GoJoMi

When I ask my eldest child what he enjoyed most about his day he inevitably starts his sentence with "Playing with.." To him play is extremely important and he can't wait to do it. Little does he realise that play is also vital to the development of his language skills and gives him real-life situations to apply his new found skills by encouraging problem solving and creative thinking. At birth babies have roughly 100 billion brain cells which they will carry into their adulthood. In the first three years of life, the baby's five senses will constantly send information to their brain about their relationships, experiences and surroundings. This information will spark an exponential number of connections and result in the baby's brain growing to 90% of an adult size brain. These connections map the pathways between nerve cells and will change as the brain learns new things and experiences the milestones and events of life. Sponsored Advertisement Educato

Whenever I see my kids rummage through the green toy box and pull out the Spider-man, Optimus Prime or dinosaur costumes I muse to myself that I should try my hand at cosplay. I've already got the oversized foam Incredible Hulk Hands, I've got black hair, my face looks naturally angry enough. I just need to get lots of green body paint and purple pants. Then I realise my abs are more suited to King Pin than Hulk... there's always someday. For those who have managed to retain their child-like pretend playfulness, here are some sage words from Jedi Master Yoda  and experienced cosplayers (featured in L.A. Weekly People Issue ) for noobs making their convention debut: Cosplay The Incredible Hulk Fear Is The Path To The Dark Side. Intimidated Be Not. If you search your favourite social media site (particularly Pinterest, Tumblr and Instagram) you'll find cosplayers that have taken costumes to an art form. The attention to detail given to costumes, makeup, their