Run, run as fast as you can...

I keep our homemade gingerbread men in this fabulous tin my mum gave me. She knows my weakness for tins and is always giving me lovely ones to add to my growing collection.

Thursday is my special day with Emma. Monday to Wednesday she goes to playgroup for a couple of hours in the morning and on Fridays we usually walk into town, so Thursday is the only day when it is just the two of us at home all day. I don't have many Thursdays left with my little bear as she will be starting school in September, so I have to make the most of our time together. I could wax lyrical on my thoughts on making children start school when they are barely four years old, but it is probably not a good idea to get me started on that one!

Today's Thursday Theme was 'The Gingerbread Man'. I had planned to start the day by making gingerbread men, only to find I didn't have quite enough plain flour for the recipe. This necessitated a quick dash to the local shop to buy flour. The shop is just over half a mile away, but we are on top of one hill and the shop is on top of the next hill, so it always feels further! Emma was quite happy in her pushchair, brandishing  the wooden spoon she insisted on taking with her to do her baking with when we got back! It was a sunny day and we chatted happily together as we went, so the walk turned into rather a pleasant addition to our day.

We made the gingerbread men when we got back from the shop and I read her one of our versions of The Gingerbread Man while they were baking. We then had lunch and I found various Gingerbread Man themed children's songs on YouTube to watch while we ate. I was particularly pleased to find a Muppets version of 'Sweet Gingerbread Man'. I used to love the Muppets! I used my Gingerbread Man 'Tea for One' teapot and Emma and I shared the cup. She loves tea and sat drinking cup after cup of it until I set up our next activity. I cut a gingerbread man shape out of brown card and gave her various bits and whatnots and some glue to play with and let her have at it.

We read another version of the gingerbread man before going to collect Tom and Lily from school. The weather was mild enough that we were able to have a good play in the park on the way home. Tom and Lily were thrilled to come in and discover a big gingerbread man each and the tin of the smaller gingerbread men is already depleting rapidly!

Whilst Emma was engaged in her crafting this afternoon she said to me, "I love this! This is my favourite day." Mine too, sweetheart!

Emma with her wooden spoon heading out to the shop

Emma loves baking

My Kenwood mixer is over 30 years old and is still going strong. It is a wonderful machine and I love it dearly. It is, however, very loud. Emma always puts her fingers in her ears when I turn it on!

Cutting out gingerbread men

Imprinting the features.

Emma's lunch. I cut her sandwiches into gingerbread shapes!

Emma putting glue on her cardboard gingerbread man. So much glue. Less is definitely not more to a three year old!

Gingerbread men and books greeted the Podlings when they got home from school. I think it can be useful to have several different versions of books as I think it is good for children to see that a story can be told (and interpreted) in different ways.

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