Hey y'all!
As a current stay at home mommy, I'm trying to find ways to..lets be real....SURVIVE!....while these little monsters slowly eat away of whats left of my sanity (I'm sure other stay at home parents would agree)! I've been trying to come up with different ways to entertain BOTH kids at the same time.
I have a preschooler and an infant that just turned one. Both kids are at completely different levels in play development which makes it extremely difficult to come up with FUN activities that preoccupy them at the same time. Im not talking about colouring at the table which lasts.. a whole 5 mintutes. Im talking about the fun, and yes MESSY sensory play that these monsters will stay engaged in for more then 30 minutes, maybe even an hour if your lucky!
Below I have a few SAFE, nut free, fun sensory activities that both kids will enjoy playing! Now FYI parents, just because these activities are safe, that does not mean you should ever leave your littles unattended, (obviously)! Infants have a tendency of putting EVERYTHING in their mouths, and even though these sensory activities won't harm them if they taste or even eat a bit, just make sure they are not enjoying a full course dinner if you know what I mean lol.
Oats and Cheerios
(Medium Mess)
The easiest, quickest and lowest effort option! My kids loved this (and so did mama)! You don't need to be Albert Einstein to make this sensory activity. Literally, just go to your nearest food store and pick up some Cheerios and plain oats; then pop them in your bins and done. Add some scoops, small bowls and your kids will have a heyday! If you want to make it more educational, add some puzzle letters/numbers/shapes and hide them in the cereal. You can even use these ingredients for themes like "A day on the farm" or "fall harvest" scenery!
Home made Playdoh
(Low Mess)
Another one of mamas and kids favourites! Who doesn't like play doh?! But sometimes the store bought ones can have "chemically ingredients" in them if you don't buy the non toxic brand. Even then, not the best to put in your babies mouth. This sensory activity your going to need to do some work...but I promise you, this is an awesome recipe!
Ingredients
2 Cups Flour
1 Cup Salt
4 tablespoons cream of tartar
2 Cups boiling water
1 Teaspoon Cinnamon (Optional)
Food colouring (Optional)
Instructions:
Place all ingredients into a bowl and mix well. Might need to use plastic gloves to help mix, as boiling water makes the mixture HOT.
Tip*** Keep extra flour aside just incase mixture gets too sticky. Might need to add more until mixture is a perfect texture ( I eyeballed the extra flour).
Keep the play doh in an air tight container or ziplock baggie to avoid hardening.
(NOTE** SOME LOOSE PARTS IN PICTURE ABOVE ARE NOT BABY SAFE)
Taste Safe Mud
(Very Messy)
Heres a messy one folks! If you have all white furniture around your kids sensory table then I don't recommend this for you lol. But if your house is already a living disaster (like mine) then you'll love this one! It requires 3 simple ingredients that you probably already have in your pantry so it makes for an easy sensory activity! Do yourself a favour though, and place a wipeable mat on the floor, or better yet, take this outdoors if the weather is nice.
Ingredients
2 Cups Flour
1 Tablespoon Cocoa
2 Cups water
Mix all together and done. The mixture can be very clumpy, but thats part of the fun! Let the kiddies mix the rest with their hands. I incorporated this sensory activity with animal exploration. Threw in a bunch of easy to clean animals, with other nature elements like leaves, sticks, and rocks. You can even do a car wash theme if you have a child who loves vehicles as much as mine do! In one bin I put the mud, and the other bin i'll put in water. I also provide a bunch of cleaning materials and the kids get their "clean" on!
Moon Sand
(Medium Mess)
Now when you think "sand" your thinking, OH HELL NO! Relax, its not what you think. Think of kinetic sand texture..the sand moulds well together, clean up is simple, oh and hey...this sensory recipe is TASTE SAFE! Again, you'll need to make this recipe using ingredients you'll most likely have in your home.
Ingredients
2 cups brown sugar
2 cups corn starch
10 tablespoons of vegetable oil
Directions
Mix the sugar and the corn starch first. Using your hands is the best way, especially to get rid of the clumps.
Then add the oil. Mix well.
I was worried that this would make my kids hands super sticky but it doesn't (thank goodness). The corn starch and oil mixed together creates minimal residue on hands. Also, keep a watchful eye out with your kiddies while they play this sensory activity. Although this is taste safe, its has a lot of sugar in it, so make sure they aren't eating fistfuls or you'll have some hyper kiddos coming your way!
This sensory activity is so much fun. We used moulds, scoops and stamps! This sand binds so well that it creates and holds its shape beautifully!
Edible Hand Painting
(Very Messy)
I HAD to include a combined creative and sensory activity! I just loving painting, and I was so excited when my kids were old enough that they could start creating their own works of art. Unfortunately, most paints sold in stores are for ages 3+. I ain't waiting that long! Here we have a home made paint mixture that is taste safe and super fun!
Ingredients
An over filled 3/4 cup of flour
1 cup-ish of warm to hot water
Food colouring
Small containers to separate paint colours
Directions
Mix the flour and warm water into a bowl. Use a whisk to help mix out any clumps.
Separate the flour and water mixture into separate containers.
Add a 2-3 drops of food colouring into each container and stir well.
Easy Peasy! Let your kids be creative with this one and go wild (and be prepared to give your babies a bath after they are done with it lol). This creative/sensory activity is great for all ages, even the youngest of babies. I like to use a large white paper roll and let the kids go crazy. Hands, fingers, or even toes if you want to be that brave! For the older kiddies, I like to provide a wide range of materials from paint brushes, to sponges, cotton balls, toilet paper rolls, Q-tips, natural elements, squirt bottles...and the list goes on! Let your child guide you in the direction of there learning choice, and enjoy play based learning at its finest! Check out the pictures below of our beautiful mess! My little monsters loved loved LOVED this activity! My 15 month old was so happy to be involved in this activity with her big brother, it made my heart melt.
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