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!

Chalk n' Water Centre...

For a long time, I had wanted to add an easel painting space to my house. A place where the kids were free to go and paint on a whim. But the space in my little house is limited and the potential to have paint on my carpets and walls and furniture is at an all time high! I had already put a chalk centre on the outside of my kitchen island and my lovely, and brilliant cousin Krymsen suggested I let the kids paint with water and brushes on the chalkboard.

Well, didn't I love this idea? The children could paint as they pleased, my furniture and carpets would remain safe, AND my chalkboard would get a cleaning! And so I added one more bucket to the wall. The first one contains chalk and brushes. The second one contains brushes, and when the kids want to paint, I unhook it from the wall and fill it with a bit of water and put it on the floor in front of the board.

It is now the "go to" spot for my toddlers when I am preparing meals. They love it! And there are no rules, except for "no sucking the paint brushes!"

And there you have it...6 days of fun water water play activities that you can do inside your home...even on the coldest of days!

Happy painting!
Thanks for stoping by!

Little Scientists...Colour Mixing!

I know you've all seen it. Water, food colouring, colour mixing, blah blah blah. But don't underestimate the allure AND the benefits that this simple science experiment holds for children of all ages. The fine motor skills, the cause and effect, the predicting, the observing...oh the may wonders of colour and water!! So what are you waiting for??

Day #5
LITTLE SCIENTIST...COLOUR MIXING

Supplies needed:
1. Food colouring
2. Jars or glasses, or see thru cups
3. Medicine droppers...I use these instead of turkey basters because it helps them master the prewriting "pencil grip".
4. Empty clear egg cartons. The clear ones help the children see their mixed colours better.

Fill your jars with coloured water...make the colours quite strong so they will mix in all kinds of pretty ways.

Let the children start mixing!

They get very serious about creating JUST the right colour. Abby wanted to make "medicine" colour, and she worked and worked at it until she was happy with her result.

Busy scientists!

Even the toddlers love to get involved!!

Have fun, and happy mixing!

Thanks for stopping by!

Small World Play...Building our own Aquarium!

Well, we've made it to day four of our Water Week, and we are all a bit wet around here. Today's activity was probably our favourite one of all. We built our own small world aquarium. 

We talked about habitats and how all living creatures have a habitat that they thrive in best of all. The ocean animals that we chose to have living in our aquarium were given a habitat that the children thought resembled most "authentic." 

This is how the morning went...

DAY #4

SMALL WORLD PLAY-BUILDING OUR OWN AQUARIUM...

Supplies needed:

1. Empty salad or veggie containers, even the cake toppers from grocery store cakes, and jars work too!

2. Aquarium rocks, seashells, plastic plants, rocks, and any other materials you think might work in building habitats.

3.  Plastic ocean creatures.

4. Dollhouse "visitors"

5. Water and food colouring.

6. Paper, marker, and tape to make the habitat signs.

Now it's time to build your habitats. I let the children decide which animals to put in each container and they chose all the accessories...

They chose the large cake topper container for the whales, as they need more space!

They thought the sharks should have green water!

Our rays got the pretty seashells and clear water so they would be clearly visible.

They put the octopus in the jar so he could spread out his tentacles!

The whale shark has my favourite habitat...the colours the children chose just look so pretty!

And the alligator got a climbing rock so he could come out of the water sometimes.

And then the playing began in earnest! So many visitors to our aquarium!

The visitors even got to swim with our creatures and experience the habitats first hand!

And then the fun REALLY began! 

Enjoy this fun "habitat creating" activity with the small people in your life. It's guaranteed fun! Oh, the things they can learn as they play. And please don't fret about the mess...it all comes dry with towel or two! 

Thanks for stopping by!

Ice Block Critter Melt...DAY 2 of Water Week!

Hello again! It's time for Day 2 of our water week extravaganza. And this one is super easy! Especially in the winter here in Canada. I took advantage of the giant deep freeze that my patio has become, and I filled every empty yogurt, cottage cheese, dip, or dairy container I had with water. Then I dropped some food coloring into each container. I gathered up as many creepy, crawly critters that I could find in the house and put them into the colored water. Then I put them all outside on the patio...

It didn't take more than a few hours to freeze...as it was -47 degrees Celsius that day. Brrrrrr! If you suffer (*wink) from a warmer climate, use your freezer and put them in the night before. 

When they are frozen and you are ready to play, run the containers under hot water for awhile to loosen the ice blocks. Drop them into a bin or water table already half filled with water.

Here is a snake encased in ice...it looks pretty neat. The children will love swirling the melting colors into the water, and watching the critters emerge from the ice.

The kids in my house were squealing and giggling and carrying on...it was the noisiest "ice melt" my kitchen had ever seen!

And it was such eye candy for ME! 

DAY #2

ICE BLOCK CRITTER MELT...

Supplies needed:

1. Empty plastic containers

2. Water

3. Food Coloring

4. Wash bin, rubbermaid, or water table with water

5. Plastic critters (lizards, bugs, snakes, or any other things you're in the mood to freeze!)

Have fun and enjoy! Maybe shake hands with a grasshopper while you're at it!

See you tomorrow for more water fun!

Thanks for stopping by!

Making a Big Splash...

 I can't think of anything that makes my children and myself happier than playing in water...I mean, take a look!

What is more fun than a good splash? 

So why don't we do it more often? Because it's cold outside? It's not summer anymore? Ha! Bring it inside! Because it's messy? Boo! There is nothing cleaner than water! Because it's too much work? Phooey! Since when was fun too much work?

There is no other medium out there that is more beneficial to play in, than water.

It's an all-sensory experience...feeling, tasting, smelling, seeing, and hearing, Fine motor skills are honed by pouring, squeezing, and swirling. Cognitive skill are developing as they measure, mix, and imagine. And don't forget the emotional side of water play. How often are your raw nerves soothed by an evening bubble bath? How often are you refreshed and energized by a morning shower? Being in, and playing in the water can change a child's emotional state in just a few minutes. So, no more excuses! Get playing! It doesn't have to be complicated. A simple bin full of water, measuring cups, funnels, and tub toys would do the trick!

For those of you who want more ideas for playing in water, the next few posts will be just the thing for you! I am going to divide this post into 6 parts, so it's not so overwhelming. One activity per day. And I'm not saying you have to DO the activities 6 days in a row! I'm just going to give you a new idea each day so it's not all piled up in one giant post!

That's 6 days worth of water play time coming up...are you ready to get wet??

DAY #1
BUILD YOUR OWN OCEAN...

Supplies needed:
1. A plastic washtub, bin, or water table.
2. Salt. (makes the sensory experience even better!)
3. Seashells (pet store, craft store, dollar store, or the REAL beach, if you can!)
4. Blue and green food coloring..we mixed a bit of both to give it a mediterranean feel.
5. Plastic ocean critters.
6. You can also put sand on the bottom of your bin if you want it really authentic.

Color your water, add the salt and critters, and you are ready for some great imaginative ocean play.

An oyster shell water fall...

A rainstorm at sea for the lonely fisherman...

A deep sea rescue mission...

A peaceful playground for the orcas...

I know many adults who long to see the ocean and be near it every day. Children are no different. The ocean holds a special magic that soothes and delights. Why not bring it into your own kitchen for a day or two? And if you have a cd or itunes track with whale or ocean sounds...put that on in the background to create an even better, all-round sensory experience.

 I'll see you tomorrow for another water play idea!

Thanks for stopping by!