[Warning: excessive whining contained herein. Don't say I didn't warn you.]
So, what exactly do you do with a toddler all day? When Hadley was younger, it was easy. We had our little daily activities, like a playgroup date or Little Gym, and afterwards we would shop a little or go home and play. But now-- now, we have boredom. It's like I live with a teenager already.
We still have daily activities, except now we have upgraded to swimming dates with friends, playgroup dates, kindermusik classes, and storytimes at the local bookstore. But seriously, those don't take up nearly enough time each day. Afterwards, we end up with soooo much wide-open time that I find myself panicking with the thought of trying to fill it with things for us to do. Let's be honest, eating lunch only takes so long. We still have about 3 hours to kill after Hadley's nap before Sean comes home. And let me tell you, just playing or cuddling so does not cut it. At least, that's what I've unceremoniously been told by my little toddler who I can usually find curled in a ball on the floor writhing in boredom by 4:00 each day. Perfect.
Given that I don't especially love seeing Hadley writhing on the floor in boredom, I try to create little activities for us. So far, I have the following (and I warn you, this list is pathetically short):
* Listen to music and dance;
* Read books;
* Play with toys in the playroom;
* Color with markers and coloring books;
* Fingerpaint;
* Play with Play-Doh;
* "Cook" with pots, pans, wooden spoons, and dry pasta;
* "Water" the plants on our back porch;
* Eat popsicles (I'll post my "recipe" later this week) in the backyard;
* Clean the house (seriously, Hadley loves to do laundry and vacuum);
* Make pudding or bake a special treat together
That's all I've got and when you consider that we can do almost all of those things in one afternoon, I can understand why Hadley gets bored. So, dear readers, this is where you come in. What activities/crafts/projects do you do to fill time/entertain/educate your toddler??? I'm desperate for ideas!!
So, what exactly do you do with a toddler all day? When Hadley was younger, it was easy. We had our little daily activities, like a playgroup date or Little Gym, and afterwards we would shop a little or go home and play. But now-- now, we have boredom. It's like I live with a teenager already.
We still have daily activities, except now we have upgraded to swimming dates with friends, playgroup dates, kindermusik classes, and storytimes at the local bookstore. But seriously, those don't take up nearly enough time each day. Afterwards, we end up with soooo much wide-open time that I find myself panicking with the thought of trying to fill it with things for us to do. Let's be honest, eating lunch only takes so long. We still have about 3 hours to kill after Hadley's nap before Sean comes home. And let me tell you, just playing or cuddling so does not cut it. At least, that's what I've unceremoniously been told by my little toddler who I can usually find curled in a ball on the floor writhing in boredom by 4:00 each day. Perfect.
Given that I don't especially love seeing Hadley writhing on the floor in boredom, I try to create little activities for us. So far, I have the following (and I warn you, this list is pathetically short):
* Listen to music and dance;
* Read books;
* Play with toys in the playroom;
* Color with markers and coloring books;
* Fingerpaint;
* Play with Play-Doh;
* "Cook" with pots, pans, wooden spoons, and dry pasta;
* "Water" the plants on our back porch;
* Eat popsicles (I'll post my "recipe" later this week) in the backyard;
* Clean the house (seriously, Hadley loves to do laundry and vacuum);
* Make pudding or bake a special treat together
That's all I've got and when you consider that we can do almost all of those things in one afternoon, I can understand why Hadley gets bored. So, dear readers, this is where you come in. What activities/crafts/projects do you do to fill time/entertain/educate your toddler??? I'm desperate for ideas!!
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1 comments:
Hey, you came up with more than me. I'm pretty stumped on the weekends after coloring and Play-Doh (and, I won't lie, a few episodes of Max and Ruby). Since it's summer, what I usually do is haul all of us outside, since Andrew is a little outdoorsman and can entertain himself out there for HOURS.
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