It can be challenging to keep coming up with new ideas to keep your toddler entertained and engaged. After all, as we all know, toddlers have very short attention spans. Recently, when my son was 10 months old, we were:
This activity was especially nice because it was cheap AND easy to clean up! Isn't it nice when things work out like that? It was cheap because we had everything had: a plastic shoebox-sized bin, dish soap (AKA washing up liquid), water and toys that float.
Right before we started Little J on solids, my mom recommended getting an oil cloth to keep under his high chair (I always want to call it a "height-chair"). Well, we don't really use the oil cloth in the kitchen very much. Somehow it's just as tedious to clean. But it's perfect for activities like this. I set our polka-dot oil cloth on the floor of Little J's room. Then, I filled my plastic shoebox with soapy water, put in a few floaty bath toys and set it down for him to explore.
One thing I really like about this activity is that it counts as "sensory play." I keep seeing those buzz words, which I think it kind of funny because isn't everything experienced through the senses?
In this case, it was also a nice way to use some of his chunky and load bath toys that he doesn't play with much. We actually keep them in the kitchen as kitchen toys. And, did I mention that it was easy to clean up? (Much easier to clean up than Dad's idea to play with shaving cream, but that's another story!)
Even though Little J had played with these toys and suds--and even had had bubble baths--this activity still kept him occupied for quite a while. We did this in late May when the weather was starting to get warmer.
If he had been older, I think we could have made it even more exciting by playing peek-a-boo with this bath toys (hiding them under the suds).
I think the whole family enjoyed this "good, clean fun!" ;-)
It can be challenging to keep coming up with new ideas to keep your toddler entertained and engaged. After all, as we all know, toddlers have very short attention spans. Recently, when my son was 10 months old, we were:
This activity was especially nice because it was cheap AND easy to clean up! Isn't it nice when things work out like that? It was cheap because we had everything had: a plastic shoebox-sized bin, dish soap (AKA washing up liquid), water and toys that float.
Right before we started Little J on solids, my mom recommended getting an oil cloth to keep under his high chair (I always want to call it a "height-chair"). Well, we don't really use the oil cloth in the kitchen very much. Somehow it's just as tedious to clean. But it's perfect for activities like this. I set our polka-dot oil cloth on the floor of Little J's room. Then, I filled my plastic shoebox with soapy water, put in a few floaty bath toys and set it down for him to explore.
One thing I really like about this activity is that it counts as "sensory play." I keep seeing those buzz words, which I think it kind of funny because isn't everything experienced through the senses?
In this case, it was also a nice way to use some of his chunky and load bath toys that he doesn't play with much. We actually keep them in the kitchen as kitchen toys. And, did I mention that it was easy to clean up? (Much easier to clean up than Dad's idea to play with shaving cream, but that's another story!)
Even though Little J had played with these toys and suds--and even had had bubble baths--this activity still kept him occupied for quite a while. We did this in late May when the weather was starting to get warmer.
If he had been older, I think we could have made it even more exciting by playing peek-a-boo with this bath toys (hiding them under the suds).
I think the whole family enjoyed this "good, clean fun!" ;-)
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