Bottling the Moments: The Magic in the Everyday at Highfields

Welcome back to Bottling the Moments, where I take you behind the scenes of my centre visits and share some of the moments that make me smile, make me laugh and remind me why early childhood education is such a special place to be.

My recent visit to Highfields started in one of my favourite ways. Coffee and breakfast with our families! Brydie and I spent the morning cooking up a BBQ breakfast while our friends from the coffee van kept everyone caffeinated as families arrived for the day.

Something I really love about spending time with our Highfields families and team is the genuine community feel. Families stopping for a coffee and a chat before heading off for the day. Children excited to see what was happening. Our team popping in and out. Conversations happening everywhere.

And while a BBQ breakfast and coffee is always lovely, for me these mornings are really about connection and saying thank you.

Every day, our families trust us with the people they love most in the world, their children. That trust means so much to me, and I love opportunities like this where we can slow down for a few minutes, connect with our families and simply say thank you for choosing us to be part of your child's early years.

It was also R U OK? Day, which felt particularly fitting.

R U OK? Day is such an important reminder to check in with the people around us. Not just on R U OK? Day, but whenever we notice that a friend, colleague, family member or even a stranger might need someone to check in.

Sometimes it is simply about asking the question, making time for the conversation and, most importantly, genuinely listening to the answer.

We also had Kit Kats to share, which unexpectedly came in VERY handy when a few of our little people were having a difficult drop off. With permission from Mum and Dad, of course! 😉 I'm not sure Kit Kats are officially recognised as a settling strategy, but on this particular morning they certainly helped!

We also had quite a few requests for a sausage sizzle next time, so... watch this space. I just happen to know where we can get the BEST sausages. 😉

Once the BBQ was packed away and our families were on their way, I headed off to Bush Kindy with our Kindy children. And honestly, I could write an entire Bottling the Moments just about this part of my day. It was SO much fun.

First up, I joined Hudson, Cora, Quinn and Molly decorating sticks with textas, wool and feathers. They were all very interested when I told them I was taking mine home for my son Austin, who is five and started big school this year. And I can confirm, when I arrived home that night Austin thought it was the BEST present ever!

Theodore came over to proudly share some gumnuts he had collected... before proceeding to chase me around with a bee. A soft toy bee, thankfully! 😂

Then Poppy and Molly came running over with some very important breaking news.

"Miss Lauren, we found a dead lorikeet!"

Not quite the update I was expecting, but they were VERY excited to tell me about it.

Henry made me a green potion, while a few of the other children were busy creating perfume from flower petals. Some were reading books together on a blanket under the trees, while others were happily playing on the playground. Everywhere I looked, children were happily doing their own thing, and there were huge smiles everywhere. It was just delightful.

Bush Kindy... invite me back anytime!!!

Back at the centre, I headed in to see our littlest Highfields friends. In the Nursery, Liz very proudly told me they had won the Book Week door competition with The Rainbow Fish! Rather than packing everything away once Book Week was finished, the team had carried the theme into the room so our beautiful babies could continue to enjoy it. There were lots of bright decorations, but the jellyfish were definitely a highlight for me!

Jacobie was helping little Remi settle, while I happily took on the very important responsibility of cuddling beautiful baby Carter. Tough job, but someone had to do it!

As soon as I walked into Toddlers, it was playtime and I was greeted with loads of beautiful smiles. Arlie was building with blocks, Norah was feeding her baby doll and Henry was racing his truck. We all played together for a while before Grace came over for a big cuddle. Not long after, Zoe decided my hair needed some attention and started brushing it. Future hairdresser maybe?

But then I watched a little moment unfold that really pulled at my heartstrings.

Atticus was feeling a bit upset, and Zoe noticed. She very sweetly brought him some water, and then Frankie came over to comfort him too, reaching out to hold his hand.

They are such little people, and yet there was so much care in that moment. Nobody had to tell them what to do. They simply saw their friend was upset and wanted to help. It was so beautiful to watch.

Junior Kindy started with a little fashion parade!

Rita proudly showed me her very cool jacket, Celia raced over to show me her pink and white polka dot skirt, and then Lucy showed off her Little Miss Lions shirt. Having taken our ten year old Connor to the game on Saturday, I am sure Lucy and her family were pretty happy with the result too. What a cracker of a game to watch the Lions win!

Sterling then informed us that his baby doll needed a nappy change, so Miss Jas, very kindly helped with nappy change time.

Then, despite it definitely NOT being my birthday, apparently we needed a celebration. Levi, Luca, Sterling, Rita and Celia made me cupcakes using glitter playdough and matchsticks for candles, and then each took turns singing Happy Birthday to me. Super cute.

My last stop was Senior Kindy and WOW — their outdoor area looked incredible, The Senior Kindy educators worked alongside the children to research, plan and create an outdoor space that is meaningful and engaging. The children shared their ideas and interests, helping to shape the environment and develop a sense of ownership. The space provides opportunities for imaginative play, exploration, creativity and collaboration, while supporting children’s independence and learning.

There was also a bit of a Spiderman theme happening, which was super fun. Everyone was busy and engaged in outdoor play, which gave me the chance to spend some one-on-one time with Cleo. She showed me the class photos one by one and absolutely lit up every time she recognised one of her friends or educators. Eric then came over and asked me to help find his hat, so off we went outside on a hat-finding mission, while Miss Maddie took Cleo for some quiet story time.

To finish off my day, I had lunch with Brydie. As Nominated Supervisor and Leader of Highfields, Brydie proudly carries so much responsibility, and it is really important to me that I create time to genuinely connect with her too. Not just to talk about the centre, the team or what is happening operationally, but to check in on Brydie the person. How she is going, what is happening in her life, what she is proud of, what she is finding challenging and where she might need some support from me.

Our leaders spend so much of their time looking after everyone else, and I never want to lose sight of who is looking after them. I loved having that time with Brydie, just the two of us, to talk about work, life and everything in between.

As I left Highfields that afternoon, I kept thinking about just how much had happened throughout the day.

Breakfast and coffee with our families.

Decorated sticks, gumnuts, flower perfume, green potions and a dead lorikeet at Bush Kindy.

Baby cuddles.

Trucks, dolls and block building.

A little friend bringing another some water when he was sad.

An impromptu fashion parade.

Five renditions of Happy Birthday when it wasn't even my birthday.

And finishing my day over lunch with Brydie, talking about work, life and everything in between.

These are the days I love.

Nothing staged. Nothing extraordinary.

Just children being children, educators doing what they do every day, and families and team connecting as a community.

And I think that is what I love most about Highfields. There is a genuine sense of community here.

You can feel it in the way our families stop and chat in the morning. You can see it in the way our educators know and respond to our children.

And sometimes, you can see it in something as simple as one little person noticing their friend is sad, bringing them some water and another reaching out to hold their hand.

To our beautiful Highfields families, thank you for stopping to have breakfast with us, for the conversations and laughs and, most importantly, for the trust you place in us every single day.

And to Brydie and our wonderful Highfields team, thank you for creating a place where children and families can feel known, connected and part of something special.

I absolutely loved my day with you all.

And don't worry... I won’t forget about that sausage sizzle!

Until next time...

Lauren x