More homemade toys

We were absent from the blogosphere for a while now- we were quite busy - our family has one new member, a cute little boy, almost three months old, and we did three rounds of chickenpox which meant being stucked in the house for six weeks and so we were forced to think of many boredom busters, meaning a lot of new ideas and games.

One of them is this box which can be used for distinguishing colors and fine motor development for toddlers. Originally, it was just an empty box of cornflakes, which I turned upside down, poked some holes in it (that was the hardest part because I didn't have a scalpel) and decorated them with some washi tape. As we were out of a blue tape, the Younger simply colored it:

We collected many bottle caps, in various colors and started sorting it:

                         

 

However, in the end, the girls really enjoyed in simple mess making:

All in all, it was one less boring rainy afternoon ....

 

Simple finger puppets

A dramatic play is among the most important activities in a child's development.

One of the simplest ways to implement such actions are finger puppets. Kids will love them, just because of their simplicity.

When I saw an idea from the page Spoonful.com, where they made finger puppets from rubber gloves, I finally found a way to recycle all those accumulated left gloves (as right-handed, my right glove is always faster torn out). And every crafter knows how nothing should be thrown away.

We used a regular pen to draw faces expressing different feelings, but you can also use waterproof markers. This is also a great way to explain the feelings and associated facial expressions to children.

Let the play begin!

 

Bottle caps activities

You have already seen that we like to play with bottle caps and how we made some toddler toys, like this box with a lid:

In this post you could see how the hamster mom (that would be me), has gathered a remarkable amount of bottle caps. So it was the time to figure out what to do with them.

Learning colors with plastic bottle caps 

 

First we learned some colors. I collected all the caps in one basket:

 

 

 

Then I took five little boxes, of the same color as the caps so then we sorted them by color. Since I couldn't find the boxes in all the necessary colors, I wrapped them in gift wrapping paper scraps.

 

 

Kids had a lot of fun and also learned something, and it was very easy for me to prepare it!

And they were also playing by mixing the caps, moving them from one container to another, in no particular order and meaning. I dare to say they liked this part the best. 

 

  A memory game with bottle caps

 

Before starting, wash all the caps (since they may contains some food leftovers). We all know how important the sensory play is, so this could be a good start and to introduce something like that into everyday activities. An additional plus: it is super fun kids.

When you wash and dry them, you can start adding stickers. 

I made one set for the Older and one for the Younger:

But in the end, the sisters mixed it all together and played:

 

 

 I'd like to thank the East Coast Mommy for this great idea.

Try it, it's super easy and we had lots of fun while playing it!

 

Need more bottle cap activities? See here. 

 

 

 

Entertaining children while cooking

Soon there'll be that famous holiday madness when everyone of us spend a lot of time in the kitchen, because there are always some (un)announced guests.

And how to entertain kids during this time?

 Here are some of my ideas:

Magnets on the refrigerator

As you can see on the photos below, The Cars mania still lasts in our house, but there are other magnets as well. Both of my girls like to have fun in this way. The Older likes to create a story, while The Younger just takes them on and off, but half an hour of peace for me is "guaranteed."

Tunnel with balls

I have seen this idea in several versions on Pinterest . It is super simple, you'll only need a TP tube, little ball or a marble and some glue - I've used Patafix. Unfortunately, this is just not appropriate for younger children as they can swallow a marble and since they had no developed a sense of how hard they can push, they often break this toy. And Patafix attracts them to put it in their mouth. So this is definitely a toy 3 +.

If you have a bigger bouncing ball (like those from vending machines in shopping malls), then it is good to add some additional sticky tape because such balls are heavier, therefore, the rolls need additional security. 

The lower part of my kitchen wall is lined with a cork board, so we made this without any problems, but these can be pasted on a fridge or a window. I don't believe it would be held firmly enough on a plain wall, and there is a danger of damaging wall paint while removing the "installation".

  
P.S. I know these are lousy photos, but the light in my kitchen is so poor - I think I have a next DIY project for the hubby. :big grin:

A pinwheel in flower pots

A pinwheel must spend winter somewhere - a great place is the kitchen window, there it will always be warm for it. And the girls love to spin it, spin and spin until they are feeling dizzy. Or until a decorative flowerpot is broken. Therefore this activity is also recommended for bigger kids. I allowed the Younger to play with it, but soon the pinwheel itself (thankfully not the flower pots) was damaged before I managed to take some photos. It is this type of pinwheel, click here for a tutorial to make one.

Source: prittworld.com.hr

Involve them in cooking

 

 super tasty chocolate muffins are made in this way ...

This is definitely their favorite. A cute apron with a funny saying and here we go, ready for action. This is appropriate if you are not in a hurry and if you don't mind the mess. It can be a great opportunity to learn something new, and you can even make real scientific experiments.

My girls especially like when we use cookie molds, it reminds them of play dough. 

 

I've shared this post on the following linky parties:

How to encourage children to read and to love books

Ever since I can remember, I'm crazy about books. Often I hear the story of how, at the age of three, I used to sit, crossed my legs, took a picture book (holding it upside down) and then I would say, "Reading, reading .... and here's where the story ends!"

I seem to have managed to encourage this love with both of my girls. Maybe it's because I read a lot during pregnancy and used to lay the book on the belly :)))))

Here's how their reading corner looks like:

Originally it was a dice table, its top plate can be removed, and below there are two vessels. In the summer, we used it for water games, and over the winter it got completely new purpose.

I think The Little is definitely one of the youngest visitors of our great library, and currently she is most interested in throwing as many books as possible, off the shelves. Luckily she is so cute (objective Mom!) so the librarians still forgive her. Although there is one giving us significant looks.

Where and how to get affordable books

 

Once a year, at the Spring Fair, our library sells written-off books at a bargain price, which is a great source for supplying the home library, since they sell books in a really good condition. Purchasing second hand books is also possible on ebay and other similar sites. There is also a specialized book fair every year in November at my hometown, so I try not to miss it, since all the relevant publishers offer new books also at bargain prices.

The best picture books we have ever read

 

Here's a list of picture books that we've read and I recommend them to everyone, since they are educational and we had a lot of fun while reading them.

A few books for parents are also on this list, but since they are offering activities for children, they should definitely be a part of it.

Stan and Jan Berenstain: The Berenstain Bears 

Source: en.wikipedia.org

I know many of you must have heard of them before, or even read them in your childhood, since these books celebrate 50th anniversary, but to me they are something rather new, because they have not been translated into our mother tongue until recently.

Excellent, educational picture books that talk about real situations children cope with, titles say it all: Too much TV, Too much junk food, Messy room, Big Blooper and many more.

Highly, highly recommend!



Scaredy squirell

Excellent, high-quality picture books that talk about how we protect children too much, preventing them in exploring the world. Although published back in 2008, this is also something new for me (think I haven't seen it so far at the local library). My girls love it so much, it's very funny.

Source: kidscanpress.com

Dick Bruna: Miffy

Who hasn't heard of Miffy? Simple shapes, vivid and memorable lyrics are a magnet for children, but also for mums and dads. The books are available in hard and soft covers, so that the smaller and bigger children can have fun with them.

At the age of two and a half years, my older daughter  already knew to recite most of lyrics from "Miffy is crying", which tells you enough about the simplicity of its verses.

I also like "Miffy and the new baby", since it's a great explanation and preparation for the older kids at the arrival of a new baby in the family.

There are many great cartoons with Miffy as well. 

Source:miffy.com

Tony Ross: The series of picture books about the little princess 

Excellent, educational picture book, aimed at children aged 2-4 describing the topics such as hand washing, potty training and combing, the skills which kids at this age are adopting, and this picture books certainly can help them in doing so, because they are written in a funny way and accompanied by simple illustrations. 

Source: harpercollins.co.uk

Unfortunately not all of the published titles are translated into our mother tongue, so my kids have read only "I want my potty" and  "I don't want to wash my hands". Looking forward in finding new titles in our language.

Christmas things to make and do

Mommy looks forward in reading it, since it has more than 80 (easy!) ideas and activities for the upcoming holidays. I have a feeling that you will be reading about the activities from this book very soon. :)

Source: IglooBooks.com

And finally - Read, read and just read .....!

See what I have pinned about book love .

NOTE: originally I have included more books in my Croatian post, but I couldn't find all of the books translated in English, so I've shortened the list.


P. S. Have you seen this great linky party?

Geoboard DIY

I've seen this thing called geoboard, all over Pinterest, but of course, it's not available in our local stores. Honestly, it's so easy to make it, that it would be a shame to spend money on it.

Required materials: cork board, little pins, rubber bands.

Put pins randomly on a cork board, and then surround them with the rubber bands to see which shapes you can make. Help your child to name them - rhombus, trapezoid, square, rectangle, circle, triangle. Encourage the child to make some of the shapes - it is great for developing fine motor skills. By using it with older children (primary school age) you can easily explain them the whole concept of perimeter and surface area. Here's how we've done it:

A dear friend of mine suggested we could use it for learning letters as well:

Warning: This really is a 3 + toy , because the pins are very small and extremely dangerous if swallowed, so use extreme caution, especially if you have younger children below this age!

P.S. You know how I love linky parties -