things to do with a toddler...

[egoldber]

OK, I need some advice. Sarah is still not walking at 18 months (but she is close). It's too cold to go outside anyway most days. I am going to sign up for a Mommy & Toddler swim class, but that doesn't start until mid-March. A lot of activities for 18 month olds assume your baby is walking and we can't do a lot of those things.

Some days I am just at my wits end over how to keep Sarah entertained without turning on the TV or buying new toys. There is music, but some days she doesn't want to do that. Yesterday we sat and "colored" for the first time and she enjoyed that, but after about 15 minutes all she wanted to do was eat the crayons, so that was that. She loves books, but sometimes she is not in the mood.

I got a couple books out of the library: "Games to Play with Your Toddler" and also "Things to Do with Your Toddler". I really like the first one, are there other books out there that are similar that are good?

I need some ideas for activities to add to my repertoire to get us over the hump until the weather is good and she can get outside! What do other moms with older babies do?

Don't get me wrong, most days she entertains herself pretty easily, but then there are THOSE days where nothing seems to cut it for her...

TIA!

[sweetbasil]

Beth,
I can't remember what city you live in, but Houston has a great Children's Museum, so you could see if your city has anything like that. There's an area for kids under 2yrs., many of whom can't walk, and then the rest of the place is more interesting to bigger kids. That's all I can really think of right now....hope the weather gets nicer there soon. Happy Valentine's Day!

[nohomama]

Beth,

Do you have any drop-in centers in your area? I recently started going to the Parent's Center here in Northampton and it's a GREAT way to kill a morning. Ours has several rooms: a nursery with toys and activities geared towards 0-12 month olds, a pretend play/craft room with a kid sized kichen, doll houses, a playdough table and painting and drawing "stations," and and indoor playground were kids can run/crawl around and just generally get their ya-yas out. The added bonus is that it's not only a social setting for kids, but for adults too.

[twins r fun]

The book I have is called "Simple Steps: Developmental Activities for Infants, Toddlers, and Two-Year-Olds" by Karen Miller. I only recently got it and haven't had a chance to try many of the activities, but a lot of them look good. It is written for daycare providers and teachers as opposed to parents, but that doesn't make much of a difference. I looked at all the activity books that Barnes and Noble had and this one seemed to have the best ideas and the most variety. It's divided into sections like cognitive, language, sensory, etc. and uses materials you have around your house or could have after a quick trip to Target. My favorites are all the ones that use contact paper-maybe because I have so much around here! Anyway, it might give you some good ideas.

Also, is Rockville doable for you? There's a place there call Imagine That. I've never been there but we've got a similar one called ExploraWorld and it's been great for Jacob and Caleb. Technically it's designed for older children with just one baby/toddler room, but there is tons of stuff to interest toddlers! No need to walk either, but it's a great place to practice walking. If you want more info, I've got the address and phone number.

And while I'm writing, have you ever seen the Wachington Post book "Kid 0 Rama"? It's a guide to what to do in the DC area with kids. More of a book for a few years in the future (we actually bought it pre-children for DH and I), but it's a good reference to keep in mind. It's how I know about Imagine That! Authors are John Kelly and Craig Stoltz.

Nicole

[darebear]

Last summer when it was too hot to be outside, I bought an easel, finger paints, chalk and other art supplies. DS loves doing finger painting. We go to Gymboree twice a week also. Every now and again on a rainy day I will take him to Chuck E Cheese, they have a toddler section. We also go to the children's museum.

Julie-we were just in Houston for my brother's wedding and the children's museum was wonderful. It came highly recommended to us, so we gave it a try. Although if my son had his way we would have spent the entire vacation on the trolley that goes around downtown.

Allison

[atlbaby]

It is so hard not being able to go outside to play/take walks! One book I just got for toddler activities is The Toddler's Busy Book by Trish Kuffner. I haven't had a chance to try many of the activities, but it has some great ideas and is broken down into good categories too.

Does your area have a community recreational center? Ours does and I signed up for this great class that meets one morning a week for an hour. It's dirt cheap ($35 for 8 sessions!) and it's for 14-28 month olds. Arielle basically just walks around exploring/colliding with the toys and using the big mats/foam ramps, and then there's circle time and snack. I figure if she's not getting much out of it at least it'll tire her out! (And there are 2 children who aren't walking just yet too). Unfortunately, she's often still doing am AM nap so we've had to miss 2...not that I'm complaining about her naps but I'd love to get out of the house before 12:30!!

Sorry I'm rambling, I'm going to check out some of these other books too! Hope you get some good ideas and Spring comes soon for us all!

-Rachel
Mom to Arielle Jill, 10/30/01

[mamahill]

I don't have a toddler, or anything to say along those lines, but I laughed out loud when I envisioned Sarah coloring with you. I'm seeing her coloring and then looking at the crayon and thinking, "Hey WAIT a minute - this looks like it might taste good!" For some reason that is entertaining me more than you know right now... Thanks for the morning laugh!

[sweetbasil]

Allison~
That's so funny! When Kellen first saw a trolley, we were on our way to pick his dad up from the building he works in downtown. Kellen said, "Mr. Rogers?" thinking that all trolleys were related to Mr. Roger's Neighborhood. We've never taken him for a ride on one downtown- maybe we should detour from our plans sometime and just do that. Great idea! :)

[Shirale]

I am having a similar problem with being stuck in the house...we go out on walks every day, but since I am too nervous to actually let her *walk* she gets annoyed after a while of being stuck in the stroller...one thing she loves to do at home is play with drawers, take things in and out...she pretty much ignores her toys, but loves other kids toys so we spend a lot of time with playdates! She also recently discovered Duplo (sp?) and loves that...this weather is really hard...one of the other things we sometimes do if we are really stir crazy is go to a PlaySpace (we live in NYC and there is one on the UWS)but I am sure there must be one near you...and when all else fails, we go to the grocery store and she "pushes" the cart up and down the aisles...we go in the middle of the day so not too many people are there.

[darebear]

Shira- I took my DS to Playspace also, but I thought they closed at the end of January(I think the lost their lease). Have you been there recently and maybe my friend was wrong?

Allison

[atlbaby]

Beth,
I forgot to add this in my earlier response but could you explain more about the coloring (what type crayons etc)? I know you said it was your first attempt so do you think it's best to wait until they're 18 months or so to try? Had you ever given Sarah something to hold along those lines before?

Thanks!

-Rachel
Mom to Arielle Jill, 10/30/01

[egoldber]

Thanks for all the suggestions. I am actually mainly looking for things to do at home. If I walk out the door I am virtually guaranteed to spend $50 in one way or another, so at home activities are high on my priority list!

Sarah has "colored" before. She plays with the crayons at restaurants (until it turns into "I drop it on the floor and mommy picks it up" game). These crayons are called "First Crayons" or something and they are washable. She likes to make marks on the paper. If you haven't tried crayons yet, I would. Some babies do great with them from about 14 months on. Sarah is OK with them, but will probably enjoy it more in a few months. But I was desperate!

[Magda]

Here are some of the things that I brainstormed.

ART
coloring with crayons
coloring with chalk
fingerpaint
painting-- start with a cip of water and food coloring. increasefood coloring as she is more coordinated.
fruit and vegetable prints-- put a little paint on the food and let her paint.

SENSORY-- let her explore diffferent thingd and textures
waterplay (fill a shallow pan with water and let her splash)
sand or cornmeal
oatmeal (cooked or dry)
pasta (cooked ir dry)
jello
dry cereal
corn starch
equal parts corn starch and water (very cool to play with)
gel bags-- fill a bag with hair gel and TAPE the end closed. Watch this. they are often bit.

SCIENCE
fill a coke bottle with water and glitter
fill a coke bottle with water and cooking oil

VIDEO
Elmocize
there's another sesame street one-- Big bird's dance party?

dress up
puppets
soft blocks
one peice puzzles
library story time
mall playplace
inflatable beach ball

Hope this helps

Elaine

[megsmom]

We're in the boat somedays, Beth. Today with us all snowed in is a good example. Meghan has been begging to go outside, to Target (they have Thomas trains there) and to her sitter's house (trains there too). She has watched a bit more than her recommended TV allowance today also but I'm not feeling too guilty about that.

We've had fun with her out in the snow. Even though she can walk, the snow makes it kind of hard for her to do that anyway and she prefers to sit and lay in it, or play with sand toys in it. Enough snow for days of fun now! :)

Even though this is along the same lines as TV almost, Meg loves Reader Rabbit Toddler on the computer. It was $3.95 from estores.com and she would play it for hours if I would let her.

Have you tried those free story times with the libary? They are very popular since we've been shut out of two, but we'll keep trying to get to one.

My peds office gave me a recipe for modeling clay that you make with flour, water and something else. I haven't tried that yet, but we may be trying tomorrow since it doesn't look like Meg is heading to see any trains anytime soon with all this snow.

Jen
mom to Meghan 7/13/01

[egoldber]

Wow, thanks! We do some of these already, but some of these are totally new to me and REALLY easy! Glitter and water in a Coke bottle... She'll love it!

Thanks!

[atlbaby]

Elaine,

Thanks from me too! You've given me a lot of ideas to work with here! I've printed this page out and am really excited about trying these things out--and considering Arielle's never done any art yet we've got a lot of ground to cover!

Thanks! :)

-Rachel
Mom to Arielle Jill, 10/30/01

[twins r fun]

If you guys like these (as I do :)), you would really like that Simple Steps book I was talking about. It has some of these very ideas and many more like it.

Also we get tons of mileage out of a $3.00 mylar helium balloon. It lasts about a week and my boys love playing with it. I just pick one up at the grocery store on occasion.

Nicole

[StaceyKim]

Hi
I don't have a toddler yet but I found this site pretty cool.
http://www.mommyandme.com

[atlbaby]

Hey Nicole,

I checked out Karen Miller's Simple Steps book on Amazon but since there's only one customer review and can't find an editorial review, can you tell me a little more about it? I see that she's also written two other books, Things to Do With Toddlers and Twos, and its sequel, More Things to Do With Toddlers and 2s. Did you look at these also and then go with the Simple Steps one? The Things To Do set are older, although the More Things... one was revised in 2000.

I recently got this book, do you think yours is along the same lines? The Simple Steps one is nearly double the price but if it's good...

http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/0671317741/ref=pd_sim_books_1/103-2770816-3231023?v=glance&s=books

How about I'll convince you of the Learning Block Books and you convince me of this book! :)

-Rachel
Mom to Arielle Jill, 10/30/01

[egoldber]

Rachel, I just realized that Simple Steps was written by Karen Miller. I just checked out her other books "Things to do with Toddlers and Twos" and "More TTDWTAT" out of my local library. They are filled with really great ideas. I have made a list of things to do and try from these two book.

As Nicole said, her books are written for child care providers, but are easily usable and adaptable by the SAHM. They are full of really great ideas. My library had the updated version of the first book and an older version of the More Things book. Both seem really great. And I really like how she talks about the developmental aspects of all these activities.

I think part of my problem is I keep thinking to myself "oh, she's not ready" for things like PlayDoh and crayons and other stuff. But that's not fair to her. I should let her try. I think because Sarah isn't walking yet I sometimes think that she is more of a "baby" than she really is. Sometimes I need a little kick to think outside my box. :)

HTH,

[atlbaby]

Beth,
Thanks for the info.! If both TTDWTAT and MTTDWTAT (wow that's hard to type!) are chock full of ideas then maybe I will do what you've done and check them out of the library and make some lists. I would make lists from the books if I owned them anyhow. :)

I'll wait and see what Nicole has to say but it sounds like Simple Steps might be a good purchase even if it's pricier than most especially if it has ideas for birth-1 year too.

I'm like you too in that I don't think that Arielle is ready for activities and you're right, I might as well try them with her! I feel so silly that I didn't even consider that Arielle might be ready to try coloring and these other ideas! (Maybe it's the lack of hair:) ) That's why these boards are so wonderful, we can all learn from one another! Now if the snow would just stop falling and DH could get home from the hospital where he's stuck :(

-Rachel
Mom to Arielle Jill, 10/30/01

[Shirale]

Allison,
The last time I was there was actually December, I think- but I have walked by it and didn't notice it was closed...the children's museum on the UWS (I think 81st maybe) is also fantastic for babies, the upstairs has tons of space to play and crawl!!

[nohomama]

Here are some playdough recipes from a book called "Kitchen Crafts." I don't know who the author is. A Mom friend xeroxed the playdough recipes for me after Lola had a wee of a time over at her house.

Stove-Top Playdough

1C flour
1/4 C salt
2 T cream of tartar
1 C water
2 t vegetable food coloring (for more vibrant colors you could try powdered food coloring from a specialty food store)
1 t oil

Mix flour, salt, and cream of tartar in a medium pot. Add water, food coloring, and oil. Cook and stir over medium heat 3-5 minutes. Mixture will look like a globby mess and you'll be sure it's not turning out, but it will. When it forms a ball in the center of the pot, turn out and knead on a lightly floured surface. Store in air-tight container or plastic bag. Edible.

Playdough a la Peanut Butter (for kids over 1 year)

18 ounces peanut butter
6 T honey
cocoa or carob (optional)
nonfat dry milk, to the right consistency

Mix ingredients. After shaping, decorate (try raisins) and eat/play.

Also Beth, I really want to encourage you to research whether there are any drop-in centers in your area. Many are absolutely free. Ours charges $75 to join for a year, $35 for a ten visit punch card, or $4 a visit AND they offer a sliding scale to parents and kids who wouldn't otherwise be able to come. My experience is that it's been completely worth the cost for two hours that's enjoyable for the both of us. If you can find a center and get to and from there without making any detours is shouldn't cost more than a few bucks, certainly not $50.

Edited to add: It's especially been great during all the recent below zero weather when we've needed to get out of the house but not be outside.

[egoldber]

Sarah, that is a really good idea. How did you find yours? I have never heard of such a thing in my area. I have heard of Moms Day Out kind of things, but not something like what you are describing.

Any Northern VA moms know of a drop in play center?

And I was joking a bit about the $50 everytime I walk out of the house. But I do find that shopping is one of my major recreational activities and I am trying hard to find other alterntatives. We got a year end itemized statement as a "courtesy" from our VISA company and I found it to be VERY eye opening. Financially we are in good shape, no credit card debt or any debt other than our mortgage, but it was still shocking to see laid out in black and white how much we REALLY spend eating out and shopping.

And I also feel like I ought to be doing more creative thigns with Sarah when we are home. We get into a rut doing the same things and I need to broaden our horizons a bit. :)

[nohomama]

Beth,

I heard of our area center through word-of-mouth. Many of the communities in this part of western MA have them. I did a quick search and here are a few of the things I came up with.

http://www.co.fairfax.va.us/service/dfs/factsheets/familyctrs.htm

Child Care Aware at 1-800-424-2246

Nation's Capital Child and Family Development
The largest direct provider of child and family development services in DC. We operate 25 early childhood and school-age learning centers as well as 25 child care home providers. We provide a continuity of care with quality family-centered services. 7 a.m.-6 p.m. Serving ages 6 weeks-12 years.
www.NCCFD.org, 202-397-3800.

Some may be off base, geared either towards at-risk communities or daycare facilities, but it's a start. The Northampton Parents Center is actually affiliated with an area hospital and run out of an area church. You could start your search by calling community centers, family resource centers, and/or YM & YWCAs. Drop-in center may mean different things to different people but the Parents Center here is described as a "drop-in parent/child or family child care facility."

HTH,