Sweet Blessings Dayhome

Little hands, tiny seeds, and big imaginations 🌱✨

Before we began planting, we gathered together to read the book Plant the Tiny Seed, which sparked meaningful conversations about nature, growth, and how something so tiny can turn into something beautiful. 📚🌼 The story created so much curiosity and excitement for what was waiting at the table.

When Izzy, Selena, Ethan, Kaia, and Kinsley saw the planting invitation set up, their eyes instantly lit up. The excitement in their voices, the smiles, and the eagerness to begin made the moment feel so special. 💚

Each child had their own pot to plant and care for using haricot bean seeds and peas. Right away, Ethan carefully looked at the tiny seeds and proudly distinguished which ones were peas and which were haricot beans. Kinsley happily shared that they had done planting at school before, making connections between experiences at school and within our learning environment. 🌱

Kaia took her time observing the materials closely while carefully holding her pot, showing thoughtfulness and curiosity throughout the activity. Meanwhile, Izzy and Selena were especially excited to scoop and explore the soil, eagerly filling their pots and engaging their senses through play and discovery. 🪴✨

As the children carefully placed the tiny seeds into their own pots, they began counting them one by one, naturally incorporating early math skills into the experience. They discussed how many seeds they had, compared sizes, and talked about what their plants might look like once they start growing. 🌼

One of the sweetest moments was watering the plants together. Since we only had one watering can, the children patiently waited for their turn, showing kindness, cooperation, and self-regulation. They encouraged one another and watched carefully as each friend helped water the seeds. 💧🤎

This learning experience beautifully connected with Alberta’s Flight Framework by creating a space filled with curiosity, relationships, collaboration, and meaningful play. Through this simple planting invitation, the children explored literacy, numeracy, communication, responsibility, and their connection to the natural world, all while learning alongside one another. 🌿

Sometimes the tiniest seeds create the biggest learning moments. ✨

St. Patrick’s Day Sensory Exploration on the Light Table 🍀🌈💡✨
Today our Mighty Learners explored our St. Patrick’s Day sensory bin using the light table. The glowing colors made the rice sparkle and invited the children to dive into play and discovery.

At first, they grabbed their scoopers and little cauldrons, happily scooping and pouring the colorful rice from one container to another. This simple activity helped them practice their fine motor skills, hand-eye coordination, and early measuring concepts while having fun.

Soon, I noticed Kinsley using his finger to trace through the rice. He carefully moved the grains aside and made the letter “O.” With a big smile he said, “Look Ethan, I make letter O!” Inspired by his friend, Ethan joined in and traced the letter “A” in the rice. It was wonderful to see them exploring early literacy and letter recognition through play.

Meanwhile, Izzy stayed busy scooping and pouring rice over and over, enjoying the textures and movement while strengthening her grip and coordination. Henry was on a mission collecting all the little clover leaves, carefully placing them into the cauldron as he sorted and gathered his treasures.

The children also worked together to stack the wooden rainbow, helping one another find the right pieces and balance them. This activity encouraged teamwork, problem-solving, spatial awareness, and cooperative play as they built their colorful rainbow.

Through this sensory experience, the children explored textures, creativity, cooperation, early writing, and imaginative play. Activities like this also support language development, social skills, and critical thinking as the children share ideas and learn from each other.

Our Mighty Learners had so much fun exploring, creating, and learning together today! 🌈🍀💡

Today we celebrated our Christmas Party, and it was truly a day to remember! 🎄✨ The room was filled with laughter, music, and so much holiday cheer as the kids sang their favorite Christmas songs, danced with excitement, played fun games, and enjoyed coloring together with their friends. We also gathered for a story time and read The Christmas Story, taking a special moment to talk about the meaning of Christmas. To end our celebration, the children were so excited to receive their gifts, which brought out the biggest smiles, happy giggles, and lots of joyful moments. Such a magical day filled with love, fun, and beautiful Christmas memories! 💖🎁

Last year, I was honoured to receive the Bronze Award in the Childcare Services category. This year, out of 28 amazing nominees, I am incredibly humbled and grateful to have received the Platinum Award! 🏆💛✨

A heartfelt thank you to the wonderful parents, families, and friends who continue to support me, to my amazing family for always being by my side, and most of all, to God for guiding me on this journey.

And a big thank you to CommunityVotes - Fort McMurray for this incredible recognition. From Bronze to Platinum — this means the world and inspires me to keep nurturing and supporting our mighty learners every single day. 🌱💫

🌳✨ Park Adventures with Our Mighty Learners ✨🌳

Last week during our park visit at Cristina Gordon Playground, our consultants helped us set up a park schedule for visits. Bringing 6 kiddos on my own was definitely a challenge, but I’m so proud of how well they listened and how smoothly it went. 💪 Before heading out, I had a little talk with them about the importance of staying together and being safe while making new friends, and they really took it to heart. ❤️

When we arrived, the children greeted the other kids right away and quickly made new friends. Their excitement grew even more when a police officer pulled up! 🚓👮 They ran over with big smiles, gave high fives, and patiently lined up to take turns sitting inside the police car. The joy on their faces said it all, they felt proud and special to have that experience. 🌟

Afterwards, they went back to playing happily at the park, climbing, sliding, and running with their new friends. Before heading home, we even got a group picture with the Police Officer, a memory we’ll all treasure! 📸💙

And when it was time to go back, I called them, and they all came right away. Moments like this remind me how capable and responsible these little ones are becoming. 😊

🌻✨ Potion-Makers at Play ✨🌻

Last Friday, our mighty learners turned into little potion-makers during our sunflower play! With milk, yellow and green food coloring, sunflower petals, seeds, scoops, funnels, and jars, they mixed and poured magical brews. Cece and Dee pretended to be witches, carefully stirring the mixtures and saying they were making potions that could turn things invisible, giggling in their best witch voices, “hihihihi!”. Amara whispered that hers was a “fairy potion” to help the flowers grow bigger, while Kinsley giggled and said his looked like a “potion that could turn you into a frog.” Henry focused on scooping and pouring again and again, fascinated by how the colors swirled through the milk with the petals and seeds.

This rich sensory play supported fine motor development, early math and science concepts like measuring and cause-and-effect, and language growth as the children described their creations. It also inspired imaginative play and storytelling, giving them space to role play and collaborate.

✨In this experience, the children embodied the Five FLIGHT Dispositions:
1. Playing and Playfulness – inventing potions, pretending to be witches and fairies, and joyfully imagining new worlds.
2. Seeking – testing how colors mixed with milk, asking questions, and solving problems through hands-on exploration.
3. Participating – engaging with peers, sharing their ideas, listening to each other’s stories, and negotiating roles in pretend play.
4. Persisting – repeating actions like scooping, pouring, and stirring, trying different strategies to achieve the effect they wanted.
5. Caring – showing care for each other’s potions, valuing one another’s ideas, and connecting with nature through the use of petals and seeds.

As an educator, I notice these moments of play, name the dispositions I see children engaging in, and nurture them by providing open-ended materials and opportunities for exploration. Sunflower potion play was more than fun, it was a meaningful learning experience filled with curiosity, creativity, and collaboration. 🌞💧🌻

Into the Woods: A Scavenger Hunt of Wonder and Discovery 🔍🌿

Our curious explorers had an exciting forest scavenger hunt today! With checklists in hand and wonder in their eyes, the children eagerly ventured into nature, discovering treasures along the way.
Cece sparked excitement when she proudly said, “Look! There’s a rock here!”, inviting her peers to come see. This moment reflected playing and playfulness, as the children joyfully engaged in shared discovery. Oliver added, “I found a stick, there’s a lot of sticks on the ground!” demonstrating seeking as he carefully observed his surroundings and made connections.
Delilah spotted a butterfly and immediately crossed it off her checklist, while Amara noticed a bee buzzing nearby. Although some children expressed fear of being stung, this created a moment of participating, where they communicated their feelings, supported each other, and engaged in group discussion about safety in nature.
Later, when I pointed out a large mushroom, the children rushed over with curiosity. Kinsley exclaimed, “Mushroom!” and others followed with wide eyes, saying, “That’s a big mushroom!” Henry and Selena stood in awe, and Henry whispered, “Wow.” This moment captured imagining and inventing, as the children explored with wonder and asked questions about the natural world.
As we continued, with only two items left to find, I encouraged the group to keep looking. Their determination led us to a nest high up in a pine tree. When I asked what it was made of, Cece proudly responded, “Sticks!” This reflected persisting, as the children stayed engaged, focused, and eager to complete their hunt.
Through this rich outdoor experience, the children embodied all five dispositions to learn, Playing and Playfulness, Seeking, Participating, Persisting, and Imagining and Inventing, bringing the Flight: Alberta Framework to life in the heart of the forest. 🍃

Thank You for Your Interest!

I’m truly grateful for all the love and inquiries I’ve received from families recently. At this time, all of my spots are currently full.

Thank you so much for considering my program for your little one, it means the world to me. If you’re still looking for child care, I encourage you to contact Child Development Dayhomes Fort McMurray for support in finding available options in your area.

Please don’t hesitate to check back in the future for any openings! ❤️

Our DIY Mud Kitchen Project is almost complete! 🎉🪵💧 Huge thanks to my husband and father-in-law for bringing this vision to life, they’ve put so much care and love into every detail. We’re just one step away from finishing, and we can’t wait to add all the pots, pans, utensils, and nature-inspired treasures for the kids to enjoy!

Soon, our little chefs will be whipping up muddy masterpieces and diving into hours of imaginative, sensory play. Stay tuned—outdoor fun is just around the corner! 🍂👨‍🍳👩‍🍳🌿

Five Speckled Frogs and a Pond Full of Wonder 🐸🪷💧

Wow!” shouted the kids as they spotted the water table and just like that, they dove right into play. 💧💛 Delilah led the excitement with a cheerful round of Five Speckled Frogs, and soon everyone joined in, clapping and singing. Kinsley gently moved one of the frogs, making it “jump” into the pond at just the right moment in the song. 🐸🎵

Selena stood quietly at first, her eyes wide with wonder as she watched the water fountain sparkle under the sun. Suddenly, she tapped the surface and giggled with joy as the water splashed and she happily did it again, delighted by the cause and effect. 💦

Henry picked up a frog and proudly said, “Frog!” When asked what the frog says, he grinned and replied, “Ribbit!” 🐸 Amara gathered the water lilies and imagined frogs leaping from pad to pad in a whimsical pond dance. Oliver took his time counting each frog on the log, and when asked how many he saw, he confidently said, “Four!”

As the play expanded, the children added a duck and one large frog, and they called it Mommy Frog.” 🐥🐸 Their storytelling blossomed, blending math, language, and dramatic play in a single joyful moment.

When Cece arrived, she didn’t miss a beat. She ran straight to the table, singing Five Speckled Frogs and joining in with a huge smile.

🌿 What they’re learning: Through this simple yet rich activity, the children explored early math (counting, sequencing), science (water movement, cause and effect), language (song lyrics, conversation), and social-emotional development (cooperation, observation, expression). Best of all, they were immersed in imaginative, open-ended play that fosters curiosity and connection. ✨