15.52 playing at versailles

We started the school holidays with a lovely morning with our friends Amber, Finn and Harper at the new play space at the National Gallery of Australia. The play space was themed around Versailles due to the current (gorgeous!) exhibition. 

I am thrilled that the NGA has finally introduced a play space! It goes a long way in making the venue truly inviting for families. I love to take the  kids to experience the beautiful art but, they can only last so long haha! It's fantastic to have a space available where they can make a little noise, wriggle around and of course, learn how they do best - through play. I was hugely impressed with the quality of the provocations and experiences. It was a super fun morning and I can't wait to go back again with the kids, especially to see how the play space themes evolve!

Have I mentioned lately, how much I love living in Canberra?! Having wonderful free cultural experiences like this, just a fifteen minute drive away! Love this town. 

Project 52: A portait of my family, once a week, every week, in 2017.

Made for Play

One of my favourite things is letting my kids loose in nature and just seeing them play. 

No toys, no structure, no boundaries. Just them, the natural world and their vast creativity and imagination.

Children were made for play. 

It is how they actively learn and engage, practise social skills, internalise life's lessons and on and on. Play matters!

I love clothes that are made for play too! So when Elves in the Wardrobe sent me a few items of gorgeous Scandi-style clothes for the kids, I was thrilled. Perfect excuse (er...like I needed one?! haha) for a little photo shoot at the beach when we visited over Easter weekend. We started off with a few posed shots which soon dissolved into jumping, leaping, splashing and running around... 'cos...well.... kids!

I just gotta say I loooove Scandi-style kids clothes. Bright, colourful, fun, unisex (perfect for handing down between siblings!), comfy organic cotton.., just brilliant for kids to play - while looking plenty adorable too! Those prints!!.... argghhh, too cute. I just need a giraffe top in my size ;) 

Just like kids are made to play, these clothes are too. Perfect x

Day is done.... well played, kids, well played xx

Thank you, Elves in the Wardrobe, for sending the kids these gorgeous clothes!

Friends, be sure to click on over to check out more designs. Featuring top brands like Duns Sweden, Alba Baby, Loud and Proud and lots more. All tops and pants featured here were from the shop :)  xx

These clothes were sent to me as a gift. All opinions are 100% my own! I only share stuff here I really love :) 

14.52 boys in the (pretend) kitchen

Sometimes it's admittedly easier to just say 'yes' when they beg  ask to watch a TV show, but the results when they are instead sent outside to play are ever so much more delightful (if not messier, noisier, etc etc).

The latest favourite activity is retrieving containers from the recycling bin and creating new 'dishes' out of them, using water, dirt, leaves, flowers and so on.

Today was 'honey water' and 'coconut smoothie'.... as I was asked to sniff them several times, I can confirm they did indeed smell very good.

A little boredom and a lot of outside time leads to childhood magic. 

Yes, there will still be TV shows but something tells me these moments are the one they might remember most fondly from childhood (well, they will certainly be more photographed, haha!).

Project 52: A portrait of my family, once a week, every week, in 2017.

13.52 sweeping, swinging, shadows

A few portraits (I couldn't choose just one!) of my little ones from the week that was...

I really need to get the dust off this camera of mine, sigh!!

We have been trying to do more 'family service projects' on Saturday. This Saturday we were helping clear out and clean up a centre that is being transformed into a community support hub. Once again, this happy little helper was right in the thick of it, helping out and working hard. 

'Look at me, Mum! It's a constant refrain around here...

She decided to get a fringe again, and suddenly, once more, she is a whole new girl to me xx