The Germ Game

For Christmas, Kiddo received a subscription to Click magazine. It's a science magazine by the publishers of Cricket and Ladybug(which Kiddo can not get enough of). The first issue was all about germs and gettting sick and included this game, which I was required to play many, many times. Kiddo is really into games these days and I wanted to recommend this magazine, since it is hard to find science related magazines for this age.

Sigh.

Yes, it just might. Too bad not everyone around here feels the same way.

Dig and Scoop

Another way to keep Kiddo busy while trying to get New Kid to nap, while NOT being held constantly. Mission NOT accomplished.

Playing with Sticks

Excellent Distraction Prop: Popsicle Sticks! You, too, can own 1000 of them.

AHHHHHHHH!

Seriously, you haven't lived until you have one kid yelling at you that he just pooed and it's time to wipe his tush and a baby screaming in your face because it is in the 4th trimester and just wants to be back in the womb, which, frankly, is where you'd like to be, too.

Plus, I would really appreciate it if the weather would rise to at least 45 degrees.

Shaving Cream Art

Here is a great art project that I found at The Artful Parent. Make marbled paper using shaving cream! Way easier than Martha's method. Plus, it has the added bonus of scenting your paper with menthol!
First you fill a baking pan with shaving cream. Always a treat. Then, using droppers, add liquid watercolors. I love my Discount School Supply watercolors. We've been using them a lot lately. I am hopeful you will read about that soon. You could also used food coloring.Then, using a Popsicle stick or plastic knife, swirl, swirl, swirl.Press heavy paper -- or smush, as Kiddo said -- on top. We used watercolor paper.If you have overloaded on the shaving cream you can pour out the rest of the paint (why bother with the dropper?, says Kiddo) and do more.
Remove paper and let dry for 10 minutes. Remove shaving cream. At first I used paper towels but that smeared the color so I had the brilliant idea of scraping it off with a spatula. This method is also easier when you are simultaneously holding a baby. Mmmm menthol sure does clear those sinuses.
Enjoy the fruits of your labor! (or your kid's labor). We used some of our paper to make a birthday card for Grandpa D.

Master Mind

Here is an activity which we received as a hand me down from a former neighbor a few years ago. Kiddo has gotten interested in it recently and sometimes spends quite a bit of time with it. Is it wrong that I am drawn to the claim "keeps them busy for hours!" rather than"makes kids smarter"?

Tracers

In a past post I mentioned Jan Brett's activity page website. I'm not particularly into worksheet type activities, but I like to skim through it now and then to see if anything looks particularly useful. A lot of it is for teachers but we have used up some time with the addition and subtraction puzzles (not that I'm trying to get my four year old to do math, it's just he's obsessed with numbers) and we print out the monthly picture for our magnetic board/front door/chalkboard.

Yesterday Kiddo, out of the blue, wanted to write the alphabet. I have never encouraged him or suggested to him that he write anything specific. I won't bore you with my philosophical reasons, but in general I think kids are taught to write too early. However, Kiddo himself suggested it and brought me his magna doodle. After that, I couldn't help myself, we went to Jan Brett and printed out her number and alphabet tracers. What was also good about this was that Kiddo loved collecting the pages as they printed and so while any adult would find watching 37 color ink jet pages print excruciating, Kiddo was fascinated and he didn't bother me while I got to check my email (normally an impossible task). He then promptly sat down and did the 0-10 and A and B tracers. C-Z are still languishing on his table. But he can do them if he wants. Like I said, I won't suggest it.

oops

Okay, I just accidentally flagged my own blog as having objectionable content. I can't figure out how to undo it. Of course, perhaps my parenting skills could be considered objectionable. 

Bored Games

For his birthday, Kiddo received Chutes and Ladders, which he loves because of all the numbers. Long time readers of this blog may remember my rant against the new and (un)improved version of Candy Land. My annoyance at Chutes and Ladders is not quite as strong but I must mention:

1. Are illustrations of children with heads 4 times their normal size supposed to be appealing?

2. The whole good deed=ladder and naughty deed=chute is totally messed up. Is an ice cream sundae really an appropriate reward for taking out the trash? In my world view not having a stinky house it reward enough. And how is it naughty to help carry the dishes? Okay, maybe one should not carry them all in a stack as that is bound (as the game board helpfully points out) to lead to broken dishes, but perhaps a "thanks for helping, let me show you an easier way" is a better response than a push down a long and treacherous chute.

3. It is nearly impossible to get past the last row of squares to the end without going down a chute. Thus extending the game countless hours.

4. The final square proclaims, "WINNER!!!!!!!", thus ending my attempts at non-competitive game play.

But perhaps I am a bit jaded after playing this game 10,000,000,000,000,000 times in the last week.

At least he didn't get the Dora Version. Seriously? Really?

Glitter Glue to the Rescue

I pretty much abandoned Kiddo's Art Blog as a separate entity a while ago. I just couldn't handle two blogs. I might eventually continue with it but for now I will post about his art over here. I have written about the joys of glitter glue before but it is time for a reminder. Mostly just because I can sit on the couch while Kiddo squeezes out piles of the stuff.
First he made this lovely painting. I squirted a bit of yellow and orange paint right on the paper for him.Then he requested the glitter glue and went to town:
Later he smeared it all over the paper but I didn't get a photo as I just barely saved my newly upholstered footstool from becoming disco-fied with glitter. OK, the fabric was from IKEA but still, I'd like it to look new for at least a week before it shows signs of living in a home with 2 kids and a crazy mom.

Drip Drop

The reign of free play that Kiddo indulged in pre-New Kid is over and I am required to find entertaining activities all the time, once again. Fortunately I can bring out some repeats like this Montessori dropper activity. I hope you are noticing that in most of these photos Kiddo is still in his pajamas. That should tell you a lot about what does and does not happen around here these days.

Literate Mess

The things you let your kid do because you are trying to catch a breath. Kiddo emptied his box of Word/Picture Cards one by one, reading/trying to read the words on the back. He made a big mess. Fortunately, Kiddo is Squinny, just like his mom, and so we made an organizational game out of putting them back in the box -- in alphabetical order, of course.

Fireproof your baby

Boy, it's a good thing that baby clothes come with instructions.

Snowflakes

I found this snowflake making activity over at Scrumdilly-do! an decided to try it out with Kiddo while New Kid was napping. Basically it is just glue on wax paper which, when it dries can be easily peeled off. First we tried it with white glue and sprinkled glitter but then I realized, duh, wouldn't glitter glue be sooo much easier. Plus, glitter glue is one of Kiddos favorite things.

Witness our process.

After squeezing out his glue, Kiddo proclaimed, "This is a very interesting snowflake!" Indeed.

The next day.

Pretty bracelet!

Spelling Bee

Finding ways to parent from the couch is a very important skill when you have a 4 year old and an infant with you 24/7. Fortunately Kiddo came up with this idea all by himself. He is really into spelling these days. A few words he can actually spell by himself but he also really likes to ask me how to spell words and so he gathered all his alphabets, including his sandpaper letters, puzzles, magnets and bath letters (he likes to spell numbers in the tub) and for about 45 minutes he spelled words. Eventually our entire floor was a veritable alphabet soup.
No problem: I was safe on the couch.

For the Birds

Here is a project I meant to do this last year, but never got to it: making a birdfeeder for our backyard fire escape.

1. Gathering of materials

2.Laying on of Crisco (Crisco is such a gross product. I have it for my waffle maker and I was glad I could use it for something else).
3. Rolling of the seed. 4. Precision placement of corn kernels.5. Restaurant with a view. I will not offend your sensibilities by posting a photo of what happens to a paper towel roll birdfeeder after being put through the rigors of rain, sleet, snow and one hugely fat squirrel. Incidentally, no birds, not even a pigeon deemed our feeder worthy.

Saving Toys

Mom Unplugged had an update on more action we can take to help save handmade toys from absurd governmental regulations. Go to www.change.org to vote for this as an issue to be presented to our new president.

Now We Are 4

Happy Birthday, Kiddo!

You can also witness the shirt he wants to wear every day. I need to sneak it into the laundry.

Remember This

Do you remember this game? My mom gave me my old edition, which surprisingly is only missing one card. Kiddo loves the game, we play it non-competitively and he cheers when I get a match, too. Also it is easy to play with an infant attached to you. 

Butterflies

While I was giving birth/not sleeping/ entertaining/ breastfeeding/ swaddling/being cranky I got this award from Bees Knees Books. Fans are good. Thank you!

The New Kid

Kiddo's brother arrived on Dec 21. He was 8.5 lbs and 21 inches long. We are all doing well and trying not to suffer from too much sleep deprivation. That's a pretty insurmountable task, however.

Now I am wondering if I should change this blog's title from "What Do We Do All Day?" to "How to entertain your 4 year old while breastfeeding your infant!!!!!" It's not easy, folks.