Maybe it’s just me, but when I fantasize about the perfect mothering moment, it tends to look something like this:
In reality, my life often looks like this:
Photo by Ketut Subiyanto from Pexels
You see, after countless feedings and nappy changes, my brain has little space for imaginative or creative play. But I want to be that cheesy mum. I want to be the cheesy mum who’ll manifest a doll house out of scraps using nothing more than with her bare hands, love and a gob of saliva. But this requires research, googling and a certain number of brain cells that is hard to come by these days.
Enter: Lisa Forsythe’s Simple Activities for Toddlers: A Practical Play-at-Home Handbook for Parents.
Where was this book last year when I was struggling to entertain two bored kids in the midst of a Covid lock-down?
I was lucky enough to receive a free digital version of the book through Booktasters’ in exchange for an honest review. So here I am. I loved the book so much, it got me itching to write about it. Want a a cheesy Kodak moment with your kids? This book is for you. Want to control the madness around you by sedating those kids with a fun yet educational activity? This book is also for you. Or perhaps you need to get those rugrats off that screen, and finally ease your crippling mum guilt? This book is your salvation.
I tried a handful of activities for a week and here are some favorites you can try today:
1- Ice Rescue
Pour water over a small toy and freeze overnight. Then give your kids tools and salt to save their favorite character. This activity was brilliant. Both kids loved it- maybe a bit too much to be honest.
They also broke the tray in the photo.
Very careful supervision is needed for this one. Banging and smashing are inevitable.
2- Memory Game
Fill a muffin tin with items, then take turns to remove one. Now guess the missing object. My six-year-old loved this game. My toddler, however, was too young to show much interest. But I was more than happy to play.
Very fun- even for adults.
3- Build a Robot
If you like crafts, this one is for you. All you need is cardboard, craft eyes and pretty things to decorate your robot with. Ours is not nearly as cute as the one in the book, but it was good enough.
4- Will it Dissolve?
Add soap, salt and anything else you like into bowls and have your kids pour water over them and stir. My two-year-old loved the pouring and stirring part, and my six-year-old enjoyed guessing which of the substances would dissolve.
5- Fizzy Ice
This one was quite the spectacle. You drop food coloring on ice cubes then cover everything in bicarbonate of soda. Now pour vinegar over the whole thing and watch it fizz with life. My toddler’s excitement is quite obvious in this photo.
These activities only scratch the surface. The book has many gems that range from sensory games to letter work. The back even includes recipes for things like colored rice and play dough. I’ll be definitely purchasing a hard copy as this is the kind of book you really want to dip into regularly for inspiration.
Final review: 5/5
Which activity do you think you’ll be trying?
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This post was previously published on medium.com.
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Feature Photo credit: Pavel Danilyuk from Pexels
Other images courtesy of the author.
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