One of the things that drew me to Montessori was how a room can be set up for different ages. I admit this was something I was really looking forward to back when I was pregnant the first time round.

Today as I spotted Iris making her way to the shelf and I knew the time had come to get it baby ready and toddler approved. I got to it straight away.

Even though Clover has other areas of the apartment with activities just for her, I still didn’t want to make the shelf completely for Iris. I’ve been wanting to rotate her activities for awhile and it always seems to drop off my Monday to dos. Today I made it a priority after seeing Iris in action.

I moved her Animals basket in the living room, put her threading, vegetables and fruit plus her board book in storage. I set up Iris basket, rejigged a few things, swapped others and went through the rotation boxes to see what could be suitable for both kids.

On the shelf (in the kids room) for a thirty month old and a four month old.

1. Vegetable and fruits basket – I have two different sets of books with matching and cards. They didn’t come together so it was a nice surprise I could combine them. This is the small board book Nene got in the Philippines. Ironically the photos are very similar to the flash cards. I figure if Iris finds it the board book will withstand her baby strength.
2. My family book – Such an adorable little cloth book great for babies (and their older sibling). It has a photo of Iris, Clover, Tim and I, my parents and Tim’s parents. Clover reads it more than Iris 😉
3. Iris’ basket – Has a wooden and wool teething/sensory object and an interlocking disc.
4. Animals basket – A Steve Parish Look and Feel book and a colourful echidna, both were given to Clover when she was born. I’m so psyched to have a stash of books with real images/photos (as supposed to cartoons) that I can have our for Iris, just like with Clover.
5. Midwife kit – We got this for Clover as part of our “you’re going to be an ate” prep. It’s made from soft cloth material and includes a teeny Velcro bracelet that was used in Iris when she was tested at the hospital.
6. Sound boxes – Clover uses them more for shakers than matching, sometimes for cooking. It’s low profile so for now it’ll live there.
7. Yoga and labour cards – I tried to put them in her photo album after Iris was born but she insisted they belong in in the tray.

Before bed, Clover tested the new baskets and asked Tim to read the Look and Feel book. Tim added descriptive words as he read them (the book basically says “look” on one page and “feel” on the other). Clover asked questions as Tim read. I sat there feeding Iris totally proud that I found something both kids will enjoy.