Vegetable Glue

I cannot really speak for meal times and fussy eaters, as our path with weaning and consequently feeding has strayed from the norm and into an area regulated and plotted by medical professionals. However, I do remember growing up with my sister who was a supremely fussy eater (she accused me of being a traitor when she saw me eating broccoli. She was at least 14 at the time...) and I suspect that my little baby is fast becoming a contrary toddler so I thought I had better brush up on some literature to arm myself with knowledge for the next stage of development. One book I discovered whilst working at Seven Stories, the centre for Children's Books and remembered fondly ever since was Vegetable Glue by Susan Chandler and illustrated by Elena Odriozola. It always raised a giggle from children and story times and an understanding eye roll from many parents around the room.

Vegetable Glue is a cautionary tale from a little girl who only eats cake. The problem with this is that vegetable glue keeps all your body parts stuck on* and makes sure they do not fall off. Should your head accidentally take a tumble, you would need to flag down a wise granny (or possibly greengrocer) and beg for some magical glue to repair the damage.What's that; you've never seen someones arm spontaneously fall off in the playground? Ahhh, well they must have all eaten up their greens then to keep their arms and legs stuck firmly to their bodies. You don't need to guzzle down your body weight in peas and carrots to create vegetable glue, a few bits from your plate will suffice (if you are unsure, ask your mum or dad. They generally seem quite knowledgeable in the vegetable consumption arena). And I don't know about you, but if I knew my head was likely to fall off in the middle of going down the slide then I think I would stay indoors too. Terribly embarrassing, this body falling apart business.

"You can see for yourself,

That something's not right,

People don't fall apart.

It's just not polite.

I have to keep with me,

A big tub of glue,

To stick bits back on,

To make good as new."

So how then, do we avoid this? Luckily, the answer is here and written beautifully in rhyme. The text is large for new or budding readers (or tired parents) and accompanied by gorgeous watercolour illustrations on every page.

"It's not in the shops and it's not on the telly, beacuse vegetable glue is in everyone's belly!

But I was quite silly and made a mistake.

I wouldn't eat cabbage, or turnips or beans; I didn't like carrots, I didn't like greens.

I didn't eat sprouts and now I've no special glue. No goodness inside me, like other kids do.

While others are playing, I can't even cough. If I sneeze or I burp then something falls off."

By this point, I was already sold on the book when I first read it. It's marvellously silly as well as being full of subliminal common sense, but just in case your child might not be convinced, there is an almost obligatory rude picture for all the back row to collapse in giggles....

Although she is too young to sit through the whole story or understand fully the content, Wriggles is more than happy to flick through the pictures and was amused by the rhyming text. It also lends itself to silly noises and learning body parts if you feel like being very involved and interactive.

I don't know about you, but I will be having mainly vegetables for tea tonight. With a side helping of more vegetables. You can't be too careful....

*not scientifically proven but backed up by 99% of desperate parents especially at dinner times

Inspired: Room for a Wriggles

This weekend, I've been having a super clear and sort out of the flat. Until now, I have shacked up with Wriggles in her bedroom. When we first moved, she was only just 5 months corrected and had just had a major infection, so I slept in the same room to adhere to SIDS advice and for my peace of mind. As she was frequently ill, I stayed and by the time we emerged into the healthier period we are in now, with the worst behind us, I have stayed out of convenience. One of the most annoying things about being a singleton is that you need to wait for kindly friends to pop over to give a hand with moving heavy furniture or DIY jobs!

But. Moving time is here. We both now have our own bedrooms and to celebrate, I would like to jazz the neutral walls up a touch (neutral is an understatement. They are generic cheap-as-chips magnolia with sandpapery cheap sludge colour carpet, as can be found in most inexpensively kitted out places by landlords trying to cut corners!) and give our rooms some personality. I love the Inspired linky that Dear Beautiful Boy has been running, so joining in, here are some of the items that I am coveting and drawing inspiration from to give Wriggles a room fit for a queen.

I love this bold tree print; it is a fabric from Swedish favourites Ikea. Not only is it affordable at £4.99 a metre but it is thicker than many cottons, so I have been thinking about attempting to whizz up some curtains. Note; "attempting" is key here. In theory, I know how to run up curtains having watched Kirsty Allsopp's 'Handmade Home' programme and internet tutorials, how I would actually fare is another matter. Oh and that time thing to. But I would like to!

The room has a short but very wide window so any curtain will be quite a feature. I do not want a super girly room brimming  over with fairies and pink, so would like to keep with more green and blue palette.

And while I'm looking at birds, I have utterly fallen in love with this owl in a teacup print by illustrator Heather Scott. Heather sells on Etsy and Folksy under Sparklehen. Her prints are vibrant and whimsical and I already have several bought over time. The teacup reminds me slightly of Alice in Wonderland, and the colours are perfect. Who wouldn't want to share a tea party with a stray owl?! Loons. And it's not strictly a room accessory but I'm sure Wriggles could make room for this crochet owl in her cot!

 Being in a rented flat, it is too much faff to start painting and wallpapering, so these new-fangled wall stickers sound a good plan of transforming a wall and adding some colour. Keeping with an emerging woodland vibe, I saw these designs on Not On The Highstreet which caught my eye.

Whilst I was also browsing there, I saw this rabbit lamp by Little Ella James. Wriggles is not scared of the dark and has rarely slept in anything lighter than pitch black, so for the moment I doubt a nightlight would be needed, but it is so sweet. Maybe I could "borrow" it for the time being! I saw these fabric Love Birds which look adorable perched on a branch (surely attaching a branch to a wall must be easy?)

 

So all I need to do now is win the lottery and channel my inner Laurence Llewelyn Bowen. Easy! Hop over to Lucy's blog and see what anyone else has been looking at this week.

Cure for a Cold

Wriggles is FULL of snot and quite rightly, grumps. It is rubbish having a cold. Part of my attempts at cheering up are reading lots of stories especially those with silly pictures and one such book is the wonderful Norman the Slug with a Silly Shell by Sue Hendra. I first found this through one of her other titles, Barry the Fish with Fingers which was one of my favourite books to read when I worked at Seven Stories and had to join in the daily storytelling.

Norman is a ridiculous story about a slug who wants to be a snail. They are so colourful and fun and amazing and cool and brilliant and beautiful and....he can't join in. He just isn't the same, and has to just watch as they laugh and make snail-pyramids together. Then, one sad and lonely evening Norman has a great idea. He might not be a real snail but he could find a shell to join in the fun! He experiments with a range of ideas before hitting the jackpot.

And his dreams come true; the snails LOVE Norman and his new silly shell. Now he can join in to his hearts content. Unfortunately, the snails aren't the only one smitten with Norman's new shell. A peckish bird also has his eye on it and swoops down to spoil Norman's fun. Suddenly, being a snail isn't so much fun and Norman has to use his Slug Powers to escape.

This a wonderfully silly tale which is as much about being yourself as it is about slugs, snails and doughnuts with sprinkles on. As much as we may be envious of other people, we all have our own special things which make us who we are and are perfectly suited to us. And of course, the snails realise in the end that Norman is still one cool slug, even when he is just being a slug. This should inspire confidence in young children who can see past the slug-snail storyline and provide plenty of giggles for everyone else inbetween. The bright, colourful graphics are eye catching and simple and provide plenty to talk about.

I introduced this book to my bookworm when she was probably only about five months old (two corrected) and would point out the colours, the shapes and the snails. At 13 months corrected she still does not have the concentration for the whole story but enjoys the pictures and "gets" the visual slapstick. It is a book I think that will grow with her as she gets older and has worries that her 'shell' might not be good enough, when of course it is the bestest in the whole wide world!

Watch

Book Review Monday

As this weekend I have been reflecting on time in SCBU and what it means having an ex-prem baby, I am looking at "Lyra and the Flying Fish" written by Peter Emina and illustrated by Alice Ridley. 

"It's a strange and dangerous world out there...

Lyra and White Rabbit were together from the very first moment. As the second moment arrived, Rabbit lay there with his head next to hers. He could feel her tiny breaths passing along the plastic tube the doctors had fitted to help Lyra's not quite ready lungs puff, pant & gasp. He listened to the air as it tickled his big furry ears.....

Peacefully floating on the surface of life, Lyra is very good at ignoring everything. But when her beloved Rabbit is taken away by an unschooled whooshing jumble of flying fish, Lyra finds herself caught up in an amazing watery adventure below the surface of the ocean. With the help of her new friend Timothy the turtle, she bravely vows to find White Rabbit at all costs.

Journey beyond the incubator and into the imagination with this highly original and beautifully illustrated tale of a premature baby."

This book was written and illustrated by a couple based on their niece who was born prematurely at 24+5. Lyra needed CPAP to help her breathe, which her mum (Alice Ridley's sister) would refer to as her 'snorkel'. This kick-started their idea for an underwater adventure to communicate not just a different and gentle description of life as premature infant, but also to inspire hope about getting through: an essential ingredient that anyone who has had experience of prematurity will know. Premature babies find touch and movement very distressing which will interfere with their wellbeing, so for long periods are in their incubators with a comforter. Of course their parents are never far away (most likely, say right next to them!) but the physical barrier can sometimes seem very overwhelming. 

This story touched me deeply as the mother of a premature baby born at 27+6 requiring breathing support. There is an intense side to the experience which is very tough to communicate, but this book very gently and imaginatively put the words down in a way that is not scary or upsetting. It is both whimsical, gentle and magical whilst clearly showing the fierce determination of Lyra and the friendship and comfort she gets from White Rabbit. I initially bought it as a way of explaining to my daughter about her start in life when she grows older, but upon reading it over and over again value it as much for the story which is a brilliant tale of adventure and friendship even if you have no experience of a premature baby. The illustrations are beautiful and really bring it to life. It slightly reminds me of the concept of Alice in Wonderland, but if she had a friend to go with her down the rabbit hole!

Publisher's description 

Interview with author and illustrator 

Books

One of Wriggles' favourite things are books. She cannot get enough. Recently she has begun to be able to turn the pages the "right" way as opposed to reading upside down and back to front. Lift the flap books are a winner although paperback books have currently had to be hidden as her other favourite activity is ripping.

I have always grown up around books and been passionate about reading and important it is so I am delighted she takes such an interest. I have read to her since she was Very Very Small (on coming home initially from SCBU aged 37 weeks gestation, I rather optomistically tried to read her Winnie The Pooh serials by AA Milne; I got stuck for conversation and she nodded off to my voice even when doing a squeaky Piglet and a vvvvvveeeerrrrrryyyyyy meeeellllllannnchollyyyyy Eeyore) and have been egaerly collecting books I loved as a child and new titles since. I have generously given her one whole shelf on my bookshelf but she is already encrouching on the shelf above.

As a student at university, I worked part time in the marvellous Seven Stories in Newcastle upon Tyne, a dedicated centre for children's literature. My job was to be an information point, read stories, lead craft activities related to the exhibitions, sing songs ("If you're happy and a puffin, waggle your tail......") and dress up regularly as a tiger who came to tea or whatever book we were promoting! I adore Seven Stories and am really looking forward to Wriggles being bigger to enjoy it. They have activities for little people to very big people and regularly have authors, illustrators and surprise guests such as The Very Hungry Caterpillar dropping in.

As well as enjoying Grown Up books, I have always had a soft spot for childrens books. They were a love of childhood, but also something I have a deep interest in. I am no budding author but my dream job would be illustrate books. I did an art degree and quickly discovered my favourite area was illustration and design. Sadly by this point I was halfway through a very anti-illustration Fine Art degree but I have pursued it separately. I did submit drawings for a budding author a few years ago but alas have never seen the fruits! I adore collecting images by illustrators though and leafing through texts and layouts. My favourites are Judith Kerr, Lauren Child, Lucy Cousins, E H Shephard, Quentin Blake, Dick Bruna, Catherine Rayner, Jane Hissey and Helen Oxenbury.

If you are a baby here are some recommendations by Wriggles

My Top Books.

*Ten Little Fingers and Ten Little Toes by Mia Fox with Helen Oxenbury
*Peekaboo Peter; a textured lift-the-flap jobby published by Warne, collecetd from Beatrix Potter's Peter Rabbit
*Quack, Quack Maisy by Lucy Cousins
*My Puffer Train by Mary Murphy
*any of the DK Peekaboo series!

Mummy's favourites to read:

*Guess How Much I Love You by Sam McBratney with Anita Jeram
*Alice and Anatole by Sam Childs
*The Tiger Who Came To Tea by Judith Kerr
*Penguin by Polly Dunbar
*Dogger by Shirley Hughes