FIERCELY protect their concentration! That needs to be a poster alongside "play is the work of the child". I'm asked so often how Stella gets through activities with so much concentration and focus... it's because of this. From the first days, we were protecting that concentration (and stopping each other from jumping in when not needed!😅) It's SO critical for future independent play too! Just... don't interrupt. We HATE to be interrupted as adults at work, don't we? As long as they're safe, offer them those 2 minutes that they're exploring a crumb! One day that will be 20 minutes of them building a tower!
Thank you for mentioning this. I do things very fast because I've always had to get so much done. I find it relaxing to watch my son explore. So I don't think I'll have a problem not jumping in. Your comment helps me remind myself Do Not Jump In. :-)
I had two very different experiences of play depending on if my mum or my Nana was with me. My mum is a "Let me do that for you" person, she is the one who puts your shoes on because you need to be out the door, she would take over a puzzle or something similar to show you how it "should" be done, she was also a shusher if I played too loudly. My nana had a box of toys in her living room (little plastic farm animals and such from the charity shop) and after I had been fed, watered and dressed (unless it was a PJ day) she would pick up a book or a crossword, sit on the sofa nearby and leave me to my own devices. If I involved her she would of course interact (all the many cups of tea we adults must air sip) but for the most part my mum wondered how my nana kept me entertained for hours at a time and honestly, she didn't, I entertained me for hours at a time.
Having a floor bed and crawler safe room was a game changer. I am pretty sure it spared me some sleepless nights. My child had tendency to wake up around 2 am in the morning, crawl around his room play a little bit with his toys and then go straight back to sleep without crying and notifying anyone. I learned about this just by accident one time when he was ringing one of the bells really hard.
I have a question. We are using a crib right now but I want to transition to a floor bed (more like just his crib mattress on the floor) I’m just afraid he will fall out of his mattress at night because he moves so much. How long did it take for your baby to not fall? My baby is 8 months for reference
@@estefaniparra3681 I don't have children yet, but maybe I can help you. Just have some carpet in front of the bed (a short one, to prevent the risk of suffocating). If your child rolls out without waking up he can just continue sleeping on the floor without getting cold. If he wakes up he mostly wont get hurt and can crawl back into bed on his own 😊
The focus tip actually really helped me. I've been plopping my 3 year old in his baby gym so I can get some stuff done and feeling guilty that I wasn't playing with him. He is perfectly happy for like 30 minutes playing by himself, but for some reason I was feeling like I wasn't doing enough. This actually really helped me reframe that as his quiet time to learn to concentrate and play by himself.
Someone I work with had a permanently disabled family member because she bit into a glass when she was under 2. It's true that she learned the consequences of her actions, but it was a bloody steep price to pay. It might not be common, but it's certainly a risk. I'd highly recommend making sure you get either very thick glass, or use something else while they learn not to bite everything!
I'm not a Montessori mama, but as a mama of 5, with a brand new 1 year-old, most of these ideas are just plain great parenting choices. The only traditional choice I prefer here is the high chair. With so many kids moving around my house, mealtimes are sacred quieter times and I myself haven't the patience to train a baby so young to remain in his or her seat while attending to meals. Thanks for sharing all these swaps. It was a fun video!
Second that on te high chair. I found that restricting movement helps my baby to better focus on the food and to eat for longer even if just playing with her spoon and bowl.
I binged your content throughout my pregnancy and I had all these amazing goals and ideas planned for how I would raise my daughter. After I had her, postpartum depression & OCD took ahold of me and those goals got put on the back burner. 2 years later and I’m so excited to be back catching up on your content, and implementing everything im learning
OCD really holds onto what you love the most. I'm not planning on being a parent anytime soon, but relapsing into OCD+depression scares me for when that time comes.
Your “giant-sized” analogy shifted my perspective on how I prepare my home for my daughter, and it has been SO helpful! This makes so much sense! I even consider if it is something I would appreciate as an adult or in her shoes (e.g., being strapped to a high chair, unable to move). I watched this many months ago, and I'm so grateful for your video! Thank you!
I’m not married, I don’t have children, and this is the first video I’ve seen educating on the purpose of a “Montessori home”. Despite those things, I watched all the way to the end and feel like I’ve learned some invaluable tools for parenting in the future. Thank you for sharing your knowledge and experiences! ❤
Hi Ashley, now that Kylie is 5, I would be really interested in hearing your thoughts on sibling age gaps from the perspective of Montessori parenting. What are the different advantages of relative age gaps in developing as individual children, the relationship as siblings, and coping as a Montessori at home parent?
That second half is truly, truly the most important list! You could be a Montessori home with none of the items in the first half but not the inverse! Great list of ideas Ashley! 🫶
I really appreciated your gentleness when discussing ‘child containers’ in giving parents the permission to follow what is necessary in the moment and slowly transition. Also the clarity that fantasy books are for a later phase is helpful. I previously understood that Montessori was completely anti-fantasy which I now understand better.
Thank you for mentioning that you don’t have to have, buy or do everything. So many videos out there are so inaccessible to those with a smaller budget.
I don’t love the word Montessori as children over the world have been learning how to be independent for centuries but I love the concept of encouraging little humans to think for themselves and solve their own problems and gain a sense of self. This was a great and useful video and will definitely implement some tips! Thank you. I need to work on weaning my 8 month old breastfed baby who sleeps with me into her own floor bed 😅 Watching this video reinforces the idea that it can be done. Wish us luck !
Loved your last point about not stepping in. So hard to bite my tongue when I know the tower is gonna fall down or my son hasn't left enough room for the lego person to sit in the vehicle, but the kids get so much pride from working through the frustration of those miscalculations and figuring it out for themselves! I also try to implement this with physical safety now that they're a little older and doing daring stunts 😬😱 I repeat the mantra "keep them as safe as necessary, not as safe as humanly possible". Easier said than done, but it gives them so much confidence and a good ability to assess risk (most of the time 🤪) x
I am new to Montessori (not a mom yet) but the last one feels so real because this is something we do wrong as adults as well, always try to fix the problem instead of validating the other person and just listening without making it avout yourself.
Well Ashley, I'm 3 and a half years in as a single parent with my son in Jamaica. Maybe you remember us from winning enrollment in your course 🤗 I found your channel when I was pregnant and preparing to go to the hospital. Thank you, you have been my constant teacher. Every other Montessori/positive parenting resource I have found (except local, like minded Mama's and doulas) has been directly or indirectly through you. This video really touches on my journey, all the steps and pieces, attitudes we have worked on. There's still a need for fine tuning here and there but I have learnt so much and shifted so far from my upbringing. Sending you well wishes, gratitude and love in abundance, thank you star girl.
I absolutely love my babies bouncer, but I use it in the bathroom 😅 I put a towel down and put them on it after their bath so I have time to dry my hands so they aren't wet and slippery/tidy what needs tidying and know they're just safe, wrapped in a towel and hanging out. Safety and happiness as well as getting things done that need doing :)
My daughter is 14 months and still doesn’t know how to drink from an open cup. I couldn’t figure out why my kid couldn’t do it. Then I realized we don’t model that for her. I have my water bottle with me 24/7. My daughter figured out how to drink from a straw very quickly. Which is to say, do what makes sense for your family even if it isn’t traditional Montessori. It’s about independence, not curriculum. 💜💜
YOU ARE THE MOTHERLY VOICE inside my soul, who tries to have others understand my side as a mother. I did a lot of number swaps that you mentioned, especially being empathic to our little ones. Being too protective or way advanced anxities doesn't help us and even our child. I'll be showing this video of yours to my husband. THIS IS A SLAP for him. Hahaha. Just bc being a first timer doesn't mean we couldn't be a Mother.
THIS is the perfect montessori video! I've been waiting for this for a long time. It could've also been titled "difference between traditional and montessori style parenting", or something along those lines. We have a 3 month old and are doing montessori although my husband had a bit of a hard time understanding some of the ideas. This perfectly illustrates montessori and was soooo helpful for us. Thank you for the information!
Hi Ashley, stumbled upon your video, my wife and I are expecting our first child in December, I know there's still a while until this parenting style can be adopted and used but wow was I blown away by the introduction to Montessori, thank you for the valuable information. I am looking forward to sharing this with my wife to further educate ourselves. Thank you and keep up the content!
It has occurred to me that our language should not be "Montessori vs Traditional" parenting but instead it should be "Montessori vs Conventional" parenting. I think truly traditional parenting (looking way back in history all over the world) actually aligns well with Montessori philosphy. Many non-American cultures nowadays practice Montessori-like parenting (e.g. the book Hunt, Gather, Parent by Michaeleen Doucleff). Our current parenting conventions, however, are far from Montessori, especially in the USA. The baby gear industry in the USA has obfuscated so much of the wisdom from traditional parenting. Thanks for your videos!
Three week old newborn here. Also a 12 year old. I clicked on this video in my recommended to see what it was about. I’m a Montessori parent without even knowing it 😁 Great video!!! Thank you!
As always, I love your videos. The amazing collection of example videos that you've collected with your own family is an absolute treasure trove! The only recommendation that don't agree with is the "everything must be natural materials." I think plastic can have a role too, if it's open-ended and not battery powered and such and as long as there is a lot of other materials available to experience. For example, magnetic tiles are absolutely the best toy we own. It has grown with our child and engaged much more than wooden blocks (especially, the Lovevery set which I find to be terrible -- the blocks are way too slippery). We do open play with magnetic tiles literally every day with lots of focus and engagement. My main criticism of the "no plastic" recommendation is that people get so hung up on it and feel like they can't do Montessori without spending a ton of money on Instagram-pretty toys... "Open-ended", "child-driven", "following your child's interests," and "providing a variety of sensory experiences" are all great advice for toys that you give and these elements seem much more important then excluding all plastic. (And, there are plenty of wooden toys that don't meet these four criteria but that people still market as "Montessori.")
I am happy to say that I have implemented all of these in our home except one! I need to find a way to make a space for our kids to get their own dishes, glasses, and drinks. Since we've moved I haven't make an effort to do that. Thank you, Ashley for teaching me all of these wonderful techniques almost 3 years ago! It really made me feel confident as a parent and my children are thriving!
I'm pretty new to this whole montessori thing, but I noticed that I have been doing some of these things already because they just suited my lifestyle better. We always had a lot of unrestricted floor time for example because I did not want to buy sooooo many baby containers. And I saw such positive results from just that. Recently bought a floorbed and I wish I had done it much earlier. It's such a blessing. My little one is also getting really good at independent play recently and moves around so freely and I really want to create an environment that helps him get around even better. So this video was super helpful and inspirational. Thank you so much for putting this information out.
I was adamant that I wouldn’t be using any containment devices but I ended up relenting and getting my baby a bouncer once he hit 5 weeks old. He has very bad reflux and sitting him up after a feed greatly helps to relieve the associated pain or bringing back up milk. He doesn’t always want to sit in my lap or be carried so this seems like the best compromise. We sit and read or he even just observes me as I go about chores or cooking. I try to limit his total time in it to an hour or less per day.
This is great Ashley! Thank you. We do Montessori at home as much as we can - but our children do go to a standard state school. Sometimes it feels tricky having to to explain to our children why teachers (or peers or other parents) say/do certain things. I remember when my son first started - his teacher told him he’d get a special sticker if he slept well at night. - This was after I explained that he was worrying about school - about being timed, about points, about not being allowed to go to the toilet during class etc. There’s just too much pressure. Any tips you have on how best to navigate this would be great! I actually feel guilty sometimes for sending them to school.
I'm also curious about this at younger ages, too, for parents who have to work and can't necessarily afford a Montessori daycare - how do you navigate your child getting different messages at home versus at daycare/with a nanny?
@@juliakbrown Yes, there are so many conflicting messages. The other day my son got a medal and certificate for a sports event, with everyone giving him high fives etc. I rather they didn’t give a reward but it’s tricky when others in his team also get rewards. I tell him it’s how you got there and I don’t emphasise the ‘rewards’. I tell myself that what our children are exposed to at home counts more. He also goes to an after school club that encourages you to earn badges. He really does enjoy the club and it is great for making friends etc 🤷♀️ It is tricky!
I recently discovered your videos and the Montessori way of thinking. Thanks for all the tips and tricks. My background is in Occupational therapy and I didn’t realize how many OT principles overlap with Montessori. Made the conversation with my husband a lot easier when I was talking to him about how I wanted to raise our 8 month old.
I did not realise this was what my mother was doing with me the entire time, now I have a term for it, can't wait to share this with her and find out whether she read up on this beforehand
Thanks for this list Ashley, I tried really hard to be a Montessori parent with my first child but when every effort seemed to backfire I truly felt like a failure. I've relaxed on everything with my second child but your list helps me to see that I do cover most of the important points 😀❤️ Edit to add: you were truly influential in helping me define my parenting style with my first child (who is the same age as your second so it was always fun to get that real-time age-targeted messaging). I have really enjoyed learning about and practicing respectful parenting, unconditional parenting, and positive discipline and I thank you for sharing so much with us in our learning journey ❤️
This video gave me a much better understanding of what being a montessori parent is. Everything was explained so clearly, I will come back to this vide often
I'm very open about the whole Montessori concept but especially about the "natural material toys" concept. As someone who crochets (and hates acrylic yarn) I have *a ton* of small handmade figures that my kids can play with when they're older. Birds, sea creatures, farm animals, foods, you name it. I'm really excited to give them to my kids when they are old enough for them (the toys are mostly very small so I'd rather wait a little until I give them most of them) . Also I'm really glad I found Montessori and have the time to look into it before we bought the kids' furniture. However, I'm buying them with my mother-in-law and I'm really hoping that she's on board with all those "weird" things I wanna get, especially because my parents in-law (is that what you call them?) really wanna pay for the furniture because they didn't pay our wedding😬
You are a godsend!! My oldest two did Montessori through preschool and I encourage it for everyone! I now have a 4 year old and will be fully homeschooling him and I needed a refresher and your videos have been perfect! Thank you!
I wish I had known more about Montessori when my daughter was a baby. She’s 5, still struggling with potty training and I was near my breaking point, then today I saw a video on Montessori home, which showed an area setup for the little one outside of the bathroom with everything they needed. I set up a potty station right in her bedroom because with being a family of 5 she often gets shifted around the house to use the potty which I think has created a lot of frustration and confusion for her. For me it clicked, she needs an area that she can go to regardless of whether a teenager is in the bathroom or not. I am also going to start having a pitcher of water for her on her little table and letting her eat her meals at her little table. But I need some tips how to start to incorporate more Montessori swaps into our home even though she’s already 5. And for the person who wants to criticize me because she’s still struggling with potty training please choose to air your complaints to someone else, I don’t need to be told I’m a failure, I’ve already dealt with enough of those thoughts and feelings and have criticized myself enough. I’m only interested in helpful comments, thanks.
Thanks for making this video, Ashley! I think this would be a great introduction for explaining to family members or friends who want to learn more about what being a “Montessori parent” means. I know there are great summaries of what Montessori is (some of your own videos, too). And, for some people, I think comparing with what they are used to seeing in traditional parenting styles helps understand the key differences and reasons for Montessori parenting.
I learned sooooo much from you. Thank you! I have a inhome daycare and its all montessori. All parents are positiv surprised what there child can do alone
I just watched your video for the first time because I wanted to find out more about this Montessori. Around 20:25 you speak about how it would be if we lived with giants that we needed there help for everything. I felt the Lord speak to my spirit and say that you are the one who will model there need for me. It is how I created it.
I absolutly love this video, thank you! With little/ no knowledge of Montessori i have already implemented some of these things, this has definitely driven me to better understand Montessori and implement more of these.
You are fast for the upload😊 Thank you very much for all the content you have shared with us. You started as a montessori influencer however, at the moment, I can easily say thay you are the best teacher in RUclips about Montessori! Perhaps I am one of the oldest followers so I benefit so much from your videos&vlogs :) Please accept my love, thank you!
Outstanding video!!! Thank you for pulling all this information together into one video! Inspired me to add more Montessori approaches into our home and parenting 💕
Seeing old videos of your girls make me miss your vlogs☺️ I‘d love you to post some sort of an update video ond how you are doing as a family every few months or so! Will you be starting your own montessori playgroup this spring?
I’ve been watching your content for at least 2 years now and I appreciate what you do on here with all my heart. You are who I first found out about Montessori through You truly helped me learn how to parent and teach my child (and step child at the time) when I realized I knew nothing about how to be a good parent, I did not want to make the same mistakes my parents did and traumatize my children. You opened my eyes to the world of conscious respectful/gentle parenting and an alternative view on education that I completely believe in and stand for now and for that I am forever grateful With that being said, i as always love this video and all of your videos and you are so incredibly helpful I wanted to know if you’d possibly be able to make a list of all of the books that Maria Montessori wrote herself with links to those books? It seems online there are so many of the same titled books that says are from her but with all of the covers looking different and I’m feeling confused
I have never read anything about montessori parenting or parenting in general, because I didn’t want to pressure myself into „doing everything perfectly“. But now my daughter is on the brink of becoming a toddler and so I watched this video to find out more about it. Funny enough I already seem to be a „Montessori parent“ because here where I live it seems that we already do all these things. The only box that I couldn’t check was the high chair one. For us it is important that our daughter can sit at the table with us during the meals, so that she feels included in the family meals. She also has a learning tower in the kitchen where she can stand and watch what we do. She loves it when she can be nearly as tall as I am on this learning tower. (Now I wonder if that thing is also belongs to this Montessori concept? Most parents I know have such a thing…) Maybe here (Germany) Montessori is the default education „system“?
Thank you for this video. Very informative and lovely to see Kylie & Mia again. I miss the vlog so much. Especially the one when Kylie turns 2. Such a beautiful work you did with capturing your love for her.
I agree with natural consequences until it’s something completely unreasonable like forgetting their lunch at home and then making them go without lunch when you have the ability to drop it off. There is a huge difference, in my eyes, between allowing them to make mistakes and punishing them for being forgetful.
oh my goodness your little family reminds me of my own! I too (white) am married to an Asian man (korean), we also have two girls but now they are 8 and 4. Your babies look a lot like mine when they were that little. AHH! I love it! Also, thank you so much for your video. Almost all of these things are things I have done as a parent on my own- not reading books etc just understanding child psychology. Lately I have fallen into a deeper than usual depression and am just not the person i recognize or the mom I was or know I can be. This helped remind me a bit of the things I have done and focused on. Great great video.
Thank you so much! I’m going to have my first baby in June and have been dreading the baby shower that our first time grandparents are so excited about. This gives me a great guide to what I will be asking of them (and their friends) so we don’t end up with a bunch of plastic junk and baby bouncers. 👏👏👏
This video is a perfect, succinct overview of what Montessori at Home means and is a great one to share with interested family members, or to just rewatch periodically for a lot of great reminders.
Hahaha this is genuinely like a refresher course for me before I start this all over again with the baby Thank you. Its made me feel capable and equipped. ❤
I really love that quote from M Montessori on your wall….BUT I know my older children would use it against me as a reason not to do any chores or tidying 😂😂😂😂
I really love the part about letting kids experience frustration out disappointment. Taking up the scenario with the canceled play date, I think most parents would try to offer the child an equally nice replacement, like 'Listen Honey, Becca is sick and we can't go to see her today - but how about you and I go out to get ice creams?! Wouldn't it be great??' I get the impulse to cheer up your child, but it's not helpful.
When you go into subtitles, you can click auto-translate and select the language! It won't be 100% perfect, but I find them to be enough to understand the main idea!
I already do a lot these suggestions without being a Montessori home. I would never get rid of a crib or a high chair though. Cribs are the best for keeping your babies safe and honestly it makes life so much easier as a parent. My tots learn to open doors before getting out of a crib. So that would mean I would have to lock the door which is a no for me because of fire safety. It's faster to run in, know the placement of your baby, and run out with them. High chairs- My tots would never sit at the entire meal on their little table. It teaches them to be patient and it's also helpful when going out to eat. I always get compliments on how well behaved both my kids are without screens. That's because we sit at a table for every meal. I also use the high chair to teach them words with cards and books. They're confined, so they pay attention more. I also use it for crafts (again confined) and they don't get up and run with the finger paints! Just being real about it.
Hey Ashley! Thank you so much for the videos. We (this is a family youtube account) as parents with a 2 year old learn a lot from you. Could you pls recommend age-appropriate books in the future? We have been reading books for our daughter ever since she's born, and she's been obsessed with reading books. We generally randomly/selectively pick books from our local little library, but it will be super helpful if we can get some recommendations from you. Thanks a lot.
Hey Ashley, thank you for all your videos, you've really helped me create a wonderful environment for my 10 month old. I have a question about the weaning table! We eat meals together as a family and put our son in a highchair so he is able to eat with us. How do family meals work when you use a weaning table?
I know Ashley had the Tripp Trapp chairs that let her girls get in and out on their own as they grew to join the family at the dinner table. We use our weaning table for snacks & breakfast/lunch during the week, but did a high chair for family dinners and weekend family meals. We had a short booster phase and now at 2.5 she figured out our dining room chairs on her own. But she still prefers her weaning table because it's definitely easier to navigate so when it's just her and i-it's the little table. When dad is home, we all go to the big one!
Love your parenting choices! Question for you. I love the idea of having food and snacks within reach. Do you require the children to eat at their table? My concern would be food all over the floor all day. Helpful hints for this? Thank you
What are your thoughts on correcting behaviour and language your child uses? For example, if my daughter grabs something from my hands, I may say “ah, it looks like you wanted to hold x, next time you may want to say y”. Is that a good correction/feedback or should I approach this differently instead of giving my child the words I would use?
Does the child have the vocabulary to ask or to explain why they're interested in what you have? If not, I would just say definitely keep up with validating their feelings ("I see you really wanted to use,") and if it's something you weren't done with that they took from you, model what asking for the object back would look like. ("I have not finished using that. May I please have it back?") Often with toddlers, their understanding of spoken language develops faster than speech, so don't be surprised if the child protests. Use when then statements if they're really persistent and you're still working with whatever they want to use. This emphasizes turn-taking rather than sharing. ("When I'm finished, then you may use this.") I hope this helps.
Oh gosh how much I miss seeing clips of Mia and Kylie! Hope both girls are doing well ❤ Just a question, if we are doing these swaps at home but I’m a working mom so baby will go over to his grandma’s who still practices traditional parenting with loud overstimulating toys.. how can we manage that?
Hi Ashley, love your content so much! Just a quick question about the second swap (weaning table instead of a high chair), when did you start to implement this? Did you use a high chair for the months of 6 tot 12 for example?
I still use a bouncer with my 5mo. Sometimes he is very vocally done with being on the floor, and he loves the bouncer! And sometimes, i just wanna finish with those last few dishes without having to strap him to my chest 😅
This was juat a brilliant video. Thanks for explaining everytbing so concisely. Really caused me to reflect on how i have been interacting with my 6 month old. I feel like he edoects constant stimulation now and us to play with his toys, is it possible to go backwards from this?
Thank you for the tips! I really love them!! My son is 8 months old and really active! I really would love to let my baby boy crawl all day but we dont have heated floors and i have concerns that he would catch a cold laying all day on the cold floor... and i dont want to have carpets because we have a dog .. does anyone has advice? Thank you ❤
Thank you for this video! I am curious about the floor bed, instead of crib/pack-n-play for naps and bedtime. What do you suggest for handling nap/bedtime, if they aren't staying in their bed/room? My (sweet, strong-willed, active) daughter needed that movement restriction to allow her body to actually stop and rest during the day - otherwise, there was just too much life to live and she wanted to continue playing, but was the opposite of what her body needed (adequate sleep for little growing bodies). Thank you so much for any guidance you can share around this issue!
Hi Ashley! I just discovered your channel and having been bingeing your videos! ❤️ You may have previously spoken about this, but would you mind making a video on how to get grandparents/in-laws on board when you are striving to raise your children in a Montessori home? 🙏
Thank you for the info. These are great swaps that I’m currently implementing! Im trying my best to manage young siblings and my three yr old doesn’t want to share the big boy toys with his infant sister. I’ve watched your sharing video but I was wondering if you came across a sharing book that I could read to him. He loves to read along with me. Maybe a part two,managing sibling, would be good to see as they grow. I’ve been watching your videos since mia was born and your smile looks great by the way ;) congrats!!
FIERCELY protect their concentration! That needs to be a poster alongside "play is the work of the child". I'm asked so often how Stella gets through activities with so much concentration and focus... it's because of this. From the first days, we were protecting that concentration (and stopping each other from jumping in when not needed!😅) It's SO critical for future independent play too! Just... don't interrupt. We HATE to be interrupted as adults at work, don't we? As long as they're safe, offer them those 2 minutes that they're exploring a crumb! One day that will be 20 minutes of them building a tower!
Thank you for mentioning this. I do things very fast because I've always had to get so much done. I find it relaxing to watch my son explore. So I don't think I'll have a problem not jumping in. Your comment helps me remind myself Do Not Jump In. :-)
I love the Montessori philosophy. I hope you include that T.V. and video games should be kept to a minimum, or completely omitted.
I like this
I had two very different experiences of play depending on if my mum or my Nana was with me.
My mum is a "Let me do that for you" person, she is the one who puts your shoes on because you need to be out the door, she would take over a puzzle or something similar to show you how it "should" be done, she was also a shusher if I played too loudly.
My nana had a box of toys in her living room (little plastic farm animals and such from the charity shop) and after I had been fed, watered and dressed (unless it was a PJ day) she would pick up a book or a crossword, sit on the sofa nearby and leave me to my own devices. If I involved her she would of course interact (all the many cups of tea we adults must air sip) but for the most part my mum wondered how my nana kept me entertained for hours at a time and honestly, she didn't, I entertained me for hours at a time.
“Step 13” 😘
Having a floor bed and crawler safe room was a game changer. I am pretty sure it spared me some sleepless nights. My child had tendency to wake up around 2 am in the morning, crawl around his room play a little bit with his toys and then go straight back to sleep without crying and notifying anyone. I learned about this just by accident one time when he was ringing one of the bells really hard.
I have a question. We are using a crib right now but I want to transition to a floor bed (more like just his crib mattress on the floor) I’m just afraid he will fall out of his mattress at night because he moves so much. How long did it take for your baby to not fall? My baby is 8 months for reference
@@estefaniparra3681 I don't have children yet, but maybe I can help you. Just have some carpet in front of the bed (a short one, to prevent the risk of suffocating). If your child rolls out without waking up he can just continue sleeping on the floor without getting cold. If he wakes up he mostly wont get hurt and can crawl back into bed on his own 😊
@@estefaniparra3681 you can put pool noodles to create a barrier under the sheets. but if they are on a floor bed, they will not be hurt rolling off
The focus tip actually really helped me. I've been plopping my 3 year old in his baby gym so I can get some stuff done and feeling guilty that I wasn't playing with him. He is perfectly happy for like 30 minutes playing by himself, but for some reason I was feeling like I wasn't doing enough. This actually really helped me reframe that as his quiet time to learn to concentrate and play by himself.
Someone I work with had a permanently disabled family member because she bit into a glass when she was under 2. It's true that she learned the consequences of her actions, but it was a bloody steep price to pay. It might not be common, but it's certainly a risk. I'd highly recommend making sure you get either very thick glass, or use something else while they learn not to bite everything!
That's so awful! What happened to cause permanent disability? 😢
Hm maybe a metal cup would be better
I'm not a Montessori mama, but as a mama of 5, with a brand new 1 year-old, most of these ideas are just plain great parenting choices. The only traditional choice I prefer here is the high chair. With so many kids moving around my house, mealtimes are sacred quieter times and I myself haven't the patience to train a baby so young to remain in his or her seat while attending to meals. Thanks for sharing all these swaps. It was a fun video!
Second that on te high chair. I found that restricting movement helps my baby to better focus on the food and to eat for longer even if just playing with her spoon and bowl.
Yeah, the dog would have loved the weaning table
I binged your content throughout my pregnancy and I had all these amazing goals and ideas planned for how I would raise my daughter. After I had her, postpartum depression & OCD took ahold of me and those goals got put on the back burner. 2 years later and I’m so excited to be back catching up on your content, and implementing everything im learning
Mine is also a similar situation. Binge watched the videos and couldn’t do it due to ocd.
Glad to hear that you feel better now!
Start now 💕 It's never too late. So glad that you feel better now, best wishes, x
OCD really holds onto what you love the most. I'm not planning on being a parent anytime soon, but relapsing into OCD+depression scares me for when that time comes.
Honestly this kind of parenting WOULD trigger a person’s OCD! Sheesh I’m having ptsd from how controlling my mother was
Your “giant-sized” analogy shifted my perspective on how I prepare my home for my daughter, and it has been SO helpful! This makes so much sense! I even consider if it is something I would appreciate as an adult or in her shoes (e.g., being strapped to a high chair, unable to move). I watched this many months ago, and I'm so grateful for your video! Thank you!
I’m not married, I don’t have children, and this is the first video I’ve seen educating on the purpose of a “Montessori home”. Despite those things, I watched all the way to the end and feel like I’ve learned some invaluable tools for parenting in the future. Thank you for sharing your knowledge and experiences! ❤
I had never even thought about waiting while they are concentrating! Thanks for the insight.
It's one of the most important parts of Montessori, in my opinion! You'll be glad you started today!
Hi Ashley, now that Kylie is 5, I would be really interested in hearing your thoughts on sibling age gaps from the perspective of Montessori parenting. What are the different advantages of relative age gaps in developing as individual children, the relationship as siblings, and coping as a Montessori at home parent?
That second half is truly, truly the most important list! You could be a Montessori home with none of the items in the first half but not the inverse! Great list of ideas Ashley! 🫶
100% agreed! Thanks!! ;)
Hi. How can I start implementing montessori principles with a 5 and 2 year old.
I really appreciated your gentleness when discussing ‘child containers’ in giving parents the permission to follow what is necessary in the moment and slowly transition. Also the clarity that fantasy books are for a later phase is helpful. I previously understood that Montessori was completely anti-fantasy which I now understand better.
Yeah, at 30+ I'm just now more interested in books other than fantasy. I think this is good advice.😊
Thank you for mentioning that you don’t have to have, buy or do everything. So many videos out there are so inaccessible to those with a smaller budget.
Agreed!
I don’t love the word Montessori as children over the world have been learning how to be independent for centuries but I love the concept of encouraging little humans to think for themselves and solve their own problems and gain a sense of self. This was a great and useful video and will definitely implement some tips! Thank you. I need to work on weaning my 8 month old breastfed baby who sleeps with me into her own floor bed 😅
Watching this video reinforces the idea that it can be done. Wish us luck !
Loved your last point about not stepping in. So hard to bite my tongue when I know the tower is gonna fall down or my son hasn't left enough room for the lego person to sit in the vehicle, but the kids get so much pride from working through the frustration of those miscalculations and figuring it out for themselves!
I also try to implement this with physical safety now that they're a little older and doing daring stunts 😬😱 I repeat the mantra "keep them as safe as necessary, not as safe as humanly possible". Easier said than done, but it gives them so much confidence and a good ability to assess risk (most of the time 🤪) x
I am new to Montessori (not a mom yet) but the last one feels so real because this is something we do wrong as adults as well, always try to fix the problem instead of validating the other person and just listening without making it avout yourself.
Well Ashley, I'm 3 and a half years in as a single parent with my son in Jamaica.
Maybe you remember us from winning enrollment in your course 🤗
I found your channel when I was pregnant and preparing to go to the hospital.
Thank you, you have been my constant teacher. Every other Montessori/positive parenting resource I have found (except local, like minded Mama's and doulas) has been directly or indirectly through you.
This video really touches on my journey, all the steps and pieces, attitudes we have worked on. There's still a need for fine tuning here and there but I have learnt so much and shifted so far from my upbringing.
Sending you well wishes, gratitude and love in abundance, thank you star girl.
I absolutely love my babies bouncer, but I use it in the bathroom 😅 I put a towel down and put them on it after their bath so I have time to dry my hands so they aren't wet and slippery/tidy what needs tidying and know they're just safe, wrapped in a towel and hanging out.
Safety and happiness as well as getting things done that need doing :)
My daughter is 14 months and still doesn’t know how to drink from an open cup. I couldn’t figure out why my kid couldn’t do it. Then I realized we don’t model that for her. I have my water bottle with me 24/7. My daughter figured out how to drink from a straw very quickly.
Which is to say, do what makes sense for your family even if it isn’t traditional Montessori. It’s about independence, not curriculum. 💜💜
That makes so much sense! I’m a straw girl and so is my daughter heheh
YOU ARE THE MOTHERLY VOICE inside my soul, who tries to have others understand my side as a mother. I did a lot of number swaps that you mentioned, especially being empathic to our little ones. Being too protective or way advanced anxities doesn't help us and even our child. I'll be showing this video of yours to my husband. THIS IS A SLAP for him. Hahaha. Just bc being a first timer doesn't mean we couldn't be a Mother.
THIS is the perfect montessori video! I've been waiting for this for a long time. It could've also been titled "difference between traditional and montessori style parenting", or something along those lines. We have a 3 month old and are doing montessori although my husband had a bit of a hard time understanding some of the ideas. This perfectly illustrates montessori and was soooo helpful for us. Thank you for the information!
Hi Ashley, stumbled upon your video, my wife and I are expecting our first child in December, I know there's still a while until this parenting style can be adopted and used but wow was I blown away by the introduction to Montessori, thank you for the valuable information. I am looking forward to sharing this with my wife to further educate ourselves. Thank you and keep up the content!
It has occurred to me that our language should not be "Montessori vs Traditional" parenting but instead it should be "Montessori vs Conventional" parenting. I think truly traditional parenting (looking way back in history all over the world) actually aligns well with Montessori philosphy. Many non-American cultures nowadays practice Montessori-like parenting (e.g. the book Hunt, Gather, Parent by Michaeleen Doucleff). Our current parenting conventions, however, are far from Montessori, especially in the USA. The baby gear industry in the USA has obfuscated so much of the wisdom from traditional parenting. Thanks for your videos!
These are spot on! The Montessori Baby and The Montessori Toddler books by Simone Davies does deep dives on the why behind all of these swaps.
Three week old newborn here. Also a 12 year old. I clicked on this video in my recommended to see what it was about. I’m a Montessori parent without even knowing it 😁 Great video!!! Thank you!
As always, I love your videos. The amazing collection of example videos that you've collected with your own family is an absolute treasure trove!
The only recommendation that don't agree with is the "everything must be natural materials." I think plastic can have a role too, if it's open-ended and not battery powered and such and as long as there is a lot of other materials available to experience. For example, magnetic tiles are absolutely the best toy we own. It has grown with our child and engaged much more than wooden blocks (especially, the Lovevery set which I find to be terrible -- the blocks are way too slippery). We do open play with magnetic tiles literally every day with lots of focus and engagement. My main criticism of the "no plastic" recommendation is that people get so hung up on it and feel like they can't do Montessori without spending a ton of money on Instagram-pretty toys...
"Open-ended", "child-driven", "following your child's interests," and "providing a variety of sensory experiences" are all great advice for toys that you give and these elements seem much more important then excluding all plastic. (And, there are plenty of wooden toys that don't meet these four criteria but that people still market as "Montessori.")
Magnetic tiles rocks! It sticks and not frustrating the child
I am happy to say that I have implemented all of these in our home except one! I need to find a way to make a space for our kids to get their own dishes, glasses, and drinks. Since we've moved I haven't make an effort to do that. Thank you, Ashley for teaching me all of these wonderful techniques almost 3 years ago! It really made me feel confident as a parent and my children are thriving!
I love the positive teaching because I got with spankings & stuff like that! Thank you so much! This is what we need in this world! ♥️
I'm pretty new to this whole montessori thing, but I noticed that I have been doing some of these things already because they just suited my lifestyle better. We always had a lot of unrestricted floor time for example because I did not want to buy sooooo many baby containers. And I saw such positive results from just that. Recently bought a floorbed and I wish I had done it much earlier. It's such a blessing. My little one is also getting really good at independent play recently and moves around so freely and I really want to create an environment that helps him get around even better. So this video was super helpful and inspirational. Thank you so much for putting this information out.
I was adamant that I wouldn’t be using any containment devices but I ended up relenting and getting my baby a bouncer once he hit 5 weeks old. He has very bad reflux and sitting him up after a feed greatly helps to relieve the associated pain or bringing back up milk. He doesn’t always want to sit in my lap or be carried so this seems like the best compromise. We sit and read or he even just observes me as I go about chores or cooking. I try to limit his total time in it to an hour or less per day.
Mine had reflux, I really wish I had used a bouncer instead of being so bent on never using a container.
This is great Ashley! Thank you. We do Montessori at home as much as we can - but our children do go to a standard state school. Sometimes it feels tricky having to to explain to our children why teachers (or peers or other parents) say/do certain things. I remember when my son first started - his teacher told him he’d get a special sticker if he slept well at night. - This was after I explained that he was worrying about school - about being timed, about points, about not being allowed to go to the toilet during class etc. There’s just too much pressure. Any tips you have on how best to navigate this would be great! I actually feel guilty sometimes for sending them to school.
I'm also curious about this at younger ages, too, for parents who have to work and can't necessarily afford a Montessori daycare - how do you navigate your child getting different messages at home versus at daycare/with a nanny?
@@juliakbrown Yes, there are so many conflicting messages. The other day my son got a medal and certificate for a sports event, with everyone giving him high fives etc. I rather they didn’t give a reward but it’s tricky when others in his team also get rewards. I tell him it’s how you got there and I don’t emphasise the ‘rewards’. I tell myself that what our children are exposed to at home counts more. He also goes to an after school club that encourages you to earn badges. He really does enjoy the club and it is great for making friends etc 🤷♀️ It is tricky!
I recently discovered your videos and the Montessori way of thinking. Thanks for all the tips and tricks. My background is in Occupational therapy and I didn’t realize how many OT principles overlap with Montessori. Made the conversation with my husband a lot easier when I was talking to him about how I wanted to raise our 8 month old.
I did not realise this was what my mother was doing with me the entire time, now I have a term for it, can't wait to share this with her and find out whether she read up on this beforehand
Thanks for this list Ashley, I tried really hard to be a Montessori parent with my first child but when every effort seemed to backfire I truly felt like a failure. I've relaxed on everything with my second child but your list helps me to see that I do cover most of the important points 😀❤️
Edit to add: you were truly influential in helping me define my parenting style with my first child (who is the same age as your second so it was always fun to get that real-time age-targeted messaging). I have really enjoyed learning about and practicing respectful parenting, unconditional parenting, and positive discipline and I thank you for sharing so much with us in our learning journey ❤️
We love you and are praying for you and your family. I absolutely love your new hair cut.
This video gave me a much better understanding of what being a montessori parent is. Everything was explained so clearly, I will come back to this vide often
I'm very open about the whole Montessori concept but especially about the "natural material toys" concept. As someone who crochets (and hates acrylic yarn) I have *a ton* of small handmade figures that my kids can play with when they're older. Birds, sea creatures, farm animals, foods, you name it. I'm really excited to give them to my kids when they are old enough for them (the toys are mostly very small so I'd rather wait a little until I give them most of them) . Also I'm really glad I found Montessori and have the time to look into it before we bought the kids' furniture. However, I'm buying them with my mother-in-law and I'm really hoping that she's on board with all those "weird" things I wanna get, especially because my parents in-law (is that what you call them?) really wanna pay for the furniture because they didn't pay our wedding😬
You are a godsend!! My oldest two did Montessori through preschool and I encourage it for everyone! I now have a 4 year old and will be fully homeschooling him and I needed a refresher and your videos have been perfect! Thank you!
I wish I had known more about Montessori when my daughter was a baby. She’s 5, still struggling with potty training and I was near my breaking point, then today I saw a video on Montessori home, which showed an area setup for the little one outside of the bathroom with everything they needed. I set up a potty station right in her bedroom because with being a family of 5 she often gets shifted around the house to use the potty which I think has created a lot of frustration and confusion for her. For me it clicked, she needs an area that she can go to regardless of whether a teenager is in the bathroom or not. I am also going to start having a pitcher of water for her on her little table and letting her eat her meals at her little table. But I need some tips how to start to incorporate more Montessori swaps into our home even though she’s already 5. And for the person who wants to criticize me because she’s still struggling with potty training please choose to air your complaints to someone else, I don’t need to be told I’m a failure, I’ve already dealt with enough of those thoughts and feelings and have criticized myself enough. I’m only interested in helpful comments, thanks.
Hello, your comments resonated with me. Let us know how your daughter is doing now that it's been a couple months.
Thanks for making this video, Ashley! I think this would be a great introduction for explaining to family members or friends who want to learn more about what being a “Montessori parent” means. I know there are great summaries of what Montessori is (some of your own videos, too). And, for some people, I think comparing with what they are used to seeing in traditional parenting styles helps understand the key differences and reasons for Montessori parenting.
I learned sooooo much from you. Thank you! I have a inhome daycare and its all montessori. All parents are positiv surprised what there child can do alone
I just watched your video for the first time because I wanted to find out more about this Montessori. Around 20:25 you speak about how it would be if we lived with giants that we needed there help for everything. I felt the Lord speak to my spirit and say that you are the one who will model there need for me. It is how I created it.
I absolutly love this video, thank you!
With little/ no knowledge of Montessori i have already implemented some of these things, this has definitely driven me to better understand Montessori and implement more of these.
You are fast for the upload😊 Thank you very much for all the content you have shared with us. You started as a montessori influencer however, at the moment, I can easily say thay you are the best teacher in RUclips about Montessori! Perhaps I am one of the oldest followers so I benefit so much from your videos&vlogs :) Please accept my love, thank you!
Accepting and GIVING all the love in the world back to you! ❤ Thanks for your kind words!
If a child gets disrespected they are. not going to want to respect there parents. Being respectful is so important for a child. ♥️
I already am doing a lot of these things and didn’t hear of Montessori until today! Definitely will start doing these things!
Outstanding video!!! Thank you for pulling all this information together into one video! Inspired me to add more Montessori approaches into our home and parenting 💕
I clicked on your video because the room in the thumbnail looked so peaceful! I'll be embracing Montessori parenting when i have kids.
i love your new hairstyle it really fits so you well. i miss kylie and mia so much❤
Seeing old videos of your girls make me miss your vlogs☺️ I‘d love you to post some sort of an update video ond how you are doing as a family every few months or so! Will you be starting your own montessori playgroup this spring?
I’ve been watching your content for at least 2 years now and I appreciate what you do on here with all my heart. You are who I first found out about Montessori through
You truly helped me learn how to parent and teach my child (and step child at the time) when I realized I knew nothing about how to be a good parent, I did not want to make the same mistakes my parents did and traumatize my children. You opened my eyes to the world of conscious respectful/gentle parenting and an alternative view on education that I completely believe in and stand for now and for that I am forever grateful
With that being said, i as always love this video and all of your videos and you are so incredibly helpful
I wanted to know if you’d possibly be able to make a list of all of the books that Maria Montessori wrote herself with links to those books? It seems online there are so many of the same titled books that says are from her but with all of the covers looking different and I’m feeling confused
I love your videos. You are such a smart mom and I’m glad you’re sharing what you know!
I have never read anything about montessori parenting or parenting in general, because I didn’t want to pressure myself into „doing everything perfectly“. But now my daughter is on the brink of becoming a toddler and so I watched this video to find out more about it. Funny enough I already seem to be a „Montessori parent“ because here where I live it seems that we already do all these things. The only box that I couldn’t check was the high chair one. For us it is important that our daughter can sit at the table with us during the meals, so that she feels included in the family meals. She also has a learning tower in the kitchen where she can stand and watch what we do. She loves it when she can be nearly as tall as I am on this learning tower. (Now I wonder if that thing is also belongs to this Montessori concept? Most parents I know have such a thing…)
Maybe here (Germany) Montessori is the default education „system“?
Your new hairstyle is perfect! Thank you for sharing these great videos about Montessory patenting🍀🍀🍀💜
Thank you for this video. Very informative and lovely to see Kylie & Mia again. I miss the vlog so much. Especially the one when Kylie turns 2. Such a beautiful work you did with capturing your love for her.
I agree with natural consequences until it’s something completely unreasonable like forgetting their lunch at home and then making them go without lunch when you have the ability to drop it off.
There is a huge difference, in my eyes, between allowing them to make mistakes and punishing them for being forgetful.
Content starts at 3:38
So useful! Hope more parents will watch this and think about it!
oh my goodness your little family reminds me of my own! I too (white) am married to an Asian man (korean), we also have two girls but now they are 8 and 4. Your babies look a lot like mine when they were that little. AHH! I love it! Also, thank you so much for your video. Almost all of these things are things I have done as a parent on my own- not reading books etc just understanding child psychology. Lately I have fallen into a deeper than usual depression and am just not the person i recognize or the mom I was or know I can be. This helped remind me a bit of the things I have done and focused on. Great great video.
Thank you very much for the content that you create. For those parents who are interested in Montessori parenting it's very helpful.
Thank you so much! I’m going to have my first baby in June and have been dreading the baby shower that our first time grandparents are so excited about. This gives me a great guide to what I will be asking of them (and their friends) so we don’t end up with a bunch of plastic junk and baby bouncers. 👏👏👏
This video is a perfect, succinct overview of what Montessori at Home means and is a great one to share with interested family members, or to just rewatch periodically for a lot of great reminders.
Hahaha this is genuinely like a refresher course for me before I start this all over again with the baby
Thank you. Its made me feel capable and equipped. ❤
Your channel is such a breath of fresh air! ✨️Thank You✨️
I really love that quote from M Montessori on your wall….BUT I know my older children would use it against me as a reason not to do any chores or tidying 😂😂😂😂
Such a great video! This is my plan when I have my own kids.❤
Thanks for this comprehensive list. All described so well!
Enjoyed your video! You are engaging, to the point and clear.
Great video! Only the essentials! Thank you!
I really love the part about letting kids experience frustration out disappointment. Taking up the scenario with the canceled play date, I think most parents would try to offer the child an equally nice replacement, like 'Listen Honey, Becca is sick and we can't go to see her today - but how about you and I go out to get ice creams?! Wouldn't it be great??' I get the impulse to cheer up your child, but it's not helpful.
I wish your videos would come with Spanish subtitles to share with my partner... Loving them, so worth sharing.
When you go into subtitles, you can click auto-translate and select the language! It won't be 100% perfect, but I find them to be enough to understand the main idea!
@@MariaandMontessori Awesome. Thank you!
I already do a lot these suggestions without being a Montessori home. I would never get rid of a crib or a high chair though.
Cribs are the best for keeping your babies safe and honestly it makes life so much easier as a parent. My tots learn to open doors before getting out of a crib. So that would mean I would have to lock the door which is a no for me because of fire safety. It's faster to run in, know the placement of your baby, and run out with them.
High chairs- My tots would never sit at the entire meal on their little table. It teaches them to be patient and it's also helpful when going out to eat. I always get compliments on how well behaved both my kids are without screens. That's because we sit at a table for every meal. I also use the high chair to teach them words with cards and books. They're confined, so they pay attention more. I also use it for crafts (again confined) and they don't get up and run with the finger paints!
Just being real about it.
All great reminders 🤎. Also just want to say, love the haircut 👌🏻
Hey Ashley! Thank you so much for the videos. We (this is a family youtube account) as parents with a 2 year old learn a lot from you.
Could you pls recommend age-appropriate books in the future? We have been reading books for our daughter ever since she's born, and she's been obsessed with reading books. We generally randomly/selectively pick books from our local little library, but it will be super helpful if we can get some recommendations from you.
Thanks a lot.
Hey Ashley, thank you for all your videos, you've really helped me create a wonderful environment for my 10 month old. I have a question about the weaning table! We eat meals together as a family and put our son in a highchair so he is able to eat with us. How do family meals work when you use a weaning table?
I know Ashley had the Tripp Trapp chairs that let her girls get in and out on their own as they grew to join the family at the dinner table. We use our weaning table for snacks & breakfast/lunch during the week, but did a high chair for family dinners and weekend family meals. We had a short booster phase and now at 2.5 she figured out our dining room chairs on her own. But she still prefers her weaning table because it's definitely easier to navigate so when it's just her and i-it's the little table. When dad is home, we all go to the big one!
Love your parenting choices! Question for you. I love the idea of having food and snacks within reach. Do you require the children to eat at their table? My concern would be food all over the floor all day. Helpful hints for this? Thank you
What are your thoughts on correcting behaviour and language your child uses? For example, if my daughter grabs something from my hands, I may say “ah, it looks like you wanted to hold x, next time you may want to say y”. Is that a good correction/feedback or should I approach this differently instead of giving my child the words I would use?
Does the child have the vocabulary to ask or to explain why they're interested in what you have? If not, I would just say definitely keep up with validating their feelings ("I see you really wanted to use,") and if it's something you weren't done with that they took from you, model what asking for the object back would look like. ("I have not finished using that. May I please have it back?") Often with toddlers, their understanding of spoken language develops faster than speech, so don't be surprised if the child protests. Use when then statements if they're really persistent and you're still working with whatever they want to use. This emphasizes turn-taking rather than sharing. ("When I'm finished, then you may use this.") I hope this helps.
Oh gosh how much I miss seeing clips of Mia and Kylie! Hope both girls are doing well ❤
Just a question, if we are doing these swaps at home but I’m a working mom so baby will go over to his grandma’s who still practices traditional parenting with loud overstimulating toys.. how can we manage that?
You inspire us so much! Thank you ❤
Love the way you walk us through the differences :)
Didn't know about the cutlery, thanks.
Hi Ashley, love your content so much! Just a quick question about the second swap (weaning table instead of a high chair), when did you start to implement this? Did you use a high chair for the months of 6 tot 12 for example?
I wish I had known about floor beds when my kids were babies! Might have saved us some nighttime interruptions. 😂
I still use a bouncer with my 5mo. Sometimes he is very vocally done with being on the floor, and he loves the bouncer! And sometimes, i just wanna finish with those last few dishes without having to strap him to my chest 😅
a video on how to switch from toxic parenting to positive parenting would be awesome 😎
This was juat a brilliant video. Thanks for explaining everytbing so concisely. Really caused me to reflect on how i have been interacting with my 6 month old. I feel like he edoects constant stimulation now and us to play with his toys, is it possible to go backwards from this?
Thank you for the tips! I really love them!! My son is 8 months old and really active! I really would love to let my baby boy crawl all day but we dont have heated floors and i have concerns that he would catch a cold laying all day on the cold floor... and i dont want to have carpets because we have a dog .. does anyone has advice? Thank you ❤
Great list, really complete! Also, those home videos are so cute!
Your necklace is gorgeous!!! Can I please have the link for it? What's the brand? It's stunning!
Thank you for this video! I am curious about the floor bed, instead of crib/pack-n-play for naps and bedtime. What do you suggest for handling nap/bedtime, if they aren't staying in their bed/room? My (sweet, strong-willed, active) daughter needed that movement restriction to allow her body to actually stop and rest during the day - otherwise, there was just too much life to live and she wanted to continue playing, but was the opposite of what her body needed (adequate sleep for little growing bodies). Thank you so much for any guidance you can share around this issue!
This was incredibly enlightening. Thank you so much for sharing!
Apparently, I am a Montessori parent and I didn’t even know it! Ian just raising my kids in the way that makes sense to me.
Thanks you for sharing! I appreciate these swaps very much!
Hi Ashley! I just discovered your channel and having been bingeing your videos! ❤️ You may have previously spoken about this, but would you mind making a video on how to get grandparents/in-laws on board when you are striving to raise your children in a Montessori home? 🙏
Love all the tips. How do you maintain the floors clean? I try and sweep and mop every morning but it’s not enough
Loving your new haircut ! :)
Thank you for the info. These are great swaps that I’m currently implementing! Im trying my best to manage young siblings and my three yr old doesn’t want to share the big boy toys with his infant sister. I’ve watched your sharing video but I was wondering if you came across a sharing book that I could read to him. He loves to read along with me. Maybe a part two,managing sibling, would be good to see as they grow. I’ve been watching your videos since mia was born and your smile looks great by the way ;) congrats!!
So good to listen to you ❤ thank you!!!
This was an extremely helpful video thank you!
Thanks its really helpful for a new parent