Ideas for Activities with Toddler at Home

There are LOTS of great ideas on a website called www.preschoolrainbow.com

It has craft projects and games and songs and recipes etc.

I know what you're going through. My toddler is 30 months and I am 3 months pregnant. Good luck.

http://www.idea-queen.com/indoor-toddler-games.html
sorry i don't have time to write more...
ds is demanding attention
hth
K.

There is a fantastic website called HoustonSAHM.com . It stands for houston stay at home mom. It has weekly lesson plans for different age groups. It is a wonderful site. It has crafts and many great ideas and educational activities. Hope this helps.

Hi K.,
Check out this website for great play time ideas to do while at home...It worked great with entertaining my toddler while I was pregnant, and I still visit it now that my older one is almost 3 and the new baby is 4 months old...It's www.fisherprice.com Who knew, right? Our favorite is indoor bowling...Hope it helps and have fun!!!

you could get a huge sheet of paper and if you have hard floor give her some washable paint, strip her to her diaper and let her go to town, we use to do that in daycare or if you dont want her doing it with paint then do chocolate pudding or whipped cream that way if she puts it in her mouth it wont hurt her... make her a water table put some ducks and other floating things and let her play with that, they love that. I worked in daycare for several years and now im a stay at home mom and i have a 2 year old and and thats how we keep busy, and i just had a baby so i know about the not being able to be really active right now but just some ideas for you

These ideas always worked with my kids and my grandchildren.

All children love to hide. Make a tent, or purchase one of those play tents from Wal*Mart. Kids like to turn on a flashlight in their tent, sit in boxes, and play with their toys in there. Cheap headlamps and flashlights of their own will be a plus.

My next suggestion is purchase one of those CD's with the kid songs on it. The two of you can dance to it and make up games. My niece has a DVD with songs and girls dancing that has a mat with it. You stand on your mat and follow directions. All of the little girls play this one over and over.

Have fun ! Congratulations on your second baby and best wishes !

My children love puzzles! You can find many age appropriate ones at Target or Learning Express. Try to avoid TV as much as possible (not recommended by the American Academy of Pediatrics for children under the age of 2). Also, do you have a plan for for help after your baby arrives? You will need your rest as much as possible (especially during the first 3 months) and your then 2 year old will by vying for your attention (parents, in-laws, neighbors). I regretfully didn't have a plan after my second child was born and I wasn't getting near enough sleep. Good Luck!

Dear K.,

Oh what fun we'll have!!! Try baking cookies, brownies, etc. I did this with my sons and daughters and they can all cook something. Put puzzles together...it helps with spacial learning and they are fun!! Buy creative art kits or make your own, make masquerade masks, various art works that you frame on the wall or decorate the bedroom wall together!! Take old puzzle pieces, spray paint them, place on the outside of a picture frame, add photo and had out a unique gift!!

Happy fun time!!

P.

If you are in the Baytown area, the Nature Center has a program called 'Tyke Hike' every spring & fall. It's free. They meet once a week for about 8 weeks or so. I did it w/ both my boys. The age cut off is 4 yrs. Have fun! In case you feel like driving...there is a place called Toddler town in Clearlake. My friend and I would take our little ones there for a playdate every so often. It's about $7 per child.

My daughter is 18 months and we enjoy a variety of odd (?) activities. We play dress up with necklaces and hats and scarves...we have dancing parties...great thing for you right now- my daughter LOVES to "do" pilats/yoga with me and I know there are some great prenatal dvds out there. She also loves to help me cook (even though it slows me down). Sometimes I'll put a towel on the floor and give her measuring cups and utensils- helps with the motor skills :). I've hear it's real easy to make finger paint (flour and food coloring and water?). My sister loves taking her children -this age and up- to the zoo, especially when she's pregnant. My nephew new the names of the animals better than I did!
Praise the Lord for His two wonderful blessings to you!

I was on bed rest with my second child with a 2yr old son that was very active. Believe it or not educational computer games even that young. Sesame Street, Jump Start, etc. They learn their numbers, colors, alphabet and eye hand cordination. My kids loved them and I was determined my kids were not going to be video game junkies. I waited until my son was 8yrs old before I allowed a gamecube in our house and that one has more less violent games and more fun games for younger kids. My kids are 13 & 10yrs now and we still do not have X-Box, Play Station or any of the more expensive games consoles that play more violent games. My son continues to love computer games, where you build, design and even ride roller coasters for examp. and they both play outside and do many other activities as much, niether one is obcessed with or play too much on the computer. I hope that helps.

Go to a local park, play with playdoh, sing songs, roll a ball to each other... :)

Hi K.,

I taught 2 and 3 year olds at a mothers day out program for years and I have so much curriculum I would be willing to let you make copies of or look thourgh. So many great ideas for monthy activites, colors, shapes, abc's, Bible stories if your interested. And its not just coloring sheets. Lots of easy crafts and even some cooking activities for children that young. Give me a call and We'll set sometime up to get together. My name is L.. I'm 33yr. old a stay at home mom. Married to my highschool sweetheart,(and still really like him,lol). We have a 14yr. daughter, and a 12yr. old son. I am currently homeschooling our son. Due to problems with ADHD, us moving eight times in ten years because of my husbands job, and our son falling way, way, behind in math. Honestly, I wish I would have homeschooled from the begining. What fun we are haveing. And It is so awsome to see him "getting it" now. Our daughter however loves school and all of her friends. She is in all pre-AP classes and makes really good grades. So for now she gets her way.lol Hope you call and we can talk and get something set up for you and your little one.

###-###-####cell.

You might also look for a MOPS group in your area. They are usually hosted at churches and meet once or twice a month-mine is twice a month.

They have childcare and the moms are in groups away from the kiddos. They have a breakfast/brunch, discussion/fellowship, a speaker geared to mom's needs/interests, and a craft. Once a month they have a mom's night out and once a month a play group.

Last year I was there the day before I delivered-nice b/c it's for the moms and the children have fun.

Join now and you'll have people to help w/ meals when the baby comes as well ;)

hello K. my name is M. nice to meet you, am new to this site. well i wanted to tell you some good ideas that is good with lil ones. you can turn the t.v on and you both can watch it and sing along and dance shows like dora and barney. and you can also turn on the radio to radio disney and yall can have fun that way, you can get a brown paper bag and let her do some finger painting on it tell her it is going to be her funny face or whatever, and then once she done with it you cut 2 eyes holes big enough so she can see, and have her pick out some color yarn or paper and you glue or tap it on top of it , this is a lot of fun

My girl always liked building bird feeders out of pine cones and peanut butter. When I stayed at home with her we also had some pretty wicked gardens. One in particular we did a few years ago was a butterfly seed (available at Wal Mart) garden. We got to watch the butterflys all summer long.

Hi K.,
Its been a while since I've had a toddler at home however, the majority of my clients have "little" ones that I have been with before the children came. I would recommend going to Teachers Heaven. They offer a large variety of activities you can do that will keep your 22 month-old busy and learning at the same time. Barnes and Nobles also has "story-time" which the kids just love. Hope this will help. Good-luck.

If you are interested, your daughter may be ready to try the daily activities in "Bible Buckaroos: a plan for active preschoolers and pro-active parents." It is what I did with my 2 year old and 4 year old to teach them Bible stories at home with supplies from home and no prep! Most of the activities are very hands on, active, and quick-- my kids love it! It is awesome you are wanting to do things WITH your daughter. That is so good for her. For more info. see biblepreschool.com

We love Cooties, coloring, reading books......

Cover the table with an old vinyl table cloth, put a smock on her and give her crayola watercolors and some watercolor paper, and let her paint. I'm a grandmother of 10 year old twin girls, and they have been painting, coloring, and drawing for 9 of those years. Or use the large crayolas and paper,etc. Or play dough. She will love to paint, and it's easy to clean up. But do use a smock,as they will get paint on their clothes.

I feel for you:) My daughter was 23 months when I had my son. These are the kinds of things that we did together: play with chalk on our concrete patio, paint with watercolors, put on music and dance...When the weather isn't nice, I put one of the plastic swimming pools in my kitchen and give my daugther lots of paper and paint and let her play. Good luck!

Hi, K.!
I teach Montessori to toddlers and do in-home consulting for families of very young children to help enable them to be more independent and put the appropriate materials in their grasps. Children at your daughter's age are very interested in doing the work they have been watching adults do in their home up to this point. So, sweeping, mopping, table wiping, window washing, dish washing, setting and clearing the table, folding laundry -- all of these are activities your daughter will love and you can either include her in them to do with you or set her up her own materials so that you can sweep with your broom while she sweeps with hers (example). You do not have to be super-creative, just allow her to participate in the important tasks of keeping your home (HER home!) clean and orderly (always have a consistent place for things so that she will know where they belong and can clean up when she is finished) and she will be plenty occupied.

As for fun activities outside the house, there is a Story Time at the Book People on Wednesday mornings at 10:30 am, plenty of Library Toddler Story Times at various branches, just check the website. The one downtown on Thursday mornings is my personal favorite. The Science and Nature Center near Zilker is great and free of charge, Central Market to play, eat and feed the ducks and if you haven't already you might want to check out Heartsong Music Together classes -- they are a fantastic way to have fun and learn together -- very low activity for you and high activity for her.

I hope this helps! Let me know if you need any more suggestions or have any questions for me.
K.
welcometojuliasgarden.com

K.,
I too have a 22 month old little girl and we have found ourselves at home a lot during flu season. I have purchased some "My First" flash cards for things like first words, shapes and colors...etc. I spread them out on the floor or table where she can reach and I have her identify and bring me each card. It is more physical for her than for me and she is learning at the same time. Another favorite thing is a short walk, always good for you too unless bed rest is necessary, and make them either a "color walk", "shape walk" or other category that allows my daughter to discover nature and wear her out a little. Bringing a basket lets her collect her "treasures" so that we can talk about them again when we get home. Hope these give you some ideas and if you are in the Katy area email me and I would love to get together for a playdate too to help you out a little and let the girls play.

C.

I purchased a pre-school curriculum book. I think they have different age levels. It is what a day care center would use to plan their activities. Not only did it have good ideas for projects but it also presented information about how kids learn, what they can do at certain ages, etc. It showed me that some things like cooking, a trip to the grocery or post office can all involve learning.

My moms group is nice too. It's a good way to meet other moms and learn what they do at home. Also, you may meet someone to invite over for play time. That always excites and occupies my daughter!!

Hi there. I have an ACTIVE 3 year old boy. He loves his new mini trampoline! Some other things he does is play with some shaving cream in a baking sheet...create shapes, number, and even spell things out. It gets a little messy but she can maybe help clean up when it's all over. He loves playing catch too..which could probably be hard if you're pregnant since they don't aim too well, haha. And of course reading and coloring. He also loves bubblewrap! You should try some of this.