Weaving with nature

Take an old garden trellis. 

Add a few baskets of garden cuttings (This is a great activity to do if you are pruning!)

Weave them in and out through the trellis.

Get your weave on outdoors - naturally!

it's playtime - play outside!

Welcome to another week of  It's Playtime.   

Playful Picks

I hope you are in the mood for some outdoor fun, because this week's playful picks will be sure to have the little people in your world wanting to head out and play:

Leaf Maze from Happy Hooligans

Spider Cave Maze from Adventures at Home with Mum

And last but not least,

Sticks!  The original wooden toy from Fireflies and Mudpies

Meet my Partners in play:

Messy Kids,

The Imagination Tree ,

hands on: as we grow and

QuirkyMomma

What have you been playing this week?

Linking up is simple.

new booklet on making a mud kitchen

A mud kitchen includes elements of the much-loved domestic corner and cooking from indoor play, which are then hugely enriched through the special nature of being outside.  - Jan White

Mud kitchens, mud pie kitchens, outdoor kitchens - no matter what you choose to call them - are such a valuable addition to any outdoor play space that I have blogged about them time and time again.


Jan White, author and all round outdoor play guru clearly shares my enthusiasm for all things mud pie kitchen.  So much so that she has written the book on it.  A free, easy to download booklet called "Making a Mud Kitchen."

Says Jan:

There are hundreds of wonderful, homemade mud kitchens being shared on blogs and pinterest around the world – take a nice long tour and be enthused and inspired!

If you are looking for an inexpensive and simple addition to your outdoor space that will provide hours of engagement for children of all ages, then you can't go past a mud pie kitchen, and you can't go past "Making a Mud Kitchen" for inspiration.

stump loving

Welcome to another week of  It's Playtime.   

Playful Picks

You all know that I'm a sucker for a natural playscape, so it will come as no surprise that I love the colourful stumps in Adventures at Home with Mum's backyard:

Meet my Partners in play:

Messy Kids,

The Imagination Tree ,

hands on: as we grow and

QuirkyMomma

What have you been playing this week?

Linking up is simple.

There's no rush. A wander in the bush.

If you go down to the bush today you might see us...just hanging around.

No agenda.

No hurry.  No time to be back.

No boxes to be ticked.

Just plenty of time to wander through the landscape wherever curiosity leads us.  

  In today’s world of standardized testing, TV, organized sports and electronic toys, children have very little time for just being kids and engaging in real self-directed free play - especially in natural settings.

Let's take free play seriously!

it's playtime

It's been a long time between drinks for Let the Children Play and It's Playtime. I plead the intrusion of life, the universe and everything for disrupting my posting schedule and thank my partners in play for allowing me to drop the ball in such a dramatic fashion.  

I've pulled up my socks, and am back on track today, and bringing you my favourite picks from last week's wealth of play experiences.

Impossible to go past an amazing 60 Nature Play Ideas for Kids from the equally amazing The Imagination Tree.  Try one, try them all and get outside with the kids and play!

Continuing on the outdoor theme - naturally - have a look at this oh so simple outdoor music play area from Play Dr Mom:

Has your post been featured?  You are welcome to grab this badge to display on your blog.

Meet my Partners in play:

Messy Kids,

The Imagination Tree ,

hands on: as we grow and

QuirkyMomma

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What have your kids been playing this week?  We'd love to know.