2 upcycled jug activities

Nothing could be more satisfying than dropping a cylinder-shaped block into a milk jug or pushing a cotton ball through the neck of a glass bottle, right?  What - no? You can think of lots of things you'd rather do?!  Well, you're obviously not a one-year-old then!  Elise LOVES these kinds of activities right now.  How can I tell?  She repeats them again and again, with concentration so strong, she barely makes a sound - just the occasional little happy noise.  :)

Activities like these are great for strengthening fine motor control and building spacial awareness.  Plus, they're a snap to put together - just look in your recycling bin!

pushing cotton balls into a glass bottle

materials needed:

• glass bottle with a short neck
• cotton balls in a dish

Elise eventually filled the whole bottle with cotton balls.  Afterwards, I pulled them all out with tweezers while she napped - it didn't take as long as you would think!

dropping cylinder-shaped blocks into a milk jug

materials needed:

• milk jug with a hole cut in the side
• cylinder-shaped blocks (Ours are part of a set given to us by a neighbor - I think they're Melissa & Doug.  If you don't have blocks like these, shape sorters usually have a cylinder-shaped block.)

When you're cutting the hole in the side of the milk jug, make sure you leave an inch or two of plastic at the bottom.  The first time I did this, I cut too close to the bottom and the blocks bounced out of the jug.  BTW, the purpose of cutting a hole in the side of the jug is so that your child can reach in, grab the block and repeat the activity.  Then, you won't have to spend those precious moments of nap time trying to get the blocks out of the jug.  You can just sit back and sip a mocha, or fold laundry, or whatever!     

much loved books - 13 months

Whether she's flipping through the pages on her own or curled up on the couch reading with her papa, Elise has been choosing these books over and over and over...

1.  Do You Want to Be My Friend? by Eric Carle

2.  I'm as Quick as a Cricket by Audrey Wood 

3.  Skip to My Lou adapted by Nadine Bernard Westcott

4.  My Friends by Taro Gomi

5.  Good Night, Gorilla by Peggy Rathmann

No links to Amazon, sorry!  ;)  Although I do buy books from Amazon, two of these books were purchased at a local bookstore, two were gifts, and one is a library book! 

on the shelves - 13 months

rings on a post

Elise started out stacking one or two rings, 

and now she's able to do all six!
(stacking rings - Plan Toys)

capping/uncapping "markers"

Elise is fascinated with taking the caps off markers

 and then putting them back on.

I got the idea for this simple activity from Montessori ici. 

opening and closing round containers

A little vintage variation of the ever popular 

opening and closing lesson.

pulling scarves out of a box

A diaper wipes container filled with nylon scarves

- you know, the little old lady kind!

Whenever we listen to music, Elise runs over

and pulls out a scarf or two to dance with.  :)

 

cube in a box

I couldn't bring myself to actually buy imbucare boxes,

so I've been improvising.  This one is made from a painted cracker box!

a basket of farm animals

My little Montana girl has been loving farm animals lately.
Most of these figurines are made by Schleich.
They're just right for naming and making animal sounds!

busy hands - toddler edition

harvesting food from the garden

(Elise loves pulling, picking, and tasting!)

wading in the creek

(This girl is going to have some tough feet!)

 pulling the tape out of a 

tiny tape measure

and pressing the button

to suck it back up

(Elise repeats this activity over and over again.)

scooping up yogurt with a spoon

(Elise has also started practicing using a fork.)

finger painting with edible paint

(I made it by mixing equal parts flour and water

- and a couple squirts of food coloring.)

digging fingers and toes 

into some sand by the river

(Get this girl a sandbox already!  Actually, we're in the process
of building the ultimate sandbox,
but sometimes playing in nature's sandbox is truly the best! )

raspberry pickin'

Picking your own raspberries

at Rocky Creek Farm

is so much fun!

  What???  

You mean raspberries 

don't just come from the grocery store 

in a little plastic box?!

 No, silly!  They grow on raspberry bushes!

Oh, and they taste the best if you eat them off your fingers

right after you pick them... YUM!

 We can't wait to do it again!