Most Used | 3-4 Years

Every time I write these Most Used posts I feel a mixture of sadness and a sense of purpose. The sense of purpose comes from using my parenting knowledge to inform other parents or those buying gifts, what the most useful things are for this age group. The sadness comes from realising my little girl is growing up and when I look back over these old posts they remind of the things we used to own, things full of memories and nostalgia- who'd have thought you'd miss a travel potty?? Parenting is weird like that. Here's this year's list of the things we used most between the ages of 3-4.

Hats, Gloves, Scarves and Sunglasses.

People of the world rejoice! Between the ages of 3-4 Iris began keeping ON hats, gloves, scarves and sunglasses. She even went as far as requesting them, usually in inappropriate weather but it's well worth keeping a stash of these items alongside an umbrella or two. No longer did we have the 'keep your hat on' battle and I no longer had to constantly pick up hats that had been torn off heads and thrown on the floor in utter toddler defiance.

A Decent Flask

Perhaps a bit of a niche item and probably quite Covid specific but we used a flask for al fresco hot chocolate so much over the last year- it must have saved us a small fortune on buying takeaway drinks. We found ourselves spending a lot of time outdoors during the ages of 3-4, Iris really required a lot of input in terms of activities and mental stimulation. They say that kids reach a point in their lives when they are 'just ready for school' and Iris has well and truly hit this point.

Books, Arts & Crafts

With school on the horizon, letters, shapes and number activity books have been a godsend. We're not pushing her into academia at all she's just shown a genuine interest in learning these things and it's amazing to watch your little baby write their own name. There's some great affordable options available from places like PoundToy and The Works.  We've also gone through a tonne of craft supplies and paint this year. As Iris's ability to concentrate has gotten longer we've found she's been much more into arts and crafts and drawing and writing. It's worth noting that our use of baby wipes has increased during the arts & crafts movement!

Ear Defenders

Ages 3-4 brings the transition from toddler to little girl and as part of that transition the activities you get to do as a family increases. We love going to the cinema and our local cinema has an amazing Kids Club on weekends and daily throughout half term with tickets priced at just £2.15 per person (you obviously need a child in your group to attend) but this is a great initiative to introduce kids to the cinema as during a Kids Club showing they aren't expected to sit perfectly still, the lights aren't dimmed as much and the sound is slightly quieter, plus if they hate it and you all have to leave you've only wasted £2.15 per ticket. One of the things that has eased Iris's transition to loving the cinema is Ear Defenders. They've been great when a film has a little too much action and is a little too loud but they also offer reassurance if we bring them to events such as Gloworm festival. Iris knows she can pop them on and feel a little safer.  

Money

A weird choice for a Most Used post but a necessary one as this is the age group you are likely to have to pay for things. A lot of the things we love to do such as visit Sundown Adventureland and Yorkshire Wildlife Park need to be paid for when your child reaches a set height/age and that is usually around 3 years old. Kids also start to talk about the activities they do at weekends with their friends and they start to become aware of other activities that can do like Go Bounce and Theme Parks. We've found purchasing annual passes to our favourite local attractions to be the best way of saving money.

Of course this is optional and we still enjoy plenty of FREE activities to do in our local area, nothing beats a trip to the local park or museum.

So there we have it, another year of Most Used under our belts. Every year that passes Iris amazes me with her growth but this year feels quite pivotal, like it's the point in which she leaves toddler-dom behind and starts becoming a proper little lady. Who knows where the next year will lead us?

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