PRACTICAL PARENTING â—½ HOME
Toddler Fun
by Marcy Lytle
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If you like felt figures, this entire little farm is a great toy to set up and play – they even have Velcro on the back and stick to the sofa! Keep it stored in a ziplock bag, ready for play when the cow begins to moo.
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You can place lids or Easter eggs or other plastic things in a bowl of water, and let the kids scoop them out into another bin. Back and forth, making a splash – yes – but oh so fun!
I used an idea I saw on Instagram, and after that I kept getting all sorts of ideas for playing with a toddler…using inexpensive things or things around the house. That inspired me to think of some ideas on my own, too. So I tried lots of them, and most were successes! If you have toddlers, try these. If you have older kids, they might enjoy them as well, or they can make for the toddlers they know!
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I mentioned this first one on the Tried and True page, but it’s one of those plastic box organizers with a handle. Turn it on its side and it’s a zoo. I found a tube of tiny animals at Michaels that fit perfectly in the slots for their “cages.”
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Got a large box you’re not using? Let the kids make a car. Use paper plates for the wheels, construction paper for the steering wheel, and they can cut out or make lights as well. Add a tiny pillow and a blanket for a “drive in movie” in the living room.
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A super simple fun idea is to take construction paper and just make little tunnels or garages and affix them to the floor with painter’s tape. The kids can zoom their Matchbox cars around the floor and park them for the night!
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If you have a stick, some twine, old buttons and other things to hang, you can make a mobile to hang outside and blow in the wind. Buttons work great because the twine goes through and knots. Even old Christmas ornaments can hang on the bottom, too!
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Another “zoo” idea is to take the children’s book and turn them so they make a “tent” or a “cave” or a “tunnel” and gather little animals, stuffies, and little figures, to make the zoo grounds. Use one of those Velcro ball flat gloves as a swimming pool for the ducks and birds.
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Keep your toilet paper tubes and tape them at different heights on a wall. Provide pom poms for your toddler to place in the top and watch fall out at the bottom. It will keep him occupied five minutes, maybe. Ha!
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Get some fake flowers from the dollar store and let the kiddos plant them in dirt in a pot outside, moving and replanting as they wish!
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You know those pool noodles? Take skewers and insert in each end, then stick into the ground like a semicircle, and let the kids climb through or kick the balls through. You might want to take a turn, as well!
Summer is near, so gather your boxes, your noodles, your sticks and your twine.
Find old buttons, construction paper, scissors and tape. Be ready for the heat or the rain or the sun and the clouds, to have fun indoors or outdoors –
so much your sides will hurt from all the joyful laughter!