Today has been all about the pumpkins in our house

We have carved pumpkins every year since Esther and William were born

Esther and William’s first word was star

And their first pumpkins were carved stars

Over the years we have had traditional Jack O’Lanterns

But also Peppa Pig, trains and very impressive fairy houses

With toothpick windows and carved stairs

Daddy is the main carver

But all the children love to get involved

One of my favourite memories of Tilda

Is her sitting with us as we scooped out pumpkins

And playing with the flesh and the seeds

Edie has been playing with pumpkins today

And has more pumpkin sensory play to come

As we head towards Tuesday

Here are our first ways for baby to play with pumpkins

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Pumpkin Explorer

The first way baby Edie played with pumpkins

Was on the floor

I placed pumpkins of different shapes, colours and sizes around her

Edie reached out to touch them

She grabbed the stalks

Stroked the skin

She banged their bodies

And tried to pick them up whole

We bashed them

We stacked them

We watched them all fall down

We talked about them

Sang songs

And said rhymes

Poetic pumpkin rhymes

This was a super sensory experience

Involving sight, hearing, touch and taste

And laughter

How we laughed

After a play on the floor

I moved Edie to her highchair

With one lovely lumpy orange pumpkin

I gave Edie time to explore the fruit

To mouth it

Cuddle it!

And to play a funny game

Of pushing the pumpkin off her highchair

For mummy to pick up

A funny funny game

Of ‘Uh oh pumpkin!’

I urge you to give it a try

Pumpkin Flesh Feely Bag

When Tilda was with us

We gave her the scooped out sludge and seeds of a pumpkin

To play with

In a bowl

5 years on and safety MAD

Edie explored the innards in a zip lock bag

The gooey

Slimy

Squelchy

Flesh and seeds of the pumpkin

She loved pushing it around

And, of course, trying to eat it!

Watch out for some different variations of this activity

With Edie and the older children in the next few days

Some rather more messy than others!

Pumpkin Patch Discovery Jar

We love making discovery jars and sensory bottles

Many of them can be used as shakers

This pumpkin patch one being no exception

A glass jar

Filled with rice and buttons

I chose orange and yellow buttons

To nestle among the rice

Like pumpkins in the field

Edie loves the sound of the shaker

She loves to reach out and roll the jar

She watches the buttons move

The rice rise and fall

It is a great activity for visual stimulation

It is another way to play

With pumpkins

Happy Halloween!