Gumby's World: 2/5/2011-2/11/2011

The Gumby's World series is a journal of how we spend our days with Gumby :)

This past weekend, we went out and about with Gumby.  We had lunch at our favorite fast food Italian restaraunt with a good friend.  Gumby loves going out to eat.  We take her puzzles, coloring supplies and the iPad.  When we travel, we put her little potty on the back seat of the car.  It works just fine for potty breaks on the go!

Gumby got a couple of new toys.  One is a 18" tower with a funnel/spout that sand, water, rice and who knows what else can be poured into to make 2 wheels turn.  This led way to a renewed interest in the rice box.  

The other toy is a set of huge foam letters and numbers.  It is also a puzzle.  She has a lot of fun building, unbuilding, running, walking and romping on it.  I will admit - it is a very fun activity for Mamma too :)

Gumby mailed the Valentine's Day cards that she made last week for her Grandparents.  She was so excited.  She wanted to watch the episode of Special Agent Oso where he also mails a letter to a little girls Grandmother.  She really enjoys tieing shows into what she is actually doing. 

We made two trips to the library to play on the computer and with the large bead toys.  She is enjoying learning to use the mouse and is getting better at controlling it.  There are coloring games, bubble popping games and puzzles.  The puzzles need the most precise mouse control to select a piece then place it in the proper location.  It is nice because no button clicks are neccessary.

We played on the iPad, Cover Orange, of course.  She knows how to place pieces, which pieces roll, which ones do not roll, how to bump an Orange on one side and cause it to move, how to bump bombs and make them move pieces into place and more.  Along with hand eye coordination, cause and effect and basic physics concepts, the game is also building her vocabulary and her confidence. 

Gumby made several finger paintings this week.  We displayed them in the living room and kitchen.  The top one is done with brushes and sponges, with one hand print in the top left corner.  The bottom one is a more rare one done with her fingers.  She really loves using tools to paint; the ones where she puts her fingers and hands in it are always extra special. 

She has a kid's table that has letters and numbers embossed along the edges that can be rubbed over with crayons to make the letters on the paper.  She really enjoys this.  She names off the letters as she sees them appear.  Thanks to her Grammie and Grandpa for this table that used to be mine when I was little. 

We had loads of fun with her Nano HexBugs that she got for Christmas.  We built them a habitat out of blocks and gave them a paper towel roll tunnel.  These are awesome toys and have staying power.  They are always fun and there is always a new way to play and learn with them.

Gumby and I spend our days immersed in play.  She is constantly learning what she wants, when she wants and how she wants without having to separate life experiences into subjects or play time versus learning time.  It is all intermingled, inseparable and fun.  We follow her interests wherever they lead and encourage her to explore her world.  It is impossible to go through life, even one day, and not learn something - try it!  All learning is valuable.  Life is learning.