I was always a big fan of crickets. I used to catch them when I was little and I was supposed to be playing cricket with my family. I hated fielding, which I always ended up doing for hours as I was out so quickly when batting. It’s one of my clearest memories, I think, wandering off and searching through the long grass.
I loved chasing a tickly cricket through the long grass and spending ages trying to catch him, only to have him hop away. I can smell the warm grass and hear the sound of their legs rubbing together. All in all it was far more fun than actually playing cricket.
So when Molly found a little cricket in the bathroom I was really pleased. Unfortunately even though he was only a little fella she was a bit scared, probably because she had never seen anything as green before. It took a few minutes of watching me for her to be brave enough to pick him up herself. After that she soon lost her fear and enjoyed his tickles on her fingers and chasing him when he hopped off. Though she still wasn’t keen when he hopped onto her shoulder.
Here are some of our favourite books about crickets:
Pinnocchio
The Very Quiet Cricket by Eric Carle
Quick as a cricket by Audrey and Don Wood
Oscar and the Cricket by Geoff Waring
Crickets and Grasshoppers by Elaine Pascoe
I am linking to Get Crafty, Tiptoe Through Tuesday, Let’s Play, Science Sparks