Every mom should have a few activities up her sleeve for rainy days or long weekends when there’s “nothing fun” to do. I’ve had a few jobs in my short life, one of which was a camp/day care counselor at a Navy center back home. I was young and bright-eyed and poured myself into my 1st real job…. and thanks to those few years I have a few tricks up my sleeve when HJ is board with his toys and I need time to make dinner without tripping over him in our tiny kitchen.
The first is really easy and not *too* messy: a (or pasta) bin. Since rice is expensive here in Paris, I instead filled a large bowl with mini-alphabet pasta and bury some random objects, like an old key, paperclips, a small Lightening McQueen car, a toy monkey… you get the picture. You can get adventurous and dye your rice if you want for added fun!
I have a plastic mat that we use under HJ’s toddler table, which collects all of the pasta that escapes onto the floor. This makes clean-up relatively fast and easy. HJ played in his rice bowl for the duration of dinner prep and cook time. The best part about this activity is that you can pour everything into a plastic bag when finished and stow it away for another day of fun.
The next activity is a bit more messy but again really easy to set up. Using a few half-used bottles of finger paints, I add a squeeze of dish detergent (like Dawn) and then recap the bottles. After securing the lids, shake vigorously…. and voila! You’ve now turned regular old paint into window paint that washes away quickly and easily.
Our apartment has glass doors in every room so I chose the kitchen for this activity since there’s no carpet to worry about. Using masking tape I sectioned off two spaces for painting, which you don’t necessarily have to do with older kids. Toddlers need boundaries for this activity…. trust me.
Then I poured the paint on a tray, covered HJ in an old “Papa shirt” as a smock and let homeboy have at it. This activity was enjoyed by HJ and a friend on a playdate…. keeping them occupied for a long time. They chose to paint with paint brushes but you could easily do this with just your hands. You could do this outside too if you have a hose to wash down the windows.
After the paint dries, I remove the tape and all that’s left is some cute toddler art. When you’re ready for a fresh canvas, just use a wet cloth and the paint will come right off!
Some more activities that you might want to try are:
1. Painting with water on concrete (saw this on Pinterest).
2. Instead of a rice bin, add water and ice cubes on a hot summer day.
3. Covering a table with a trash bag, add a bit of water and some dish detergent. Using a coffee straw, blow bubbles on the table.
4. Same covered table, use Popsicle sticks for ice hockey.
