance and occasionally hold hands and go round in a circle till they're dizzy. And when the dance starts to get old or the song finishes you just chase each other up and down the house, climbing over beds and hiding behind doors till you're thoroughly exhausted with laughing and everyone has completely forgotten that an hour ago, they felt they were unable to move their legs.

To try this at home you will need:
-one repetitive song
-one baby to dance and scream "karo! Karo!" If you, god forbid, pause for breath
-one spectator baby to watch and be entertained

Have fun! 

The Mad Hatter's Tea Party

So today, Manahil hosted a tea party for all her friends. And did she love being the bossy host! Needless to say, Rayyan was not overjoyed. But, it kept them entertained for long enough for me to sneak off and get some top-secret work done.

Don't worry, if I'm successful I'll let ya'll know what I'm up to. Pray for me and wish me luck!!

PS: To hold a successful tea party you need:
- a teapot, teacups and some plastic treats
-a bunch of funny looking toys
-a makeshift home (like a playpen)
-1 bossy baby
And if you're very lucky,
-1 baby willing to be bossed.
Good luck!