A Safari Surprise!

Let me just start off by saying, I could probably count on one hand the times I have won a giveaway/drawing - and still have fingers left over. So here recently, when I just happened to notice that Safari Ltd. was having a giveaway, I noticed that all you had to do was like their facebook page, which I had done months ago. So simple that I didn't give it much more than a moments thought, and a quick comment to say what a great bunch of things they were giving away. Imagine my surprise.....

My children were so excited to see that we were indeed the winners! And when this lovely box showed up a week or so later (ignore the laundry - it just always manages to show up around here!), they couldn't wait to tear in to it!

This beautiful basket was inside, filled with all these wonderful goodies!

We had fun taking some 'real life' pictures with some of them. :)

The Brachiosaurus

A lovely Eastern Chipmunk 

In the left corner, we have the ginormous Gigantosaurus. In the right corner, we have the fierce Tyrannosaurus Rex. The fight is on!

It's a face off....

.....and the T-Rex falls!

In lovelier parts of the yard, we have the Palomino Mare....

...and this very detailed German Shepherd :)

We were even able to capture something of a rocky background for our scorpion, thanks to some dried dirt and rocks :)

LM decided to make a nest for the Brachiosaurus. 

Miss Priss wanted me to see just what she thought of the scorpion. 

The German Shepherd was definitely Buddy's favorite. At one point, we probably looked like the oddest group of people when Buddy managed to leave him laying in a pile of leaves and we were all searching the front yard to find this little guy....

Hoss decided that, despite the teeth on the ferocious creature, the Gigantosaurus was to become a herbivore, and fed him *poisonous* berries from the tree. 

Inside the house, we have had a ton of fun as well. I created a rainbow paradise for the Fairies!

I included a few wooden blocks from Buddy Boy's wooden block set (a Christmas gift) in case someone's imagination struck them to get the rest and play a little with them. I set this on the shelves with the rest of the sensorial works that I have out right now. 

I included the Unicorn in initially, although it didn't stay because it didn't fit in with the lid closed :)

Here is a group shot of everything (except the fairies in the sensory box). There are so many fun things and I can't wait to use them all at one point or another for some hands on learning! In fact, after starting this post, I discovered a video that LM took with my camera. She put the giant polar bear in his natural habitat - or, as close as she could find - the deep freezer - and began telling everything she could remember about polar bears. 

I love these little minis and have decided that they are going to prompt me to break down *finally* and get a hardware cabinet for all of our minis. We have a TON of little things in a ziploc bag, and it will be so much easier to use them when I get them in a cabinet.

This energy ball is a big hit with Buddy Boy. At the bottom, there are two small metal strips. When you place your fingers on them, they cause the ball to light up and make a small siren noise. I have caught him with this ball in his pocket more than once already!

Good King Alfred :) And that turkey in front of him has some amazing detail!

It was no surprise that LM delved in to the small collectors book that was included. This sparked some curiosity and the desire to learn more about Bornean Orangutans, which got us on youtube to find video of them. This link will take you to tons of video about them all.

Down to the last drop! They enjoyed every last bit of this, including the box itself!

I would HIGHLY recommend Safari Ltd. materials to anyone, especially homeschoolers using them to give a concrete, hands on view of learning. Interest is sparked in my house - may it light a few fires in yours, as well!