WATER PLAY... "OLDIE BUT GOODIE"
I’ll start with an “oldie but goodie”…
Bin of water, foam letters or numbers, sponges! Endless play of soaking, sticking, peeling off and “washing” the windows. Add some soap for some bubbles if you wanna make thing extra clean!
Link to foam letters/numbers: https://amzn.to/3ZlJaOD
BABY'S SPACES: CONTRAST WALL
Let’s talk babies.
I’m going to be honest here and tell you that a lot of “activities” my babies (birth-12mo) engaged in were observing and copying their older siblings! I definitely tried to plan tummy times, book reading, movement activities, etc. but most of the time just “tagging along” really helped them grow physically and socially. I do have a few pointers that worked really well for us.
Making a contrast wall is super easy!! We used our pack n play for a long time in our living space so that baby could have his own safe place to explore. Instead of staring at a blank wall, I put up black and white contrast scrapbook pages on the wall and wham, he was mesmerized! It helped him to roll from back to front and stay engaged in tummy time and eventually sit and explore.
Link to contrast paper:
BABY'S SPACES: PLAYMAT STRINGS
Playmat strings are super easy! Find a variety of sensory-diverse and rich yarn, rope, string, leather, etc and tie securely to the top of your playmat structure.
Obviously you want to monitor closely for safety. Baby loves to kick the different materials, swat, touch and feel and sometimes just stare at the contrasting colors and textures.
COLOR SENSORY JARS
VOSS water bottles are wonderful for this homemade toy for baby! The cylinder-type shape make them perfect for little hands to grip. I made these almost 9 years ago for my oldest and they’re still in super shape! All you need is super glue, empty plastic jar and doodads from around your house that will fit into the empty bottle. Sort your doodads into groups based on color and make sure you super glue your lid before giving to baby to observe, shake, and find different objects! I decorated mine with washi tape as well, but certainly not necessary!
Link to washi tape: https://amzn.to/3LyV7fK
Link to water bottles: https://amzn.to/42pyVL1
FACES ON THE FRIDGE
This activity was so much fun when the babies were little! Super easy and definitely fun for kiddos as they wait for you to finish making lunch or wash dishes or you're just spending time together! What you’ll need is a few 4x6 magnetic photo sleeves and pictures of familiar places or faces! It’s basically an “eye spy” game! You’ll ask baby to point to someone they recognize or you’ll point to a face and ask baby "who is this?" These are also fun little “toys” as well-- they can peel them off the refrigerator or dishwasher and carry them around the house or make a stack of faces to collect! Haha!
Link to magnetic photo sleeves:
HANGING WATER PLAY & BED BIN!
Hanging plant pots make awesome containers to hang off of bunk bed rails and double as a fun water play container for little people! We have had bunk beds for over 5 years now, and while these plastic plant hangers are no longer in stock, these similar ones (check links) are awesome for hanging over the bunk rail to hold books, trinkets, stuffies, water bottles, etc. Also! When my little people were toddling around and in walkers, we hung an extra planter over the arm of a deck chair, filled it with a bit of water on a hot day and the baby was able to play and not dump the water!
Planters:
CHANGING TABLE TRICK
The absolute worst is when the baby fights laying or sitting still for a diaper or clothes change. Sometimes funny faces, song-singing and talking to baby isn’t enough to keep your little alligator from wrestling you! In an impromptu alligator-wrestling moment with one of my sons, I ripped off a few stickers from a sheet we got from the pediatrician and stuck them on the wall. My son immediately gravitated toward them and we talked about what each sticker was or I asked him to point to a specific one. It absolutely held his attention for the perfect amount of time. So… I immediately added decals to our shopping list! The best part about this is the chance to switch out the pictures as often as needed or even theme them around seasons! Happy changing!
Wall Decals:
BATH MAT JUMPING TOES
All of my little people were jumpers! Sometimes when the weather got cold, we’d have the baby wear socks… and sometimes they weren’t the “no slip” kind that prevented sliding on wood floors! When this was the case, we put a bath/shower mat under the jumper for the baby to use as a non-slip surface, We also found that some of our little people LOVED the soft feel between their toes in bare feet and that would extend their jumping time!