In the almost 3 years that I have been writing this blog, I have been blessed to have some fabulous experiences, but none quite so fabulous, quite so amazing, as what I am soon to be embarking upon.

Thanks to my fabulous blog agency, Bloggerati by Nuffnang, who are responsible for coordinating the majority of the work I do for clients, and Dubai Tourism, I, along with 20 of Australia's top bloggers, will be going on a Bloggerati Getaway to Dubai!

Whilst this is a location that excites me for all the obvious reasons, (the culture, the architecture, the shopping, the food, the wonder, the opulence, the experiences!) there is a reason, even closer to my heart that makes Dubai somewhere that I have desperately wanted to go to. My closest cousin and her family live in Dubai!

Photo Credit: Lisa Penderis

Growing up, Julie-Anne and I were very close as we were the only female cousins out of many. We spent many school holidays staying at one another's houses, were bridesmaids in each others weddings and she's the closest thing I've ever had to a sister. When Julie-Anne and her husband, Corey, moved to Dubai for work, the family were sad to lose them but they told us that it would be for a maximum of 2 years. Well, its been almost 7 years now (!!) and they have no plans to return home to Oz yet. They love it there. As you can see by the above picture, since living in Dubai, my first-cousin-once-removed was born. I have been wanting to visit them ever since they left and I am so incredibly excited to finally be getting the opportunity!

Photo Credit: Lisa Penderis 

I asked them recently, Why should families visit Dubai? They said:

• To experience a different culture (there are a lot of misconceptions regarding the Middle East)
• Architecture (Dubai has a mix of both Arabic and modern contemporary buildings which creates a unique and interesting landscape)
• Local attractions (everything is bigger, better, opulent)
• Dubai is conveniently positioned as a layover/stopover to other destinations.

Photo Credit: Dubai Tourism

While I am there, I will be sussing out things for the time when I will be able to bring my whole family over to Dubai. I am very keen to find out how kid-friendly Dubai really is and hopefully uncover some of the lesser known places to go or experiences to do with children. 

My own children will not be accompanying me on this trip which gives us even more reason to learn about Dubai, The United Arab Emirates (UAE) and the Middle East together, as a way to include them in my experience. 

Photo Credit: Dubai Tourism

Before I leave, the kids and I will be looking closer at the Geography and a little bit of History of Dubai and the Middle East. We will learn how to research about other places as we discover more about the culture and customs of my destination. (We will also see how important it is to research your destination before you go, especially as I pack).

When I return, I can't wait to show the children Dubai through my eyes and use my photos and experiences to inspire further learning and exploration together. My kids are already keen to cook a Middle Eastern dish (I'll have to try out lots of food while I'm there to find a suitable recipe. It's ok, I'll manage... for the kids) and I know that the incredible architecture and sights could well inspire some fabulous construction building and art work.

Photo Credit: Dubai Tourism

Whilst in Dubai, I will be joining the #MyDubai initiative, created by His Highness Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Crown Prince of Dubai and Chairman of the Dubai Executive Council. The intention is to celebrate the everyday lives of the people and communities of the Emirate and show the city that is beneath the landmarks, headlines and superlatives. The Australian #MyDubai initiative will provide the opportunity to showcase and uncover some of Dubai’s hidden gems and lesser-known highlights to the Australian market.

Want to come with us?

That's right, we are actually taking one, (very lucky), blog reader plus a friend, with us to Dubai! The trip will include airfares from your capital city, accommodation and activities. (You won't have to hang out with us the whole time.)

It's really simple to enter, all you have to do is tell us, on social media, "What do you dream of in Dubai?" with the hashtags #NNDubaiDreams #mydubai 

For your entry to be valid, be sure follow the below instructions: 

- Post your answer to the question "What do you dream of in Dubai?" on your choice of platform (Facebook, Twitter or Instagram)

- Your answer can be text, image or video and must be publicly visible
- You must use the two hashtags #NNDubaiDreams and #mydubai

This giveaway is open to Australian residents & will close at 5pm AEDST on November 12th 2014.  Full terms & conditions available HERE.  Competition details are also available HERE.

Good luck,

Debs :)

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Finding good quality, affordable educational toys and materials is not always easy from home. That's why when I'm introduced to places that have these things available, I love to share them with you. This post is sponsored by Parent Direct and Nuffnang.

As a school teacher, one of the many jobs I loved doing was the ordering for the classroom. We usually did the bulk of our ordering at the end of the year so that the supplies would arrive before the new school year started. I would love pouring over the catalogues from educational suppliers and checking out all the fabulous educational resources available.

When I had my own children and was on family leave from teaching, like many parents, I was excited about buying toys and materials for my children. That's the really fun stuff! (Especially if you love to play too.) I was already aware of the awesome resources available for children to play and learn, and these were the sort of toys I wanted for my children. I discovered though, that finding these toys and resources was actually more difficult than I'd thought. I knew the names of a number of educational distributors and attempted to find places to buy or order their goods. I often found the sites and the ordering to be overwhelming though. Many are not really set up for individual purchasers (more for schools or bulk orders) and require you to print out large forms and fax them off. Often with freight costs, the items would end up too expensive.

It wasn't until my daughter was attending 3 year-old kinder that we started getting the fundraising catalogues sent home. I couldn't wait for the book club ones (yay, love book club!) but I was even more delighted when we were sent the ones for educational toys! Finally I had a way to not only easily purchase the educational toys I wanted, but to also help our school or centre. What a great idea!

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I am delighted to bring you another great ebook. This hands-on book full of maths and science activities has been collaborated on by a fabulous group of bloggers and is jam packed full of fun activities with easy to follow instructions and explanations. With multiple authentic learning opportunities in maths and science, incorporating art, sensory learning, motor skills and discovery, for a whole-brain approach.

Whether you are a teacher in the classroom or a parent at home, you will love the clear text, bright pictures and ideas for further learning, brought to you by a group of mums and teachers that have tried and tested all of these activities. With 20 printable resources that you can use to complement the activities or for your own creative pursuits, I am sure you will enjoy your copy of Fizz, Pop, Bang! Playful Science and Math Activities. 40 Projects for ages 3 to 8.

BUY NOW: $9.99 USD

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I've always wanted to do some sewing with my kids, but being someone who's not big on sewing herself, I've found it hard in the past to get motivated about it and wasn't entirely sure where to start. When our friend, Trixi from Coloured Buttons sent us a copy of her new book, "Sew Together, Grow Together" I knew this was going to be my best shot at giving it a go.

I love the idea of sewing with children as they would need to practice fine-motor skills and hand-eye coordination, it allows them to be creative and resourceful, not to mention the fact that we could create, by hand, special, beautiful and useful things. Sewing can be challenging for children and they need to practice patience and concentration. The best part is the pride that they feel from creating, accomplishing something and learning something new.

One minor problem with attempting to do some sewing with my daughter (aged 5) was that her younger brother (almost 3) always wanted to join in too. As he doesn't have naps and we were yet to find a time that we could try sewing without him around, I needed something that would allow him to join in as well.

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Having a baby (especially your first) can be an overwhelming experience. The world of BABY/KID STUFF is an extensive one, full of items you never knew you "needed" or even existed.

When it comes to entertaining your baby, the most wonderful toy for them is you. 

Watching you, listening to you, touching you. Time with you and other caring people is invaluable for their development.

There are also many fabulous pre-made toys and items for babies that in addition to the company of you and others, can help entertain, stimulate, sooth and aid in their development. 

There are so many things out there that you could be continually buying something new, however it's just not necessary. 

Often, with many of the toys marketed towards babies, they are able to use them very limitedly before they either out-grow or get bored by them. 

This is where making your own toys can be beneficial as you can provide new and stimulating items for them, often for a very low cost (sometimes completely free) and little effort.

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Getting a little bored of sandwiches in the school lunchbox, and wanting to include some different vegetables, we thought we'd make some yummy Cheese and Veg Muffins.

Involving the children in the cooking process meant they were much more likely to give them a try and it gave us plenty of opportunities for chatting about foods and healthy eating, as well as engaging the kids in the math, science, literacy and kitchen skills that come with cooking.

We've previously made a savoury ham, cheese and spinach muffin with great results so it was easy for us to tweak this one up in the healthy notches by replacing the ham with extra veggies. 

Using the base recipe, you can swap the included veggies for ones that you have available or that your kids prefer. 

Using similar quantities to what we have here will make a light and fluffy muffin, or you could add even more veggies for a slightly heavier, denser muffin. It's fun experimenting.

Cooking with kids: Here's how to do it. Children will require adult supervision in the kitchen and may require some assistance with some of the steps. 

The picture steps below make it easier for children to follow along and do the cooking themselves. See the bottom of the post for the simple instructions in full.

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One of the things that children in Victoria, Australia are taught in their first year of Primary School, is writing between the lines in order to develop their handwriting. 

Once children have developed their fine motor skills, worked on learning letters and practiced writing on blank paper and with other mediums to develop their letter formation, they are usually introduced to handwriting paper with dotted-thirds to assist them in writing letters of consistent size and format.

A little trick I used in my classroom to help children learning to write in dotted-thirds was, "Clever Cat." 

Clever Cat's bottom sits on the solid base line and his body takes up the first gap. His head sits on top, occupying the second gap up between the dotted lines and his tail dangles below the solid line, extending to the first dotted line below.

Clever Cat for handwriting works as a fun visual aid to assist children in remembering where letters should sit between the lines and their sizing. 

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Inspired by the Disney Junior Doc McStuffins series, the kids have been very interested in role-playing Doctors lately. 

While they were busy the other day, I set up a little Invitation to Play Doctors, utilising the free printable Toy Check-up Checklist from the Disney Junior website, some willing toys as patients and other bits and bobs from around the house.

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This post is sponsored by LEGO DUPLO and Nuffnang

In this post we show you a variety of different ways to play and learn with LEGO DUPLO.

LEGO DUPLO has been a part of my life since my earliest memories. My brothers and I played DUPLO a lot while we were growing up, before they moved onto LEGO and I got lost in a world of books.

My kids (aged 2 and 5) play LEGO DUPLO often now as well. I couldn't wait to bring out the set that I used to play with as a child. My kids started playing with that set (just as I had) and have since added to our collection.

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This post is sponsored by Disney Junior and Nuffnang

I grew up watching Disney cartoons every Sunday morning. I remember my brothers and I waking at the crack of dawn to sneak into the lounge and watch hours of glorious cartoons before our parents woke up. (I also distinctly remember waking our parents in a panic one weekend morning when we discovered the cartoons were missing! Turns out that it was daylight saving time and actually around 4-5am. haha. It's funny the memories we hold on to.) 
Watching cartoons is a child's right to passage and these days, Disney Junior have developed the kind of characters and messages that make cartoons for preschoolers something more than just entertainment. They are a resource that parents and teachers can use to help teach and reinforce the important life, health and wellbeing messages that we are continually trying to get across.

Choosing the right shows for your children

When it comes to my children watching television and participating in screen-time through different technological mediums such as computer, tablets, smart phones, etc., I am very careful to ensure that I am monitoring what my children are exposed to and for how long. These days, I've found that there are so many shows aimed at kids out there that are full of language, actions and messages that I find unnecessary (and sometimes completely inappropriate) for my children to be watching. If they are going to be sitting there, staring at a screen, then I would like that time to still be of some benefit to them and their overall education, health and wellbeing. This means that the shows we actually watch are pretty limited. I pre-record television shows as I don't think children need to sit through ads and we watch shows that tend to promote and reinforce the messages, values and lessons learnt at home.

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