BIG Builders...

There is nothing like the smell of coffee to wake me up in the morning. I love it. I also love chocolate. Like, really love it. Put the 2 of them together, and well...mmmmmm. Perfection. And just when you think things couldn't possibly get better, a few dump trucks come along and take it to a whole new level!

This activity was one of our most successful ones here at Small Potatoes. The boys took the play to places I would have never even thought of. What started out as a pile of coffee beans and a mound of chocolate playdough, (recipe from the lovely NurtureStore) turned into hours of creative building, dumping, sculpting, crushing, rolling, and most of all, IMAGINING!

I poured a large bag of cheap (Western Family brand) coffee beans into our process table. I added some plastic construction trucks (found at Toys R Us), and some wooden play tools. I made a double batch of the chocolate playdough and plopped it in alongside everything else. Then I let the kids have at 'er!

At first, they did exactly what I had expected. They poured and dumped the beans in and out of the diggers and dump trucks, and drove them up and over the playdough hill.

But not long into their play time, they began to take the activity up into a more complex level...

First, they cleared roadways and marked the centre line with individual beans.

Then they started hammering the beans into the playdough to make some sort of foundation. At this point, I wasn't quite sure what they were up to...

Then, they went to the toy bins and returned with handfuls of wooden blocks. They used the playdough as mortar between their wooden "bricks" and built a house on their foundation! Such smart little boys!!

And then, just when I thought they couldn't be any more clever, they began to crush and grind the beans with a wooden block to make "cement" for their sidewalks. God bless them! 

Little hands building a sidewalk up to the house.

So I was able to enjoy the smell of coffee and chocolate all through my house (seriously, it smelled like Starbucks), and the boys spent the afternoon immersed in imaginative, sensory play. Win win! I packed the playdough into a plastic container at the end of the play session and we kept the beans in the process table for a good week. I brought the playdough out for them each time they asked. They absolutely loved this activity. And so did I.  If you don't have a process table, don't fret...just use your table top, or a large plastic bin. You will be sweeping up beans, but it's a fair trade when you see how much fun your little ones are having!

Don't you want to just get in there and play, too? I did! What are you waiting for?

Thanks for stopping by! Enjoy!

The Big City...

I don't know about you, but I have quite a few boys around my house who have a real urge to build stuff. I think I own more different types of blocks than is necessary...but the boys think differently! They use the duplo blocks, the wooden blocks, foam blocks, mega blocks, bristle blocks, and the lego blocks and they will build for hours. Constructing big, elaborate buildings and ramps, bus lines, subways, houses, and roads.  But what I noticed their cities didn't have, was "bigger than life" skyscrapers! 

I have seen big fancy city building blocks made by Pottery Barn Kids, and I have seen a few versions floating around on Pinterest. I figured, "I could SO make those"...and make them out of materials I already had in my house. And so I did. And they are fabulous. And YOU can make them too. And you should. Your kids will love you for it. Even the babies like to play and stack these big buildings. Although, they mostly play the part of King Kong or Godzilla when the boys finish building up their cities! Hehehehe.

Start by collecting all your "family size" boxes of things. I used Cheerios, Goldfish, and Cinnamon Toast Crunch boxes, because we go thru one each of those in a week, easy. It didn't take me long to get enough boxes for a good sized city.

Fill your boxes with smunched-up newspaper to give the boxes a bit of weight. This will make them sturdier.

Tape the boxes closed, and then wrap with your choice of colored paper. I used brown paper because I figured it would wear the best. Smudges and dirt would show up too much on a white building! I found the rolls of heavy brown paper in the packaging aisle of Wal-Mart. You know the one that keeps the bubble wrap and packing tape and stuff?

Once your boxes are all stuffed and wrapped, you can paint all your windows and doors on. I have seen versions with coloured card stock windows and doors, but personally, I did not want to cut and paste a gazillion squares and rectangles. I am intrinsically a girl who likes to get from A to Z quickly. Paint just seemed quicker and just as cute!

And don't worry about being precise. I gave the windows all a bit of a tilt to create a whimsical look...whimsical is not exact. Whimsical is your friend. Trust me. 

Let your building boxes dry overnight, and if you want, you can paint the other side so they are double-sided. This part is up to you. My kids were so eager to play with them, that I have not yet got around to painting the back side.

Add little cars and people that you might already have at home. Remember this is supposed to be an inexpensive project!

Even Hot Wheels will do the trick. The kids just want something with wheels to race around their cities with!

Now let the building begin...it will start out small...

And then it will begin to grow...

And pretty soon, the other types of blocks, and props will start to find their way into the city. That's when the fun starts. I love, love, love watching the kids absorbed in the world of city building...it makes me smile.

Now, get going!! Go build some buildings! 

Thanks for stopping by!