Old Style Toddler Fun?

sassyblue

Some great ideas on this thread, thanks for the Gruffalo walk and bath sandpit ideas l'm storing those for future use!

We also play shops, and last year took a walk in the woods during autumn (but some leaves are falling now) and collected lots of different leaves and some twigs and made a hanging mobile out of them, l did laminate the leaves then and cut them out but you could just glue them to some wool or jsut make pictures out of them.

jackomdj

We do the bear hunt...never thought to do a gruffalo one though!

We like going out & collecting "stuff", feathers, leaves, sticks etc which we will then come home & glue a picture with.

We also go out and pick dandelions, helps that we have 2 rabbits that like a free lunch!

We sometimes meet a friend at the park for play followed by a lunch, followed by more play!

We have a local PYO which we sometimes go to, we get a few things (just because I like their fruit & OH loves their sauce!) but we go to this one because they have some animals, a park & you can go to see the cows being milked. Another local garden centre has animals too.

My girls love helping me with the housework. They will help polish (both have a table that I let them do!), they love wrappiung the hoover away.

They help me with the cooking, make bread, scones, cakes....today as part of the eldests school holidy project we made a gingerbread house, from scratch - ie we even had to shop for some of the ingredients (the roof & rest of sweets need adding tomorrow!).

Remember you will soon need time for the baby so try to build in some time where she can play on her own or playing at having a baby & what you need to do.

fluffysox

My local library has a tots story afternoon where they read a story and sing etc- its free- why not check what you're local library does?

Madmel

There are some great ideas on here. I like the sand one, however, you could adapt it to use oats instead. My DDs' nursery did this and had oats in a big plastic tray with cars, diggers etc. The children spent hours playing with it and if they did put some in their mouths, it didn't do them any harm. Oh yes, it makes their hands lovely & soft too!

jcr16

we also love doing bear hunt's.

we always go the the same woods. it only a 2 or 3 min drive up the road and we spend hours there, also there is a great picnic area, also it is fairly close to big river and often get to see some amazing birds. Anyway on this walk we always see the same chap walking his dog's. one is the most biggest dog you have ever seen, very long hair. not idea what the breed is. but the dog is called bear . which the kids love.

fernliebee

As well as all the above things my DD loves to play make believe games like Dr.s and patient (perfect for if you are supposed to be resting ) She also loves to 'wash up' for me. We get all her plates and cups from her tea set, or a few of her dinner plates etc and she stands up at the sink washing them all up, then drying them with the tea towel.

Make a song together with some pans and wooden spoons for drums, make some shakers with pasta/ rice and yoghurt pots etc and if she has a musical instrument box get all those too, and play some music and sing songs.

SURE START!!!!! We would be eternally bored if it weren't for ours. We are very lucky in that we have 3 within walking distance. Everything is free and they have everything set up for babies and toddlers so it is very easy to take two along (I have a 7 week old, and a 2 year old.)

Quite messy but I got hold of a big bag of shredded paper and DD loved making a hamster nest inside a box- very funny to watch too

Pasta necklaces, thread some pasta shapes onto a string then paint them, when dry we dress up as princesses

'nature walks' I have done these with groups of children even in the city, but with DD we walk along looking at any insects, changing leaves, molehills, new buds, flowers etc on the way and talk about them, we also take a small bag or basket to collect our treasures in. This is especially good as the seasons change.

savingmummy

My little girl enjoyed cooking (watching and helping) we used to do chocolate rice krispie cakes and decorate with smarties or mini eggs.
Now aged 4 she is baking biscuits, fairy cakes, birthday cakes and enjoys cooking/helping in the kitchen - keeps her occupied for an hour or so

Boxes are a no1 must ALL kids love them, bubble wrap is also lots of fun in this house lol!

Goodluck with your new baby x

ailuro2

How about a megasketcher? One of the best toys ever.... will last her for years too, our went from being doodled on to some wonderful drawings to the blackboard at dolly school....

best thing is it doesn't cost a thing after the initial ten pounds or so to buy it.

ChrisCC_3

Hi - Our local council has a play services team - check if yours has - lots of free / low cost activities organised for kids, esp. in school hols!

Try dayoutwiththekids - google it - think it's .co.uk

Or try netmums.com which has a list of things to do on wet days:

Room tidying competition
Setting a challenge for each child to see who can tidy their room in the fastest time. Set a timer or simply count loudly until they have finished their tidying and the winner can choose what activity you do next.

Pizza party
Lay out pizza bases plus lots of ingredients and ask your kids and their friends to decorate them. Once they've finished, pop them in the oven and lay a rug or picnic blanket down with some paper plates and cups.

Movie afternoon
Whilst we know lots of TV is bad for our kids, a nice children's movie on a wet afternoon is a great way to spend time together. You could make some homemade popcorn, makeshift paper tickets and assign one of your kids the role of steward/stewardess so they can show you to your seats and announce when the movie is starting.


Reading afternoon
Ask your kids to pick out their favourite books and cuddle up in their room for a big book fest. Most children adore a good book and if you have older children taking part you could ask them to take on some of the characters in their siblings books.

Theatre afternoon
Children have very vivid imaginations so stories and characters often come easy to them. Ask them to help you create a play and decide on which characters they want to play. You could help them create costumes and invite the neighbours around to spectate. A creative, rewarding activity that's great for boosting confidence.

Water painting

Who says you need paints and pencils to create a masterpiece? Fill up a bucket of water and give your child a big paintbrush that they can use to paint the house, shed, patio, bricks....they'll love watching the water stain everything a different colour and going back over the bits they've missed.

Papier mache animals
Mix some water and paper with glue for extra gloop and create little animal sculptures, towers or miniature cars. Once dried your child can put it on their shelf or make something special for a friend or family member.

Make butterflies/hanging mobiles
Set card, tissue paper, glitter and stickers out on a table and help your child create their own butterfly, bird or animal. You can use strong card or wire for the frame and hang it in their room once it's finished.

Rubbings
Make rubbings from garden objects and create an art gallery in the hallway for friends and family to see.

Flower pressing
Pick a selection of colourful flowers from your garden and let them dry out for a while. Put them between sheets of newspaper and press them by laying heavy books on top of a flat surface. When they are set in place, your child can use them to create cards or arty collages to hang on the wall.

Make a pirate ship
Build a pretend pirate ship in the garden from chairs, blankets, plank of wood, homemade pirate flag and cannons made from old wine cartons and plastic balls.... with a bit of imagination the possibilities are endless.

Pretend disco
Get everyone to dress up in their party clothes, close the curtains, put the music on loud and dance dance dance! The children can take it in turns to play DJ and select different music.

Set up your own restaurant
Decide on a three course meal and ask your children to create proper menus with prices. They can dress the table and ask dad to take his seat when he returns from work. Our cooking with kids section is positively bursting with fun recipe ideas and tips to make cooking with kids as fun as possible.

Colour/shape sorting
If you have a million and one things to do and no time to do it, give your kids a container with hundreds and thousands and ask them to sort them into different colour piles. A perfect rainy day activity, they'll love the challenge and it will give you an extra half an hour to get on with all those extra things you've been meaning to do.

Build a tent
Tents are inspirational places for role-play and imaginative activities and the good news is you don't need the fully-fledged camping variety to make it work. Simply stand four chairs together and use sheets and blankets to make the roof, door and floor. If you have enough space, you could even use tables, stools and other furniture to create little rooms and sections inside.

Treasure hunt
Depending on your children's ages, place between 5-10 clues in the house or garden each with activities on lasting around ten minutes. These can be anything from painting each others faces to building a tower and having a quick drinks break (you could place the items they need to complete their task next to the clue). Once the hunt is finished, each child can win a small prize or decide on which games they want to play next.

Washing the car
This may be perceived by any nosey neighbours as a ploy to get our kids doing our dirty work but boy does it keep them occupied! They'll enjoy washing the car clean with sponges and foam and you could set them tasks, such as cleaning certain sections of the car within a minute. A small treat or a pound for their money box is a nice way to reward them.

Bubbles
Cheap, easy and oh what fun! Bubbles are a great activity for children of all ages. You can set them tasks such as who can blow the biggest bubble or how many bubbles they can pop in a minute. Younger children will probably enjoy just sitting back and watching them fly around the room.


Make ice lollies
Ask the kids to choose a selection of fruits then mix them together in a food blender. Pour the mixture into lolly moulds and freeze them for a few hours. The result? Delicious, healthy home-made snacks. Yum.


Visit to nanny and grandad's house
If you're lucky enough to have parents living close by, why not take a bike ride, walk or bus journey to visit them? It's a great way to spend a morning or afternoon and you could bake some cookies or ask your child to draw a picture to take as a gift.

Visit the pet shop
Pet shops are lovely places for children to learn about animals, they way they smell, sound and move so if you find yourself free of an afternoon why not pop along for a visit? Parrots are a great source of entertainment and the colourful fish will entrance children of all ages.

Trips to the local toy shop
Large toy store chains like ELC and independent stores openly welcome children to come and play with their toys. You're not committing to buy anything and the kids will have a wonderful time exploring the shelves and playing with the toys on display.

Planes, trains and automobiles
Toddlers, especially boys seem to go through an obsessive phase with vehicles - especially those that fly or travel at high speeds like planes/helicopters/trains and cars. If your tot gets excited by moving vehicles, why not spend an hour or two at the train station, ferry port or airport watching the traffic come and go? You might have to sit with a few nerdy types but that little smile on their face will make it all worthwhile!

earthmother

For indoor/crafty ideas, http://www.kidscraftweekly.com/ has saved my hide many times over the years with my three (and provided a few presents for family at the same time) - they have a free email that is often themed, or you can just search the archives.