Sorry to make you doubt yourself, I'm sure you don't need that.
I thought maybe if I gave you an idea of what I do it might help. I am trained as an elementary level teacher but not Montessori trained. I used to try to implement Montessori principles in my classroom as a teacher.
We always used "help me to do it myself" with my children. From a young age, my children fed themselves, served themselves, assisted with housework, were expected to help tidy after themselves, that sort of thing.
For practical life, we used lots of real things, modified to child sized if necessary. These have been the things that have got the most use. My 2.5 year old likes pouring activities for example. We didn't buy any special Montessori equiptment. Second hand shops were/are a good source of pitchers etc that I won't be heartbroken if they get broken. We also bought lots of 'kitchen gadgets' whenever I saw them, things like melon ballers or apple cutters. These are useful, and inexpensive.
We use a Montessori approach even if not specifically Montessori equipment. We have shelves of learning materials, and they have free choice over them, the children are supposed to pack away afterwards. We try to choose good quality materials but they are not necessarily Montessori.
My oldest DS did attend a Montessori playgroup, and that helped us to get the idea. It was also where I realised how short his interest in each material was! We stopped before the age limit when he outgrew what was in that room. I decided not to attend with my second because I felt I could provide the same at home, and I couldn't fnd anything for the older DS to do. There isn't a real Montessori school near us.
I make some sensory materials, and use substute materials (like MABs and cusinaire rods instead of the bead material.) I drool over some the geography materials, but I just can't justify the cost. I wish I could borrow or rent the material! I use ideas from the albums.
My DS is 5 and in most areas is definately into materials from the 6-9 age group.
I don't present material in quite the step by step way that is in the albums, even from a young age, my DS just got bored if I did!
Because of all this, I usually say we are Montessori Unschool, because we are more structured than a lot of unschoolers (and have more emphasis on self sufficency), but we are a lot less step-by-step than a lot of Montessori homeschoolers.
I found a lot of inspiration in the book "How to Raise an Amazing Child the Montessori way by Tim Seldin and the Micheal Olaf website
http://www.michaelolaf.com/JCcontents.htmlI don't know if any of that is of any help, it is just what is currently working for us.
