‘Dear Zoo’ Book Review


Dear Zoo: A flap-lifting adventure with your favourite animals


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Author and Illustrator: Rod Campbell

Target Ages: Toddlers and Preschoolers

Rating: ✪ ✪ ✪ ✪ ✪ 




“I wrote to the zoo to send me a pet.....” 
Welcome to the exciting journey through all the different boxes in search of your favorite pet. If your toddler loves animals and likes to turn through the pages, then this sturdy board book with flap-lifting fun is the perfect present, most likely to whet his appetite for more reading.

A simple storyline, repetitive language, and behind-the-flap adventure are sure to tantalise their curiosity and make for a fun read. As different animals are sent from the zoo, including an elephant, a snake, and a monkey, your kid will be left to imagine why they don’t make for a perfect pet. 


An elephant is too big to keep, a lion too fierce to make friends with and a camel is too grumpy to talk to. Not so much as the idea of a perfect pet! The little hands will be tempted to turn over the pages and find their most friendly animal.


My toddler son sat down to match his animal figurines with those in the book. Funnily, his little elephant toy fit in the box sent by the zoo! He made animal sounds on each page, once roaring his lungs out at the fierce lion. He was happy to see he had a bit of a zoo with himself. Our mom and tot team enjoyed a rather uninhibited and loud bonding time during the read. 

In the end, he was happy to find his favourite animal as the pet behind the basket. He actually insisted on a second reading and we have had many subsequent readings thereafter. 

The famous author, Rod Campbell, has successfully combined simplicity, bright and bold illustrations and flap-fun in this very engaging book. There are elements of anticipation and surprise, which fuel kids’ curiosity. My toddler son loves filling in the reading with animal noises. Even my older son, nearly five years old, loved practising his new-found reading abilities on the short and repetitive text.


Key takeaways and Rating


Overall, full marks to ‘Dear Zoo’ for making reading fun, interesting and informative. It will appeal to kids between one and five years old, mainly toddlers. It encourages imagination and verbal expression and fulfills their desire for more reading. The discovery of their favorite pet is the ultimate prize, which brings a priceless smile to their faces. 
In a nutshell, a five star flap-lifting fun experience!


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Spoon Angel Christmas Ornament

After the cute Pasta Reindeer Christmas Ornament we made last week, it was time to make yet another beloved icon of Christmas. And it's none other than the beautiful angel.


Angels are believed to be messengers of God. The lore is that an angel appeared to Virgin Mary to announce the birth of Christ and proclaimed him the savior of all people.

Here is our adorable spoon angel ornament to adorn the Christmas tree!

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Mrs. Spider’s Sparkly Web


School drop-offs and pick-ups can be challenging. Getting them dressed and fed before they leave for school can be a mammoth morning task. Especially if you have a toddler planning to blast the plan with some last moment tantrums. However, the little journey to and from the school can unfold unexpected moments of wonder, fun and laughter. Kids are keen observers and spare no opportunity to point out to any changes they see around the. Curiosity fuels their brains and countless questions are part of their armoury. 

We have seen the dawn of winters in this part of England. Morning fog, a misty air and cold breadth seem to await you outside your door. Dew drops adorn everything around, making mornings one if the most beautiful time if the day. My school-going son spotted a dew-dipped spider’s web on his way to the school and couldn’t be more curious. It excited his imagination as he painted a wonderful picture of the sight thereafter. I didn’t think much about it in hurry but dwelled on his observations once back home. I tried to enter his mind and portrayed a picture of his imaginings. Underneath is a poetic glimpse of how he would have said it had he said it.


Mrs. Spider's Sparkly Web 

On my way to the school, by the narrow pathway through the playground
I saw a spider’s web, hung on the grey railing upside-down
The magic of a misty morning, the foggy clouds in a dull wintery hue
Clinging to the loose strings of the web, a million drops of sparkly dew

As big or small, as close or sparse, as leaves of autumn barely gone
Sitting pretty on Mrs. Spider’s necklace, the shiny drops as the new sun shone
The web is not alone; its family sits on the railings, the hedges and the trees
They appear everywhere as I walk along, like booing me in hide and seek

On the bright green shrub, the old man’s windows and my neighboour’s door
Hey Mrs. Spider, shouldn’t you be busy? How do you follow me wherever I go?
I stopped in wonder, for a good look at you, and to count your furry legs once again 
Then said Mummy, “Hurry, we’ll be late for school, no stopping in the drizzly rain.”

I knew they were eight, your lots of tiny legs, like sides in an octagon
Your shiny threads like strings of a guitar, I could play them one by one
You are quite tiny and I ain’t afraid; I once held a tarantula in my hand
It was furry and kind and walked rather slowly, a mighty creepy crawling friend

But spiders can be fast as I have seen them, they quickly come and quickly vanish
At times they jump off their webs, like a gymnast practicing his tricks
Passing by a thorny hedge, on the narrow pavement I did see
Another big spidey’s web, dangling by the green dustbin

Dear Mrs. Spider, thanks for dropping me off to school today
Soon it will be home time. Until then, promise me that you’ll stay
We’ll walk back through the playground, the houses and the large field in between
So stay stuck, in your sparkly web, my spooky gift of Halloween


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Decorating Mummy




With my boys I have always wondered if it’s all about dinosaurs, monster trucks, cars and rough play. Recently, I was pleasantly surprised to see their softer side. It wasn’t as if they were at their gentle best, but certainly more kind to me than they have been to each other lately.

My older son had recently finished his first term and was spending his week-long break at home, mostly getting bored with not much to do. At the spur of the moment, whilst getting ready, I decided to let them do my make up. It seemed like a brave decision for a moment, but I took the plunge thinking I wouldn’t be going out of the house anyway. I immediately thought It must be rather gutsy of parents in the UK who willingly entrust themselves to their kids to dress them up on the ‘Dressed by The Kids' day. So, here I was, ready to play dolly to my under-5’s, as they got super excited to decorate me to their liking.

My older one took the initiative very well as he spread big lumps of face cream on my face. After about two fistfuls of it, I had to say no. Actually, I said, “Thank you. Let’s move on to the next please”. He was quite convinced of a job well done as evident from some half a dozen exited steps he took towards the drawer to fetch my lipstick. My little one was done with being a mere spectator of the live painting fun his older brother had been having and was keen to make a mark, quite literally. I have been doing colours with him and he made good use of his knowledge as he decidedly chose the stark pink lip colour from my kit. Clearly, he was looking to paint a bright picture. He fiddled with the mechanism before successfully popping out my lipstick from its holder.

Next, it was time to go for the kill. He went for my lower lip and lavishly heaped layers of it on and around my mouth. It was almost half a dozen applications worth of pinkness on me. It was amusing to see how confident and proud he felt of himself. I think it felt like the first school paint art in which I didn’t get a ‘D’. I was in the midst of enjoying all the silly fun when my older son snatched the lipstick and began applying it in my upper lip. It was sudden and strong, almost pushing me over to a side. Of course, it killed my lipstick as well. Although, it wouldn’t be the last smudged item in my make-up kit.

Obviously, we were not done yet. What started as a fun activity turned out to be another version of rough play. It was ‘The boys’ v/s ‘Mummy and her cosmetics’. The lipstick was followed by the blusher. Turns were taken to rub them onto the cheeks. It must have felt funny; they started applying it on each other. I was shown the little mirror in the blusher kit to check if it looked ok. Well, there was no saying no to a bunch of excited boys using my precious things as weapons. However, seeing them happy and proud did offset any little offence I might have taken.

They proceeded to fetch a ‘bindi’, a decorative sticker normally used by women in India to adorn their foreheads. True to the unsaid rule of ‘the more sparkly, the better’, they planted a bright, red, crystal-embedded bindi on my forehead. It felt slightly misplaced from the start but I didn’t worry too much by now. They finally decided to brush my hair. Luckily, my toddler son chose the one with thicker teeth. And very diligently, he started doing top to bottom. I was surprised by how gentle it had got by now.


Decorating mummy had become more about exhibiting their prowess at ‘gentle hands’ than a show of strength and mutual competition. The objective was to make me look pretty. Such selflessness over natural mischief was remarkable. Perhaps, it was a lesson well and quickly learnt although it was intended to be a fun exercise.

Finally, they planted a clutch, barely hanging onto my hair, and asked me to go and look in the bigger mirror. I dared to, with mixed feelings of dread, curiosity and excitement. I am pleased to say I wasn’t as shocked as I had expected to be. Although it looked like someone who had woken up from a hangover of a fancy dress party, it was my boys’ hard work. They told me, “You look beautiful, mummy”. Naturally, the material bits didn’t matter anymore. My boys were wriggling with the expectation of a great feedback. Most deservedly, it came in the form of thank you hugs and heaps of appreciation. Without any expectation or planning, it turned out to be a great bonding expertise for us. And, of course, another gem in our treasure box of memories.

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Snowman Lapel Pin Christmas Craft

Snowman is one of the most charming icons of Christmas. Building a snowman is always a fun and amusing experience for kids.

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I made this lovely snowman lapel pin with my daughter using buttons. This is a perfect Christmas gift from my daughter to her dad.

RELATED >> POPSICLE STICK PENGUIN

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This post contains affiliate links to the products mentioned. Read our disclosure policy for more information.

This craft goes so well with the book Frosty the Snowman. My daughter loves to read this book with her very own snowman with a magic hat :)


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HOW TO MAKE SNOWMAN CRAFT?


SUPPLIES

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Cut a strip of white cardstock paper. And make blocks of black and orange color as shown below. 


Note: Adjust the spacing between the color blocks based on the size of the buttons. The idea is to fill the buttonholes with these colors to make the eyes, nose, and buttons of the snowman.

2. Glue a small button over the black & orange color block such that black color fills the two holes in the button making the eyes of the snowman and the orange color fills the one hole making the nose of the snowman.


3. Glue a big button over the next black block such that it fills all the holes of the button. You might notice in the pictures below that my daughter is using a brush to apply glue on the buttons. I feel it is much more convenient for her and great for fine motor development.

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