The Kavanaugh Report

What does bedtime look like in a Montessori family? The answer will vary for everyone as families follow their individual children and their own sleep needs. In this week’s episode Nicole and Amy answer one of your most commonly asked questions and share their bedtime routines and experiences with sleep. We chat about everything from balancing independence, to what we’re reading before bed and how we make it work with multiple kids.
This post contains affiliate links at no cost to you.  Show Notes...Strider BikeWoom BikesThe Children of Noisy VillageBetsy TacyTanglewood Animal ParkMontessori Speaks To ParentsEcho Dot
Thanks for joining me for today's podcast! If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe, share and leave a review in your favorite podcast app.
If you are interested in finding Shelf Help in a podcast app, it is available on Apple | Spotify | Stitcher | Google.
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For the last couple of the months Teddy has slowly been eating more and more solid food. As part of his meals Teddy gets water in his weaning cup. While spills are super common (and I think a necessary part of the learning process) I've noticed that Teddy gets a significant amount of joy from splashing in the water that spills all over the table. Almost more joy than he gets from eating food. 

In general, Teddy is also just a water baby. He loves the bath and getting wet. But, without solidly sitting the bath isn't a super easy place for him to just play with water. He can kick and splash, but just without a lot of freedom. 
So thinking about those two things, I wanted to create a sensory experience where Teddy could explore water in a safe way that allowed for a little more freedom. My ultimate hope is that he gets this exploration out in this way, and maybe feels slightly less compelled to splash all over the dinner table! 

To fill this need I simply put out a towel on our kitc…

Sometimes it feels like my main job as a Montessori parent is responding to big feelings and emotions. Especially over the last couple of months when we've all been at home together for extended periods of time. It can be difficult to remember to respond (instead of react) in a calm, collected and helpful manner. In these difficult moments, it can be tempting to jump in and try to distract, solve or explain away a child's emotional response. But, in the end, that's not helpful to our children. By naming feelings and helping them to work through them, we normalize all feelings and help them to eventually handle them on their own.

I've found though that how we respond to a feeling really depends on the situation and the child. But, there are some general rules that I keep in mind depending on the type of emotion I am observing. I've made a couple of cheat sheets to help me explain how I approach emotion. First, is the sliding scale of emotions.  On the left side (happy…

Games are a fun way to connect with your child and teach new concepts. But, games are also a great way for children to practice a variety of social-emotional skills. From patience, and turn-taking to wining and losing, games gently introduce these concepts to children. In this week's episode, Nicole and Amy talk about some of their favorite Montessori friendly games and how and when they introduce games in their families.  Show Notes...YahtzeeAggravationNumerals and Counters with Pennies18+ Months First OrchardRoll and Play Game2+ year olds  Shopping ListCreature MatchingSneaking, Snacky Squirrel3/4+ year olds Bed Bugs GameCandy LandHoot Owl HootMax the CatUno5+ year olds  OutfoxedCarcassonneGuess WhoShadows in the Forest {similar version}Walk in the WoodsAdditional Games Ideas Favorite Board Games at 4-Years10 Awesome Games for ToddlersGames We Love 5+Balancing Games

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Teddy is growing so quickly I can hardly believe it! The last couple months have been an explosion of movement for Teddy and an explosion of teeth! And those two things have really driven him to his favorite things. He is army crawling all over the place, rocking on his hands and knees, went from no teeth to 4, and can explore large parts of the house on his own. 

See a video of 7 minutes of play at 7 months here. 

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Here is a look at some of the things we included on his shelves at 7 months. Those marked with * were his favorites. 
Flip Fingers - I loved that it made him stretch and reach with one hand, he loves watching them spin 
Large OBall* - he love to shake
Como Tomo Teether* - The best teether ever 
Stacking Cups - I only included the smallest two which he liked to pull apart, but never got to the point in putting them back together 
Treasure Baskets* - absolute favorite, he just loved chewing on all the metal (and recently added br…

You guys know how much I love IKEA, right? Well, it's been a hot minute since I've been able to go to IKEA with the Covid-19 crisis. Actually, it's been a minute since I've been to ANY store. I'm longing for the days of wandering around IKEA and exploring all that there is to see!
Well, it's starting to lead me to do a little more window shopping lately. And I decided I might as well share some of the cool looking Montessori friendly products I would love to be able to see in person. And, here are a few things I've found:

Gardening Tool Set - I immediately love the large ring they are on, it makes me wonder if these would be small enough to give to my children. The ring would make it so easy to store outside on the garden fence!
Watering Can - hands down my favorite kid sized watering cans, I don't actually need a new one I just love this color
Washcloths - I love the sweet little rabbits on these, I actually can't get enough washcloths not that Teddy i…

We have this weekly white board calendar in our kitchen which I use as a reminder to myself of the daily activities that are happening in a given week. It used to include things like doctor appointments, work calls, or playdates. But, now that we are officially two months into social distancing and shelter in place laws, something very new is filling my calendar - virtual conference calls. Suddenly, I feel like a big portion of my week is now managing who has a call and at what time. And, I'm guessing that for most of us are dealing with more and more virtual social interaction and increased use of technology. 
Before I go further I just want to say that this article is only meant to share my perspective, and our approach to technology right now. This isn't meant to be a judgment on anyone who uses technology more or less. It's also not meant to be one-size-fits-all Montessori approach. It's simply how we are surviving during this difficult time. 
Typically, we are nearl…

I've gotten so many questions about how we are approaching language work with Gus now that he is three. And, I promise that I will outline that work more carefully in the coming weeks. But before I did that I wanted to talk about one of the most fundamental things that I am working with him at home to prepare for future language work - the pincer grasp. 

Now, this isn't something that he just started working on at 3 or even 2, this is something he has been slowly working on since he was a baby. From grabbing little pieces of food to using his pincer block, it's been on my mind to make sure that we are offering opportunities to develop the muscles in his hand. 
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But...WhyThis article on Montessori Daoshi does a really good job explaining. But, basically we don't want to just hand a child a pencil and expect them to write. We are offering opportunities to refine their grasp so that when that pencil is finally given to th…

The bond between a pet and a child can be very beautiful to witness. In a Montessori home, animals provide opportunities to practice social, emotional, and practical life skills. In this week's episode, Nicole and Amy discuss the benefits and challenges of having pets and children. We also discuss how we've helped our  children deal with the death of a beloved family pet.  Show Notes...
ChatbooksCharlotte and Henry on Shelf HelpLosing a PetJanet Landsbury
Thanks for joining me for today's podcast! If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe, share and leave a review in your favorite podcast app.
If you are interested in finding Shelf Help in a podcast app, it is available on Apple | Spotify | Stitcher | Google.


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I've mentioned this before, but Theodore is on the verge of crawling. In an effort to support that desire to crawl, over the last couple of months I've made sure that at least some of his toys have supported this need for movement. While a lot of toys support a need for movement, I want to make sure I'm offering only those that support right where he is in this moment. If something is too easy, it won't engage him. If something is too challenging he could become too frustrated and give up. We want to find that balance of just the right material to support exactly where he's at. 
I ask a few questions before deciding on the right toy to introduce at this age. Answering these questions will help me decide whether or not Teddy is ready for a toy or if I need to wait until he can move a little more efficiently. They include:  how big is the toy? how heavy is the toy? how easy is it to roll? how far will it roll away at one time? 


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