Hi Families!

Today we had all 8 of our babies at school! It is always fun to see how the older babies interact with the younger ones and vice versa. Today Miles and Judah were particularly interested in their younger friends. Shortly after he arrived, Miles was seated next to Finn, who was lying on the carpet. They exchanged looks and Miles touched Finn's belly and arm in a gentle manner. It was such a sweet interaction to watch! Later, Judah showed interest in Naomi. I had just finished giving her a bottle and he came up to us and held a plastic carrot out to her. She studied him, but when she did not take the carrot he put it down and touched her gently on her cheek. Julia also loves the little ones and she will often rock them in the bouncy chairs. I love watching the babies become interested in each other and begin to develop methods of communication and social interaction. 

Today Tula got to spend the afternoon with the pretots, who she will be joining on Monday. From what I hear both her and Judah  have had great times on their playdates with the pretots. Both Finn and Ronav are working on holding their bottles, which eventually will help them become more independent. Hank has adjusted to our room nicely, and he has been watching all his older friends sit and crawl and walk. 

I hope everyone is having a great evening! I don't have too many pictures today, but enjoy!

<3 Magdalen

Hi Friends!

I hope everyone's week is going well! I was happy to see all the babies again after the long weekend and meet our new friend Hank, who is quickly making the adjustment to being in our room. The weather was beautiful today so the older babies spent some quality time out on the deck exploring the toys out there, playing music on our music wall, and bouncing a big red ball. Our younger friends were still napping during this time, so I was not able to get pictures of them, but we'll be sure to have some tomorrow. 

Recently we have been reading lots of books about animals and talking about their different sounds. While some of our friends flip through the books on their own, others sit back and take in the pictures and sounds. We have also been singing a lot, and many of the babies dance along when we do! 

Have a wonderful evening! Sandy and Crystal will be with the babes tomorrow.

<3 Magdalen

p.s. for anyone who might not have my contact info, here it is: phone number 512-216-4796 and email magrose721@gmail.com

Happy Tuesday infant families!  I hope that everyone had an amazing long weekend.  We are so excited to be back and share all about Hank's incredible first day of school.  I would like to add that all of Hank's friends were very welcoming to him today and played so nicely around him, making sure to give gentle touches to our new friend.  We had a super fun morning!  We rolled balls across the floor, read all of our favorite books, and checked out a few new toys that were introduced in the room.  Today, everyone was all about the xylophone!  Our friends are very musical, and really enjoy showing off their talents with one another.  

In the afternoon, we went out on the deck to soak in some sun.  Hank relaxed in the bouncer and checked out the scene, while Finn sat up in a bumbo and fiddled with the rotating number blocks.  Ronav spent his time tapping a lid against the floor, while Tula explored the bag of bows.  Judah pushed around the over-sized cars and threw the hand balloon around.  
We had a fabulous day.  It seems like everyone was glad to be back in school today, including the teachers.

On that note, I want to take this time to make sure that everyone has Crystal's contact info.  This week Magdalen and I are transitioning to a new schedule minus Jackie, so Crystal will be in the classroom full time, and either Magdalen or I will split the other shift.  Crystal's number is 361-756-9426.  She will be happy to answer any of your questions.  Hope everyone has a wonderful week!
xoxo,
Sandy

Happy Thursday everyone!  

Good Evening Infant Families!

I hope everyone had a great day! We certainly did :) As many of you know, our day started out quite loud in the infant room. However, it quieted down once we settled in to our routine. We started the day with snacks at the table. This allowed those who are eating solids to greet each other and "chat" while taking in some nourishment. Meanwhile, those who are younger were able to have some space and adjust to being at school. After snack we sang many of our favorite songs, including "Open Shut Them," "Twinkle Twinkle," "ABCD," and "Ba Ba Black Sheep." We also read a book about opposites and looked at pictures of animals. This was followed by bottle time and winding down for nap. We darken the room and turn on the sound machine before we start patting the babies so that they have time to adjust to the sleep setting. 

After nap we had lunch. As more and more of our friends are eating solids, this is a great time for them to interact and become familiar with the baby signs. After lunch we read stories, sang songs, and had free play time. Our babies are all working on different skills. Julia is starting to free stand and cruises on everything as she prepares to walk. Finn and Naomi are working on sitting up. Miles is getting closer and closer to crawling. Ronav is learning to hold his own bottle and he is very interested in feeding himself. Tula loves reading books and is working on learning new words. 

As you can see, we are very busy in the infant room. 

Below is a slideshow that combines pictures from yesterday and today. Enjoy and have a wonderful night! 

<3 Magdalen

Hello Families,

My computer is not allowing me to upload pictures so this week we will combine today and tomorrow's blogs. Have a great night!

Hello families,
Today we enjoyed the sunshine and we were able to go outside for quite a while before second nap. While outside we sang songs that introduce clapping which everyone loved especially Tula who clapped with us. Fin also sat in my lap and I helped him clap his hands while Miles, Julia and Ronav smiled and enjoyed the music we were creating.
Early childhood classroom teachers believe in the power of music to engage children as well as to promote the following...
 Reading Comprehension and Verbal Memory •    Listening Skills •    Vocabulary, including for English Language Learners •    Phonological and Phonemic Awareness •    Writing and Print Awareness •   Of course we always encourage families to sing as much as possible with their babies to help with development in these areas.

Also, while outside everyone explored different materials. Tula was very interested in bouncing balls and playing on the drum. Ronav was engaged by a truck and measuring cup. He rolled the truck back and forth and banged the cup on the ground. He seemed to really enjoy the sound that the banging made. Julia was all over the place playing with balls and was very interested in a tent that was set up as well as climbing on her teachers. Both Miles and Fin loved a small horse rocker that is outside. Enjoy the photos and happy Friday!

Happy Thursday Friends!
We are coming to the end of another fabulous week.  Our new friend Ronav is adjusting quite well, and all of the other babies seem to be very excited to have him in our room.  Next week we will have two new friends joining our group.  One of them is Naomi, who everyone has heard about, and the other is Crystal our new infant teacher!  We are so excited for Crystal to be joining our GS community.  Beginning on Monday, Crystal will be in our room to shadow our current teachers and get some training.  She had a great time subbing in our room on Wednesday, and is very excited to be coming in as a full time teacher.

In other news, we had a fabulous day.  In the morning we sang some of our very favorite songs including, Good Morning, The Itsy Bitsy Spider, and Baby Beluga.  In the afternoon, we read books and explored the outside deck.  Finn relaxed in the bouncer while Tula splashed toys in water.  Miles worked on the stacker set while Ronav chased balls back and forth.  The sun was shining and everyone was so happy to be getting in a good dose of vitamin D. 

I apologize for the missing blogs on Tuesday and Wednesday, but we have had a lot of people out due to illness and there has been some miscommunication.  I hope that the photos today can make up for it ;)  I hope everyone is having a great week.  Oh, and for tomorrows schedule Mike and Magdalen will be working the am shift while Jackie and I take the pm shift.  We apologize for the inconvenience.  I look forward to seeing you tomorrow.
xoxo
Sandy