tunes: super simple songs

We have been on a bit of a technology shut down of late, there were too many tantrums when the fun is over! When I am feeling a) in need of a break, b) so much in need of a break I forget about the tantrum after I play the kids "Super Simple Songs" on you tube. They are all the classics with some cute animations.

Here are a few good uns to get you started!

Row row row...

Five little monkeys...

Old MacDonald...

tunes: twisting

We have an after dinner dance party some nights. The kids are happy after they have eaten, or not eaten and therefore so happy to be allowed down from the table. The Twist by Chubby Checker is a great way to kill 10 minutes before bath time. This video mash up has so many different examples you will learn a thing or two.

And lets twist again:

Dance little people dance!

What do you and your kids groove to?

reading wednesday - around the neighbourhood

So it's my blog and I'll change things on a whim if I want to! I am still fine tuning my schedule. What do you think of these topics?

Manic Monday
Tuesday's Tune
Reading Wednesday (cos that non alliterative assonance is so bittersweet!)
Thoughtful Thursday
Foodie Friday

Welcome to a new series of book recommendations! I always appreciate hearing what other kids have been enjoying so I thought I would share what works at our house. First up is Around the Neighbourhood adapted by Sarah L. Thomson, illustrated by Jana Christy.

This book is great as it imagines a babies world getting bigger and bigger from her room to the whole neighbourhood surrounding the house. I've been a grump lately and so singing about a happy laughing mama on page one is rather affirming even if it's more prophetic than accurate. I enjoy the active vocabulary in this book where animals pounce and sniff rather than meow and bark. Each page sees more animals added to the neighbourhood, providing many opportunities for counting! We love the style of illustration and that one animal seems to be doing their own thing in each group. Ada loves to point each one out every time we read it. The angry cat, the chatty duck, the distracted bunny, so many opportunities for a wee chatter.

What's that face?

The music is included at the end of the book. Ada always asks to learn the song. Oh but we know it now! You can learn too! Around the Neighbourhood is an adaptation of a classic folk tune 'Over in the Meadow', you can hear the tune here in this cute animation.

How about you guys? What is high on the reading rotation at your place? Do you have the same converaations each time you reread a book?

Previous recommendations.

music monday

For fun I am going to try and post more days again! I can't promise I will be writing a lot of content, I still only get a moment here and there where I can blog. The girls are no longer napping simultaneously! Boo hoo! I still have ideas of what I want to share so I've made myself a little schedule.

I think the titles should make things clear...
Music Monday

Reading Wednesday

Funny Friday

I love singing with kids, I even ran a music group for babies and toddlers before I had kids! Ada loves to sing and Olive loves to dance and so I am trying to encourage these things. Today's Music Monday will be Rocking Robin. Recorded by Bobby Day in 1958 and covered by the Jackson Five in 1972 this song has been key to many a dance party for decades. Weren't things innocent once? Look at the lyrics below and watch the great moves from 1957 below!

Hoppin' and a boppin' and a singing his song
All the little birds on Jaybird Street
love to hear the robin go "Tweet, tweet, tweet"

chorus 1
Rockin' robin
Rockin' robin
Blow rockin' robin 'cos we're really gonna rock tonight

verse 2
Ev'ry little swallow, ev'ry chickadee
Ev'ry little bird in the tall oak tree
The wise old owl, the big black crow
flap their wings singing "Go bird go"

chorus 2
Rockin' robin
Rockin' robin
Blow rockin' robin 'cos we're really gonna rock tonight

middle 8
Pretty little raven at the bird bandstand
taught him how to do the bop and it was grand
They started going steady and bless my soul
He out-bopped the buzzard and the oriole

5 months and moving

Happy 5 months Olive, you are pure joy! You are so easy going, you smile and laugh so readily, everyone loves you. Olive you love to chew, chew, chew everything.

Olive is getting her commando crawl on.
Go Olive go!

Four months.
Three months.
Two months.
One month.
Ada at five months.

haere mai cutie pie

We planned a small gathering (already small and then it clashed with a few weddings) for Ada's second birthday. I managed to get her singing on video rather than asking to look at herself on video so I did a crazily haphazard job of editing it (yay I have finally tried out iMovie on my computer!). Here it is.

"Haere Mai Cutie-Pie,
Haere Mai Cutie-Pie,
Haere Mai.
Come my party,
please."

The original song is goes "Haere Mai ki te whariki", Ada only ever sings the cutie pie version. You have to admit it's pretty cute.

video footage of Ada with a balloon, stop press

she makes you work for it

Ada is not yet in the awesome laugh laugh laugh stage. The same thing doesn’t seem to work two days in a row. She smiles a bunch and you can get a whiny sounding ha, peek-a-boo and tickling is slowly becoming funny. This is her in giggle mode at 4.5 months, Cam has patented the trailing finger giggle inducer.