Bead Bugs

This is a fun little craft project to enjoy with your munchkin on a rainy summer day (which we’ve had an abundance of this summer). These little bead bugs are cute and quite impressive looking, and are a fun fine motor challenge.

You will need –

Styrofoam craft balls

Pipe cleaners

Beads with large holes

Googley eyes (optional)

Cut pipe cleaners in thirds, and twist one end of the pipe cleaner into a small loop (to prevent beads from sliding off of the end). Show your child how to thread the beads onto the pipe cleaner (supervise little ones so they don’t mouth the beads). When your child has added several beads, help them poke the straight end of the pipe cleaner into the Styrofoam ball, then bend the pipe cleaner slightly in the middle to create a “bug leg”. Continue adding legs, and use two smaller pipe cleaner sections to create antennae. Finish your bead bug by gluing on googley eyes, or by simply drawing eyes on the Styrofoam using a ball point pen.  This is a great little project for beginning beaders, as it is much easier to thread beads onto a pipe cleaner than onto a string.

Helpful Hints:

·         If you don’t have beads or would prefer not to use them, cut drinking straws into short sections and thread these onto the pipe cleaner instead.

·         If your child isn’t quite ready for this fine motor challenge, try this very simple threading activity: Cut the egg cups out of a cardboard egg carton, and punch a large hole into the bottom of each egg cup. Loop and twist one end of a pipe cleaner to prevent “beads” from slipping off, and help your child practice threading egg cup beads onto the pipe cleaner. A great introduction to this tricky concept!

Play Clay

Here’s a fun and different twist on traditional playdough. This clay has an interesting consistency, almost like stretchy plastic. And like all really great kids craft recipes, it is safe for little ones as it is entirely edible (but tastes awful!). To add this recipe to your joyful mommy repertoire, you will need…

1 cup corn starch

2 cups baking soda

1 ½ cups cold water

Few drops food colouring

Combine ingredients in a large saucepan. Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly until mixture thickens. Transfer clay into dish, cover with a damp cloth and allow to cool. When mixture has cooled, knead until it becomes stretchable. Then have fun creating and exploring together with your child!

Helpful Hints:

·    Play clay dries out quickly, so store clay that you are not using in an airtight container with a lid.

·    Use a little bit of water to join pieces of clay together.

·    Play clay is sticky! Wax paper taped securely to the table surface makes clay a little easier to work with.

Happy clay playing, everyone!

Endlessly Entertaining Easter Eggs

While Easter basket fillers are still available in stores, I thought I’d pass along this fun activity suggestion that can be used any time of year. This twist on the traditional Easter egg hunt is a fabulous activity for promoting fine motor skills, language learning and sensory exploration with your little one. Simply find a large container and fill it with multicoloured Easter basket hay (you’ll find packages of this thinly shredded paper or plastic anywhere Easter baskets are sold). Then use an assortment of plastic Easter eggs (also usually available in bulk packages in the Easter basket aisle) and hide them in the hay. Throw in a few clean sandbox toys, such as buckets, rakes, and shovels, and you’ll be surprised how long your kids will be thoroughly entertained! (Be sure to supervise  little ones, as you don’t want them trying to eat the hay or mouth the eggs).

As with all great play activities, there are endless variations you can make to this game…

·   Pulling the plastic Easter Eggs apart and putting them back together (tricky!) is a fantastic way for kids to strengthen fine motor skills.

·    Try hiding little toys and other objects inside of the Easter eggs for a great language building game. Little ones will be fascinated as you pull toys out of the eggs and tell them the names of the things you find. Beginning talkers will delight in telling you what they’ve discovered. And older kids will love the challenge of trying to guess what’s inside the egg before they open it.

·    When your munchkins grow tired of playing in the hay, throw in a fun sensory twist. Try hiding Easter eggs in a container full of uncooked rice, cornmeal, puffed wheat, or even some fabulously fun and slimy goop (click here for goop recipe). Happy Easter egg hunting, everyone!

Earth-Friendly Spring Flowers

My hubby and I married young, and as ours was the first wedding among our circle of friends, we were blessed with an abundance of wedding showers – seven, to be exact. And it was at those wedding showers that I first earned my reputation as a tissue paper hoarder. As a general rule, I detest wastefulness, and couldn’t bear the thought of piles and piles of perfectly good gift wrap and tissue paper simply being thrown away. So my guests were forced to sit patiently as I carefully unwrapped each gift, painstakingly sorting and folding every salvageable morsel of gift wrap.

By the time my daughter arrived ten years later, my friends and family were well aware of my gift wrap salvaging obsession. And at each of my three baby showers, a paper-folding assistant quickly materialized by my side. There have been a few giggles at my expense. But I remain proud of my meticulously folded gift wrap stash, which over the years has saved me considerable money while keeping all of that unnecessary waste out of the landfill.

Now that my daughter is an expert gift-unwrapper, there is nothing at all meticulous remaining about my stash. Tissue paper is crumpled. Gift wrap is shredded. But all is not lost! I recently separated out all of the truly mangled bits, and put them in a large box in our craft supply cupboard. There are endless craft projects just screaming to be made. But we started with a simple one, perfect for spring…

You will need:

Construction paper

OR for an environmentally friendly twist, reuse backs of printer paper or empty cardboard packaging

Tissue paper in bright colours (used, of course – the more crumpled the better!)

Crayons or felts

Twigs

Non-toxic craft glue

Tissue paper flowers are so easy to make that even the tiniest of tots can do it. We drew on leaves and stems with crayon, but for a fun and authentic touch, go for a walk and collect some real twigs to use as your flower stems (collecting the twigs will likely be the most fun part of this activity!). If you are attempting this craft with a toddler, or just don’t want your child exposed to all of the chemicals in craft glue, try using my incredible edible craft glue recipe – it really works! Be sure to sit down with your child and join in on the fun of this super simple, inexpensive, and environmentally friendly spring craft activity. Enjoy!

Make-Your-Own Memory

When I was a little girl, my sister and I had a game called “Baby Animal Memory”. It was just a set of little cardboard squares, pale blue on one side with sweet little cartoon drawings of animals on the other. The object of the game was to turn all of the cards face down, turning up two at a time and using your memory to find matching pairs of baby animals. We loved that game and played with it for hours. The baby bunnies were my favourite, and I can remember what they looked like even now. Thinking of that makes me smile. I love those kinds of memories.

A set of “Memory” cards is the perfect, portable activity for keeping kids entertained on the go. I keep a little set of homemade Memory cards in a ziplock baggie in my purse, pulling them out on occasions when we need to happily occupy some time, such as while sitting in a doctor’s waiting room or waiting for our meal at a restaurant. Of course, “Memory” in a classic sense is a fairly challenging game. But there are endless variations that will help keep even the tiniest kidlets entertained…

·    Babies will enjoy looking at the pictures, and listening as you tell them the names of the pictures (a great way to build language skills)

·    Toddlers – give your child one picture, and ask them to find one that is the “same” from three or four pictures arranged face up in front of them. As they catch on to the concept, try seeing if they can find a match when there are more cards to choose from.

·    Bigger kids – Play the traditional way, with cards face down. The older the child, the more cards you can put out to choose from. A fun challenge even for mom and dad!

·    Any age – Have your child line up several of the cards in a row in front of you. Then tell your child a story based on the pictures in the order they’ve arranged them. Or if your child is older, have them tell you the story.

And why go out and buy a Memory game when making your own is not only easy and budget-friendly, but also makes a fun craft activity to share with your child! To make your own Memory game…

You will need…

Sturdy paper such as cardstock – should be dark in colour so pictures don’t show through

Two sets of the same pictures – i.e. two identical catalogues, magazines, or flyers

Scissors

Glue

Begin by cutting out a set of evenly sized squares from the paper (as many as you think you’ll need). Remember that the cards need to look identical on the back side, so be sure to choose plain paper. Then choose a set of matching pictures to cut out. The pictures can be of anything you think your child will be interested in – animals, vehicles (magazines are good sources), toys, household items (catalogues are good sources), food, articles of clothing (flyers are good sources), or even of familiar people and places (simply develop doubles of some of your favourite family photos). If your child is older, have them help you cut out the pictures. Or if they are younger, have them help you glue the pictures to the paper squares. Allow to dry and you have your very own homemade Memory game, sure to help you make lots of happy memories with your little ones!

Lovely Leaf Painting

My munchkin and I attended one of our favourite playgroups this morning, and she had even more fun than usual thanks to the fantastic art activity we had the opportunity to participate in. It was one of those oh-my-goodness-this-is-so-simple-I-can’t-believe-I’ve-never-thought-of-it moments for me, so just in case you haven’t thought of it either, I’ll pass it along to you…

You will need:

Washable, non-toxic paint (any colour)

Large, shallow dish for paint (a disposable lasagna pan would work well)

Large pieces of paper

Assortment of small branches and twigs with leaves attached

Simply put a shallow layer of paint at the bottom of the container, then show your little one how to dip the twigs, leaves and branches and use them to create a work of art on the paper. Gathering twigs and branches together may well be the very best part of this activity, so bundle up and head out for a walk. As spring approaches, leaf hunting walks could become an entertaining and ever-changing part of your week!

Helpful Hints:

·    This is a messy activity by nature, so depending on the set up of your art area (and on your tolerance for mess!) you may want to take steps to protect your table from becoming part of the masterpiece.

·    To prevent art paper from sliding around, try taping the paper to the table with a little bit of masking tape. You’ll reduce the amount of mess while at the same time reducing the frustration level of very tiny artists.

·    This is a lovely multisensory experience for kids! Don’t miss out on the opportunity to promote your child's language development by talking about the colour of the paints and the leaves, the look of the patterns created by different kinds of leaves, the feel of the twigs, and the smell of freshly picked branches. Happy creating!

All-By-Myself Buns

This is one of those great two-for-the-price-of-one deals: a super fun activity to engage your little one, and a yummy, nutritious snack idea all rolled into one. I love this activity/recipe because it requires almost no prep work, makes very little mess, and is actually very healthy. My daughter LOVES making her own goodie-stuffed buns, and gobbles them up when they are finished baking (and my munchkin is generally more of a picker than a gobbler!). She’s taken to calling them “All-By-Myself-Buns”, a name that has stuck around our house. Hope you and your munchkins enjoy the idea too!

You will need…

Bun dough - any of the following will work...

• Pillsbury-type refrigerated bun or biscuit dough
• Store-bought freezer bun dough (preferably whole wheat), defrosted
• Homemade whole wheat bun dough (actually very quick and easy if you use a breadmaker)

Filling – use the following ideas or make up your own..

·     Peanut or almond butter and jam

·    Cream cheese with mashed bananas or berries (have your child help you mash the fruit and combine with the cream cheese)

·    Cheddar or mozzarella (cut into small cubes)

·    Other filling of your choice

Enjoying a cream cheese and blueberry bun

Give your child a ball of dough and show them how to pat it out into a flat pancake shape on a greased pan. Next, show them how to arrange or spread your chosen topping in the centre of the dough. Then step in to help, folding the corners of the dough into the centre, pinching shut, and placing pinched side down on the baking sheet. Bake according to directions for the dough you are using, allow to cool, and enjoy!

Perfect Puffy Paint

My daughter and I used this super fun, sparkly puff paint to decorate our Valentine’s cards this year. And while I intended to post this recipe before Valentine’s day, alas it did not happen. But this craft activity need not be Valentine-specific, and can be enjoyed any time of the year. Like all craft recipes that I love, this puffy paint is easy to make and entirely safe and edible (they’ll taste it once but never again) for little ones.

Puffy Salt Paint

¾ cup salt

½ cup white flour

½ cup water

Food colouring

Combine salt, flour and water in a mixing bowl, adding food colouring until paint reaches your desired colour. Spoon paint into a clean plastic squeeze bottle, then show your little artist how to squeeze puff paint onto paper to create a puffy masterpiece. The salt makes the puff paint look sparkly when it dries.

Helpful Hints:

·        Empty ketchup and mustard bottles work well for this project, and leftover paint can be stored in the fridge for future projects. Just be sure to label the bottles with a felt marker (lesson learned the hard way!).

·        This paint is quite thick, and works particularly well on sturdier paper such as cardstock or cardboard. Try raiding your recycling bin and cutting up old cereal or cracker boxes for use as inexpensive art supplies.

·       Allow paint to dry overnight. Happy puff painting!

Wrapping Tube Racers

Ok, so Christmas is well past, and if you are a very organized mommy, all of your empty wrapping paper tubes may have already found their way into the recycle bin. But if you are like me – mostly organized, most of the time – you may still have a few kicking around.  Tubes or no tubes, your kids will LOVE this activity, so keep it in mind for the future…

Working for a decade in the field of early intervention, the single best toy I ever discovered was a clear plastic tube with a set of balls inside of it. Those ball tubes were like gold in my office – consultants and therapists stealthily hid them under desks and guarded them with their lives – and for good reason. Kids LOVED them, and they could be used to promote almost any learning goal we were trying to help the family attain. When the ball tubes stopped being made, my colleagues scoured ebay and second hand stores to find just one more treasured tube. And yet, the professionally agreed upon single-best-toy-ever-made is only as far as your next empty tube of gift wrap!

To recreate this fantastic toy at home, collect several small balls (ping pong balls, golf balls, and small bouncy balls all work well - just be sure to supervise babies and toddlers), and spend time with your child putting balls into the wrapping paper tube and watching them roll out of the other end. Sounds simple. But the learning benefits of this activity are literally endless. Here are just a few ideas to get you started…

Babies and Toddlers…

·    Use a shorter tube (i.e. paper towel or toilet paper roll) and show your baby how the ball goes in one side and rolls out the other. Promotes learning in the areas of cause and effect and object permanence (the understanding that the ball still exists even when your child can no longer see it).

·    Encourage your child to practice dropping the ball into the tube. Promotes fine motor development, purposeful release of objects, relational play (learning to use objects together in different ways, such as putting one object inside of another) and shape matching (matching a round ball to a round hole).

·    Sit on either end of the tube and take turns rolling the ball back and forth. Teaches turn taking and cooperative play.

·    Use simple, repetitive language to describe your play. For example, say “ready, set, GO!” each time you release the ball, then pause and wait for your child to say “go” – a great activity to promote language and communication skills.

Older Toddlers, Preschoolers, and Big Kids…

·    Swap the balls for small toy cars and use two tubes rather than one to have “races” with your child.  A fabulously fun activity that promotes togetherness. Great for promoting cooperative play (playing together rather than alongside) with friends or siblings.

·    Introduce concepts such as fast and slow, forward and backwards, stop and go. Not only is this great for language learning, but your child will challenge their gross motor and fine motor skills trying to control the speed and direction of the car inside of the tube.

Helpful Hint:

We have a long piece of plastic tubing (left over from the construction of our house) that we now use as a permanent “ball tube” in the basement. It never gets crushed like a paper tube eventually will, and it is my daughter’s absolute favourite toy!

Dots of Fun

I love the idea of adding a homemade touch to every gift I give, and homemade gift wrap is such an easy way to do that. It’s a wonderful pre-Christmas activity to share with children of almost any age. But this particular twist works even for the tiniest of Santa’s little helpers…

Bingo Dabber Gift Wrap

You will need…

Plain brown parcel post wrap

Bingo dabbers in your choice of colours

Simply unroll the brown paper across a table, and show your child how to make polka dots (or for older kids, how to make polka dot patterns or pictures) using the bingo dabber. Even very young babies and toddlers can grasp a dabber and tap it on the paper (my daughter has been creating bingo dabbber art projects since roughly ten months of age). The brightly coloured polka dots result in surprisingly stylish looking gift wrap. And because it is quick and easy, you can easily create a fun and colourful roll of gift wrap in ten minutes or less!

Helpful Hints:

·    Plan ahead and buy coordinating ribbons and bingo dabbers. The fancier the ribbons and bows, the more impressive your gift wrap will look.

·    This is a fabulous fine motor activity for little ones at the pre-drawing stage. Just be sure to supervise closely so babies don’t mouth the dabbers.

·    This is also a great activity for preschoolers and school aged kids. For a fun challenge, show preschoolers how to create pictures using dots. Or draw out a pattern for your school aged child and have them replicate it using dots on the paper.

·    Bingo dabbers don’t generally contain washable ink, so be sure to throw an art apron on your child and use the table-saving "no stress mess" strategy.

·    Have fun, and Merry Christmas!!!!!

Baked Clay Christmas Ornaments

So it’s less than a week until Christmas, and unless you are among the super-prepared “I was finished all my shopping in July” few, this will likely be a busy week. But there is no better time than Christmas to slow down for a little while and just enjoy the moment with your little one. This baked clay recipe is perfect for making Christmas ornaments, but can be used for a fun craft activity any time of the year. My daughter (who turned two this weekend!) LOVED playing with this clay and using cookie cutters to cut out shapes. The following day, we painted our homemade ornaments and they look (while very homemade) wonderfully cheery and festive…

Baked Clay Recipe

4 cups flour

1 cup salt

2 cups water

2 tablespoons vegetable oil

In a large bowl, combine all ingredients and knead until smooth.  Form dough into shapes or roll and cut using cookie cutters. Bake at 300 degrees for approximately one hour, or until dough appears dry throughout. Happy creating!



Very Merry Clay Making

  Helpful Hints:

·   Thick dough takes much longer to bake than thin dough. For best results, roll or press dough thinly before shaping.

·   To make Christmas ornaments, use the end of a drinking straw to punch a hole at the top of the ornament. Once baked, thread a colourful ribbon through the hole and tie into a bow (be sure to double knot).

·   Handmade ornaments make great gifts for grandparents, or can be added to gifts for teachers or babysitters. Be sure to write your child’s name and the year on the back of the ornament.

·   Homemade ornaments also make cute, creative gift tags. Simply paint the gift recipient’s name on the front of the ornament, or write it on using a colourful sharpie.



Christmassy Crafting



Super Stackers

The past few weeks have been nothing short of utterly chaotic for our little family. But for a few minutes this afternoon the world stopped spinning for a while, as I sat down with my little almost-two-year-old and did some serious building with blocks. We made towers and castles, fences for the farm animals, and a bed for dolly. Blocks absolutely everywhere. And the sweetest, happiest smile on my busy toddler’s face…

There could be no more perfect toy than a simple set of building blocks. Period. No bells and whistles toys will ever come close. Yet sadly, the trusty block is being neglected. I worked for ten years with hundreds of young children and their families. And while most had battery-operated toys spilling out of every corner of their home, few regularly sat down to play with a set of blocks.

Of course, the toy industry has a vested interest in trying to convince us well-meaning parents that more complicated toys are what our children need. And in our effort to do what’s best, we may lose sight of the fact that simple is often so much better. And what could be simpler than a set of blocks! From a developmental perspective, it would be tough to find a toy more ideally suited for promoting learning through play.

Did you know that playing with blocks and stacking toys…

·         Helps your child develop spatial awareness.

·         Promotes development of fine motor skills

·         Helps to develop attention span, persistence, and frustration tolerance.

·      Promotes understanding of important concepts such as size and quantity.

·         Encourages creativity and imaginative play.

·        Provides opportunities to develop cooperative play and turn taking skills.

A simple set of wooden blocks will provide your child with endless opportunities for fun and learning, beginning at about six months of age (when babies begin actively grasping, banging, and combining objects in play) and continuing on through the toddler, preschool, and early school-aged years. And while there are lots of lovely stacking toys out there to buy, homemade toys are often just as entertaining. Here are a few ideas…

Homemade Stacking and Building Toys

·    For little ones just learning to stack or little ones with gross motor or fine motor challenges, try playing with a set of clean, never used cleaning sponges. They are easy to grasp with little hands, and won’t slip and slide when stacked.

·    A set of bean bags also makes a great, easy introduction to stacking.

·    Save your paper grocery bags. Stuff them with newspaper, then fold the edge over and tape shut with masking tape. Older children love stacking giant, jumbo-sized towers or making “castles” big enough to play in.

·    Empty cardboard boxes make wonderful building blocks. Empty Kleenex boxes work particularly well.

·   Tupperware or other food storage containers (with the lids on) also make interesting stacking toys.

The next time you want to spend some time really connecting with your child through play, try turning the TV off, putting the bells and whistles toys away, and sitting down to have some fun with blocks. You’ll be building so much more than just a tower…

Getting Connected

It doesn’t feel like November today, at least not here where I sit typing, facing my kitchen windows. Unseasonably warm and gloriously sunny, this is a rare gem of a November day. The kind of day that would be perfect for an afternoon walk with my daughter, or even to spend some time playing with bubbles in the backyard. The kind of November day that will soon just be a sunny memory, as the rain and the clouds and the dreariness roll in.



Backyard Bubbles in November



No, November is not my favourite month of the year. It’s not as bad as January and February – at least there is Christmas to look forward to – but it’s no match for the lovely months, like April and July. November means rain, cold, and early nightfall. It means more time spent indoors, and less opportunities for spontaneous outdoor fun. And that it why November is one of those months when I am SO grateful for all of the wonderful community activities that my daughter and I are involved in.

We have a pretty busy social calendar, my sweet little munchkin and I. Five mornings per week we pack up and head out the door, to one of the many wonderful drop-in playgroups or parent and tot classes that are available to us to attend. On any given day, there are multiple fun events that we have to choose from. But being connected in our community wasn’t always that easy.

When my daughter was about four months old, I began to slowly emerge from my sleep-deprived, mommy-of-a-newborn stupor and excitedly began looking for classes and playgroups to attend. For nearly a decade, connecting new parents with community resources was part of my job description. And yet when I tried to find activities to attend myself, the hunt was far more difficult than I ever anticipated it could be. Had I not believed so passionately in the importance of connecting in the community, I may very well have given up. It was a frustrating, discouraging affair. But I soldiered on, gradually discovering more and more resources, and finding a rich array of opportunities for our family to learn and play together.



Dancing with Delight at our Favourite Playgroup



I am passionate in my belief that connecting with community resources is one of the most important tools you can have in your mommy tool kit. It will benefit you, and it will benefit your little one. Whether you are home full time, working full time, or some combination of the two, community activities are a wonderful opportunity to connect with other parents and have fun learning together with your child. And the resources in your community are likely far richer than you know. It will take work to discover the best opportunities. But here are some tips to help you along the way…



Tips for Getting Connected in Your Community

1.   Call or visit your public health unit. They often compile a list of resources for new parents – a great place to start. Just don’t assume that this list – or any other – is an exhaustive one.

2.   Ask every parent you know what groups they attend or have attended with their children.

3.   Check out your local community centre for listings of upcoming classes.

4.   Visit your local library.  Many libraries offer programs for children and families free of charge. And most also have brochures available with listings of other community programs.

5.   Check your local newspaper and attend family-friendly community events. These events can be a lot of fun for the whole family, and as a bonus you may find information booths promoting other community programs.

6.   Look online, but don’t assume you’ll find everything that’s out there, or that online listings are current. If you discover something that looks promising, follow up first before attempting to attend (a lesson learned the hard way!).

7.  Get out and try things! Not every program will be a good fit for your family. But the only way you’ll know is to try. The more you get out there and try things, the more parents you’ll meet and the more resources you’ll discover.

8.  Keep hunting! No matter how long you’ve been searching, there are likely some gems out there that you still don’t know about. Keep your eyes and ears open, and don’t forget to ask new parents you meet.

Helpful Hint: Here’s a secret that’s worth knowing! Many community centres offer “partnership classes” – classes offered at the community centre in conjunction with another organization, such as a music or dance school. These classes are often the same as ones offered through the other organization, but at the community centre rate – great value for your money!

And One More Helpful Hint: Never assume that the cost of a class has anything to do with the quality. The vast majority of the groups and classes that we attend are absolutely FREE, and I find them to be of a higher quality than many of the most expensive programs.

Great Gobs of Goop

So here’s an activity not for the faint of heart. It’s probably the messiest adventure you’ll ever have inside your own home. But it is totally worth the mess…

“Goop” is the perfect activity for Halloween, but once you try it, you’ll come back to it again and again. It’s safe for babies and toddlers, but big kids, teenagers and adults will love it too! Goop is an amazing shape-shifting substance that changes from a liquid to a solid and back again right in the palm of your hands. Add a little green food colouring and you have the best ever ooey-gooey bowl of slime. My daughter and I played with our bowl of goop for nearly forty minutes this afternoon, and were both totally mesmerized by this super-cool, almost magical substance.

Goop Recipe

1 ¼ cup cornstarch

1 cup water

Few drops green food colouring

Combine cornstarch, water and food colouring in a large mixing bowl and mix thoroughly using your hands. If more than one child will be playing with the goop, simply double the recipe.

Playing with goop is a wonderful sensory adventure for little ones, as they explore the very unique textures of this ever-changing slime. And as this is an adventure best enjoyed together, playing with goop is a wonderful activity to promote language learning and togetherness.

And yes, goop is messy. Super messy. But so many great things about childhood are. To save yourself a lot of clean-up time, I’d highly recommend using the No Stress Mess strategy. The great thing about goop is that even if gobs of it do end up on your floor, it turns into a pasty/powdery substance that vacuums up quite easily. And little hands will come clean in just seconds when rinsed with water. So bite the bullet. Be a super brave mommy. And have FUN!

Indoor Sandboxes

Not wanting to say goodbye to autumn too soon, we spent the afternoon participating in one last muddy-booted, pumpkin-dotted, farm-scented, outdoor activity. And what an adventure it was! Friends invited us to join them on a trip to the corn maze – a family activity I’d highly recommend if you still have a chance this season. Initially we thought we’d forgo the maze in favour of the other little attractions – the petting zoo, mini hay bale maze, and wagon rides to the pumpkin patch. But we did venture briefly into the maze, and our little ones loved it. Tons of mud, fresh air, and wide open spaces for running around – and two nap-skipping toddlers were as happy as piggies in a cornfield.

One activity at the corn maze – a sandbox filled with dried corn (see dusty but delighted toddlers in picture, attached), reminded me of a great indoor activity that we’ll be setting up in our house as the weather turns dreary…An indoor “sand” box! Sounds messy (and truth be told, it will be, at least a little), but it’s not nearly the disaster you might think it will be. And this is one activity that is guaranteed to keep your kids happily occupied as the changing season means more time spent indoors. 

Choose a large but shallow plastic container (i.e. an “under-the-bed” type plastic storage bin) to use as your sandbox. Then clean up your child’s outdoor plastic swimming pool and bring it inside. Fill the shallow plastic bin with uncooked (okay, that should go without saying, but you never know!) rice, then place the bin in the middle of the pool. Have your child sit in the pool and play in the rice like a sandbox, using either a clean set of sandbox toys or an assortment of plastic bowls and spoons for scooping and digging in the “sand”. The pool will catch most of the rice that spills out of the “sandbox”, making cleanup a lot easier. Helpful Hint: At least some rice will likely end up spilling out of the pool, so try setting the pool up on a floor space that is easy to sweep.

Small Space Twist – If you don’t have room for a full-size “sandbox” in your home, you don’t have to miss out on the fun! Give your child a small bin of rice to dig and scoop in while sitting at a table. To save yourself a bit of clean-up, try the No Stress Mess strategy.

Other Sandbox Fillers – Instead of rice, cornmeal, dried beans, or dried lentils are other fun options.

This is a fabulous play activity to promote sensory exploration, fine motor and cognitive development. And as you sit and play together with your child, opportunities for language learning and imaginative play will abound. Happy digging!

Smelly Masterpieces

In my years of hunting for safe and simple craft activities, I think this discovery was one of my all time favourites. Incredibly simple to make and safe for even the tiniest artists, even just the idea of this is delightful. What could be cooler – than scratch and sniff paints!

Scratch and Sniff Paints

Several packages of Kool-Aid (or any packaged drink crystals) in a variety of colours

Water

Ice cube tray

Combine equal parts Kool-Aid and water in one section of an ice cube tray, stirring well with the end of a spoon. Repeat with different colours of Kool-Aid in each section of the ice cube tray to create your palette of paints.

These paints work like watercolours, so provide your little one with some big sheets of white paper and a few paintbrushes. Allow your child’s artwork to dry overnight. Once dry, your child can scratch and sniff their works of art! Older kids will enjoy trying to guess which flavours they are smelling.

Helpful Hint: To prevent excessive amounts of paint on your table and to reduce frustration for budding little artists, use masking tape to tape the edges of your child’s art paper to the table. The paper won’t slide around, making it much easier for young children to just focus on and enjoy creating their masterpieces.