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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Helping develop your child's speech through play.

We're always told not to compare children. They're all different and all do things in their own way, in their own time. In fact, a favourite quote of mine is,

"Not all children are ready to learn the same thing at the same time in the same way." 

- Kathy Walker

However, even knowing and understanding all of this, when my son did not start to communicate verbally in a similar way to how his older sister had, I admit that I felt quite concerned. 

I'd done everything the same. He'd been read to since birth (a lot), talked to and chatted with constantly. 

We made sounds, did rhymes, sung songs and played together. 

But, unlike his sister, he did not choose to naturally communicate verbally and would refuse to mimic sounds or try new words. 

His non-verbal communication was spot on and he was always able to get across what he wanted (which was encouraging) but oral language was not something that came easily to him.

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 As a way to try and re-use more of our waste on a more consistent basis (instead of just storing handy bits for those "one day" projects), I started up a weekly Recycle Box Challenge for my kids.

I love that this challenge encourages my children to think creatively and look "outside the box." 

It allows them to practice skills such as cutting, painting and fine-motor. It allows them to test ideas, to problem solve and to put designs into action.

The end result is never the main focus, however. It is the process, including both the cognitive and physical processes, that an open-ended activity such as this provides, that is important.

How to set up a Recycle Box Challenge for your kids.

Doing a weekly recycle box challenge with your kids couldn't be easier. In a basket or a box, put some basic arty/crafty supplies that your children can use to help transform the recycled goods into creations from their imagination. Then, as the week goes by, add any random bits of recycled packaging straight into their challenge basket. The great thing about this is that the combination of materials is always changing, which means the possibilities for creations, is always changing too.

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Travel is an important part of my life and something that we prioritise as a family. It is my aim for us to travel as a family to a different overseas destination each year. Making memories, sharing experiences, learning about new cultures, languages, foods etc. is something that I value very highly, so we save our pennies each year and I do a lot of research to get us to the places I want at the prices we can afford. I want my children to be empathetic, kind, contributing members of society and I think that giving them a broader view of the world and people as a whole will help them develop this and help cement them as caring citizens of the world.

For this year's international holiday with kids, we decided that Fiji would be a fabulous destination. Ever since holidaying together in Fiji many years before having kids, my husband and I always wanted to come back and do Fiji with kids.

The locals are generally very friendly, laid back and great with kids! Fiji is also only a 5 hour flight from Melbourne, Australia and you can fly direct as well (a mega bonus when travelling with kids).

We had previously stayed down on the Coral Coast of Fiji which is a lovely destination with nicer beaches than closer to the airport. It is quite a journey still once you're off the plane though, so this time we decided to stay in closer and explore a different part of Fiji.

Here are some of the pics from our week long adventure. See the bottom for related links and more info on the specifics of where we stayed, etc.

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Recently, we made our very own fizzing lemonade. 

In this simple science experiment, we mix a base with an acid to get a chemical reaction. 

This chemical reaction produces carbon dioxide (CO2) which are the bubbles you find in commercial fizzy drinks. Neat!

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This is a sponsored post

A while ago we were contacted by the makers of the super creative construction kit for kids, Fort Magic. One look at their website and already I could see the huge potential for years of fun and learning so eagerly agreed to write a review and give away a set to one of our International readers. You can see what we had to say about Fort Magic here.

With our last giveaway being so popular, Fort Magic have generously offered another set for us to give away! So, have a little look at how we've been playing and learning with our Fort Magic set over the past 4 months and then enter the giveaway at the bottom to win your very own set!

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Welcome to this week's TUESDAY TOTS. Brought to you weekly by Learn with Play at home (that's us), Rainy Day Mum and One Perfect Day.

This week we are showcasing

"7 free kids printables"

I think collecting free printables is something I quite enjoy. Have a look at my Free Printables Pinterest board and tell me what you think. With over 2,000 great quality free printables on it, it's no wonder there are more than 20,000 board followers. I guess I'm not the only one who loves a good free printable. The amount of possibilities from a printed piece of paper is pretty mind blowing really. Here are 7 fabulous kid printables for all sorts of useful purposes.

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Another birthday, another greeting card.  We've tried a variety of different kid-friendly (actually doable by children) designs and wanted to try something new. I remembered some lovely patterned paper that I'd be saving to use for some sort of project, so decided a home-made birthday card would be perfect for it. With this particular gift card, we enjoyed combining and working on our design, drawing and cutting skills whilst inadvertently learning more about scale and measurement.

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On this weeks Tuesday Tots we are showcasing

"10 ways to play and learn outside"

Generally the only activity my kids need when they're outside, is being outside. There is so much that nature provides that can keep children entertained for ages. However, if you're looking for a few ways to enhance your outside experience or to find new ways to learn with play outside, here are 10 lovely ideas for you.

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These days, the latest thing for disposable soap dispensers is "foaming soap." It's actually a pretty good idea (especially when kids are using them) as the dispenser has a built in foaming thing (ok, don't ask me what it's actually called) that adds air to the soap as it comes out and makes it all frothy. It means that you end up using less soap than you might have needed otherwise. Excellent.
I wondered, if we put paint into the empty foaming soap dispensers, would the paint also froth up going through the frothy part? We had to experiment! Combining art and science is a lot of fun.

Through some trial and error, we discovered that you did still need a soapy solution with the paint in order to get it to froth well. We found that different quantities of soap/paint/water gave different types of foam. We used this activity to experiment, explore density and viscosity, talk about colours, colour mixing, develop hand muscle strength, use our senses, do printing, make pictures, work on oral language and vocabulary, etc.

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Welcome to TUESDAY TOTS. Brought to you weekly by Learn with Play at home (that's us), Rainy Day Mum and One Perfect Day.

This week we are showcasing

"10 Toys for kids that you can make yourself"

So many of the toys nowadays have such limited uses for kids. When buying toys for kids, I try and look out for open-ended educational toys with multiple uses. The price of toys has also gone up so why not save yourself some money and have a try at making some of these fun items for the kids to play with? Many of them use materials that you should already have around the house and it's great to recycle wherever you can. Time to get making!

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Welcome to TUESDAY TOTS. Apologies that it is late this week (again). I really should call it Wednesday Tots, haha. 
Brought to you weekly by Learn with Play at home (that's us), Rainy Day Mum and One Perfect Day.

This week we are showcasing

"6 Play Ideas for Babies"

There are a million and one "baby toys" available in the shops. That should be enough to keep baby entertained and learning, right? Shame my babies were never really interested in the colourful plastic that kept showing up at our house, and the uses of many were so limited that it's no wonder they never really captured their attention. There are so many ways that babies can play and learn from the materials you already have in your house or can buy cheaply from craft shops. (They usually find them much more exciting as well.) Here are 6 interesting ideas for babies that will keep them entertained and more importantly will aid in practicing a variety of different skills and learning areas.  **As with all activities involving young children, be sure to supervise.

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We have many pine trees around where we live so every time we go for a walk, the kids are bound to come home with at least a couple of pinecones to add to the collection. 

In a simple Invitation to play, I set out some of the pinecones alongside some of our homemade playdough and pompoms. 

We used this activity to further fine motor skills, creativity, sensory development, language, learn colours, textures, letter sound knowledge and more. Mainly just for fun though. :)

Ages: 12 months+

(See the handy tips at the bottom for ideas to suit your child's needs)

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Welcome to TUESDAY TOTS. Apologies that it is late this week. 
Brought to you weekly by Learn with Play at home (that's us), Rainy Day Mum and One Perfect Day.

This week we are showcasing

"5 Activity Ideas for Creative Kids"

Here are 5 creative, arty, open-ended activities for your kids. Most of these activities use materials that you're bound to already have in your supplies and are simple to set-up. Suitable for creative kids of all ages. (My 2 year old and 5 year old both equally loved doing #1 in their own ways and would have a red-hot go at any of the others.)

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Here is a fun construction building invitation to play that I set out to occupy my toddler (currently aged 2.5). The main components for this easy set-up activity are simply playdough and blocks. Making the playdough a grey colour to simulate concrete and providing a couple of little construction tools all added to the scene but aren't necessary to still have a fun and creative activity for kids of all ages. My kids loved this little bricklaying activity.

We used this activity to further language skills, fine motor skills, building skills, knowledge of gravity, understanding of bricklaying, sensory development, imagination, role play and more.

Ages: 12 months+

(See the handy tips at the bottom for ideas to suit your child's needs)

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This post is sponsored by TAC and Nuffnang

When it comes to the safety and well-being of our children, as parents, most of us would value this above anything. We try to minimise risk as best we can through supervision, education and vigilance, but no matter what, there are always circumstances for potential injury or even death. (Yes, being a parent/carer is the scariest role ever.)

One of the most common ways that children are exposed to potentially dangerous circumstances is in the car. In my state, Victoria (Australia), alone, an average of 13 children under the age of 15 are killed on our roads annually, with more than 400 under the age of 17 requiring hospitilisation. (Stats here and here).  

For us, trips in the car are a very common occurrence. Some days can see me making up to 8 or more short trips here and there in one day, with each of those trips housing the potential of something going wrong. So, how can I best keep my kids safe in the car?

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Even with the weather turning colder and the rain becoming more frequent, we are determined to get outside as often as we can. I find the kids sleep better when they've had a chance to run around outside during the day and it's one of the easiest ways to keep them entertained. 

A while back I finally got around to turning the pile of bricks I'd been saving into a wonderfully simple, and now much used, mud kitchen. It turned out that I should have made it ages ago instead of just thinking about it as in the end, it was so much quicker and easier than I'd imagined. Armed with that knowledge, last weekend I decided we would finally build the water wall that we'd be talking about for ever.

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Welcome to TUESDAY TOTS. Brought to you weekly by Learn with Play at home (that's us), Rainy Day Mum and One Perfect Day.

This week we are showcasing

"10 Pretend Play Ideas"

Pretend Play or Imaginative Play is a huge part of growing up. Children are naturally drawn to imitating and copying the actions of those they see around them. Pretend play provides them with opportunities to practice a wide variety of skills in a safe way. From oral language development and socialisation to specific physical skills and creativity, imaginative play allows for so much and is to be encouraged. Here are 10 fun ideas that you could use to encourage your child's love of pretend play, with lots of clever little props and additions that you can provide to make the experience even more fun and entertaining.

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I try to involve my children in the cooking as much as possible. As they are getting older, I'm finding they are getting a bit more picky about what they will eat, but are more likely to try new things when they have been part of the cooking process.

As my daughter is now in school, I am always trying to come up with easy and healthy ideas to pop in her lunchbox. The other day, while she was at school, the toddler and I tried making some Savoury Cheese, Ham and Spinach Muffins, with great results. I'm not sure how many made it into her lunchbox and how many we ate ourselves at home, but either way, we'll be making them again soon.

I adapted this recipe from a number of different recipes to make it as easy as possible to make. So easy, a 2 year old can make them (with supervision and a wee bit of assistance).

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My kids love messy play! A lot of the art and sensory play that we do involves a certain amount of mess, (perhaps that's part of what makes it so fun?).

One of my daughter's favourite sensory activities, that she first played with at preschool, was Soap Slime. 

Now, this is definitely messy play, but it's made from soap, so it must be clean, messy play, right? Well, sort of. It depends on the colouring. 

Since the lesson we learnt making cornflour slime, I have been hesitant to use food colouring in their messy play but hey, we won't know until we give it a try, right? 

What better way to test than with Rainbow Soap Slime.

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Welcome to TUESDAY TOTS. Brought to you weekly by Learn with Play at home (that's us), Rainy Day Mum and One Perfect Day.

This week we are showcasing

"7 water play activities"

Water play is often thought of as "summer play" or something reserved for hot weather, however, depending on the activity, children can incorporate water play whatever the weather. As a readily available sensory material (in our part of the world, anyway),  water play is often very inexpensive, easy to set-up and loved by children of all ages. Here are a collection of 7 different activities involving water, one for each day of the week. Number 6 would be best saved for warmer weather, but the rest can be attempted at any time, with a number being suitable for indoor play.

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Welcome to TUESDAY TOTS. Brought to you weekly by Learn with Play at home (that's us), Rainy Day Mum and One Perfect Day.

This week we are showcasing

"6 Games to practice Reading"

Learning to read is one of those very important developmental milestones for kids. The completely awesome thing about learning to read is that really, all you need to do to learn to read, is to read (and read, and read, and read).
Ok, so generally there is a starting point to learning to read formally, which is by learning letters. But learning to read should start long before individual letter learning and it comes from being read to as a child. For children to learn how to read they need to be read to continuously and they need to have opportunities to read text in all forms.
To help with the comprehension of text, children often practice sight words so that their reading flows more easily and understanding is not lost. Just reading over letters and lists of sight words isn't the most interesting activity for kids though, so here are 6 games from last week's Tuesday Tots link-up, that make practicing reading fun.

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