Mud Play Sunday

More Rain Equals More Mud

It has rained this week, and it was sunny on Sunday. This inevitably leads in our house to some muddy weekend play.

All ready to go. Those legs clearly have not seen much sun over the past few months.

So many mud toys. Where do I start?

Carefully extracting the main ingredient for our mud pie afternoon tea.

Putting the finishing touches to the pies.

Setting up the picnic. We had to put our blanket on top of some branches as there was no dry ground to place it on.

There was a problem. We didn't have a spoon small enough to serve the pies. This wasn't however an issue for K.

Do you like the china plates with a  floral design? Just right for a mud pie afternoon tea.

Natti is not too sure what to think of the whole thing.

I think she is confused as to why we appear to be eating and enjoying our meal immensely, when it doesn't smell or appeal too much to her.

She was happy though to keep a close eye on things - just in case something tasty appeared.

We prepared our mud paint, with a dash of pink and purple paint.

Mud painting was fun. The muddy water worked a bit better on the page than the mud itself.

Originally the boots remained on. We all know however that mud is not fun unless you can feel it under your feet and between your toes.

The boots are off. Note - we are still looking pretty clean.

The biggest smiles are saved for when the boots are off.

I have no idea how something which looks so horrible, can feel (allegedly) so good. I have clearly forgotten what it is like to be a child!

K had been asking all week if she could splash. We normally walk around the block each afternoon and request that K walks carefully in the mud. This means once inside we can do other things and don't have to jump in the bath/shower straight away. On Mud Play Day however - splashing is not only allowed, it is encouraged!

Okay - I think it's shower time.

Yep. Splashing in cold mud during an afternoon that by now is getting late, results very quickly in the realisation that "I'm cold". To the shower we go...

Overall, K had a fun mud afternoon. Without other children however to observe, copy, learn from, be encouraged by and to take the play in different directions, K did rely a bit on Mum to 'suggest' how she should be playing. This encourages me more to provide further opportunities, unrestricted by time, where K can explore using her own imagination and be content that she can take risks and pursue her own ideas.