There was a point in Ayva’s life that I couldn’t imagine being any more charmed by her her than I was when she was a baby. As a first-time mother, I was so excited to see her make little discoveries in the world around her. That time she discovered shadows and learned that she could change the shape of them if she moved her hand in the light. That moment when she tossed something on the floor, realized I would pick it up, and made a game of it. There were so many of these baby lightbulb moments, and it was a joy for me to see how Ayva’s little brain worked.

Now that Ayva is a 7-year-old second grader, those lightbulb moments haven’t stopped. As she gets older, the concepts that she’s learning to make sense of are getting more and more complex.  Every day after school, she has new information about something that she’s learned that has blown her away.

Not only is she getting smarter, but she’s becoming more in control of her body. Just like when she was a baby first learning to crawl and roll over, as Ayva gets older she is learning how to manipulate her body to do different thing for her. As she masters activities like finger knitting and learning to crochet, her small motor skills are getting a big workout! Terrence and I want to support Ayva’s growth, so we looked to the Lakeshore’s 2016 Gifts for Growing Minds for some ideas of age appropriate activities that would encourage the development of Ayva’s small motor skills, but that would also be fun for her as a little girl.

Lakeshore Learning’s Gifts for Growing Minds is a catalog of over 200 items that inspire creativity, imagination, and discovery for children ages 0-11. There are so many games, toys, and activities that really help to grow the whole child. We selected a couple of items this month for Ayva that will not only meet her where she is, but that will also push her to learn new skills.

The Draw and Shrink Craft Kit lets Ayva turn any drawing into a cute charm. We all thought the charms would make sweet gifts for her cousins and friends for the holidays. The price is right, too, at only $9.99!

We also selected the Create Your Own Ribbon Board for Ayva to decorate her room with. She loves making things to hang up in her room anyway, so we thought this would take her love of design and take it up just a notch! Here’s the thing, though. I let her do these projects herself. I definitely help her when she asks, but the reality is, she’s 7. The projects aren’t going to be perfect. They don’t have to be. The goal of these gifts for growing minds is to let our children try new things and improve their skills. That means, parents…get out of the way!

That’s what I love the most about Lakeshore Learning. They make it easy for us as parents to meet our children where they are developmentally, but push them to be even more awesome! There is no shortage of  games, toys, and activities for growing minds at Lakeshore Learning. Want to try some? Here’s a 20% off coupon!

We love being blog ambassadors for Lakeshore Learning! Keep following us here on the blog, and on Facebook  as we continue to share videos and pictures of different products and activities in action. Head over to Lakeshore Learning on Facebook,Twitter,Pinterest, or their website for ideas on ways to engage your children in education and make learning fun

I am a blog ambassador for Lakeshore and am compensated for my work. I received product free of charge, but all thoughts and opinions are 100% mine. The sweepstakes prize is provided for the winner free of charge from Lakeshore.