My bank balance took a huge hit in the first lockdown as I bought more and more to compensate for the fact my little ones couldn’t leave the house. And in truth; they got bored of most of it pretty quick.
But actually some of the things they enjoyed the most where activities that we picked up while doing our normal weekly shop or we put together from things we had at home. Below are my (and Arran’s) favourites from the first lockdown. They might seem pretty standard but its amazing what we don’t think of when we are under pressure to ‘think of something’.
Soft Play; Living Room Style
Got a small garden slide? A bag of coloured, plastic balls? One of those small, three ring paddling pools? Boom; homemade soft play small enough for the living room.
Even without the slide, it’s a lot of fun. You can hide things in it, create an obstacle course, create fishing games, the world is your oyster. If you have a cheap pop tent or tunnel these can also be included for even more variety. In the summer (or spring if it’s warm enough) we do this outside in bigger paddling pools just without the water…and I have to say without the germs that soft play is renowned for.
The New Age Mud Kitchen
We had an old, falling to pieces, activity table that had two table top sections that we had planned to bin but like most the crap in my house; hadn’t. So when the first lockdown came we got it back out and with a few nails and some super glue we breathed new life into it.
One of Arran’s favourite fillings was mud. And with the weather the way it is mud is in abundance. We used play cutters to make shapes, small animal toys and a bowl of water to create a swap or toy kitchen utensils for a good old fashioned mud kitchen. Mud is free and its messy so it’s the best kind of play.
Fun from a Tap
A bit like mud play, best to be done outside but with lots of towels and some plastic matting it can be an indoor play as well. You can do bobbing for coloured balls, measuring and pouring, water creature play, soap suds play or even invest in some slime/Gelli bath. Again it’s free and can be combined with pretty much anything around the house.
Arran’s favourite was soap sud play; he literally could not stop licking it off himself. I don’t know why and he didn’t explain but there you have it; hours of fun.
Can’t get a Tuff Tray?
Love tuff tray ideas but can’t afford a tuff tray? Or like us; couldn’t get one for love nor money! I mean we tried everywhere and I love a good tuff tray set up.
Well that small, three ringed paddling pool that you can just about fit into your living room; there is your tuff tray. We made Arran a dinosaur scene and a farm scene. He could play at the edges or climb in but it was amazing imagination play but avoided the mess on the floor just like a tuff tray. Most ideas you see on line will work as long as your pool is on a hard, level surface.
Let’s Sort These Balls!
Ordering everything online has some positives; lots of cardboard. Kids love a box, it can be a train, a car, a house, a castle; whatever. But it can also be a ball sorter, or a ‘anything in set colours’ sorter (maybe time to get all those odd socks sorted while you kick back with a cup of tea).
We had four different colours so just cut fist sized holes in the top and coloured them then let Arran go wild. He spent ages popping the balls into the holes. And then Dylan took over seeing if he could throw the balls in from a distance. Anyway, some balls, a few crayons, some scissors and a box; a whole days entertainment.
Building with Jelly
Standard shape ice cube tray and some make it yourself jelly and you have Jelly Building Blocks. I would say make them slightly firmer than you would normal Jelly and the more colours you can do the better but we only had lime Jelly so only had green ones and Arran still loved it.
Building, smashing and mostly; eating them. My only warning is we did this on a plastic mess mat and once crushed up they became quite slippery so just something to be mindful of. You know, get your camera out for you’ve been framed.
There’s Sand on the Moon?
Yes, yes there is and it’s mouldable and none toxic. It’s also kind of floury. We used it to create a Sahara scene and to do some moon play. But it also worked really well just for playing with to make shapes and build with.
There are lots of recipes on line but I made my moon sand using 8 cups of plain flour and 1 cup of oil. Personally I used baby oil just for the smell but you can use regular cooking oil and if your little one is in the habit of putting things in their mouth I would highly recommend an edible oil. You can add food colouring but I never had much success with this.
Who Needs Playdough?
Playdough is expensive and if like me, the second they squish it all together and make a brown blog you regret the expense then this is the one for you. Stored correctly you can keep this for up to 6 months and most the ingredients you probably have lying round the house. Its non toxic and works just as well as the shop bought stuff.
Combine; 2 cups of flour, 2 cups of warm water, 1 cup of table salt, 2 tbsps of Vegetable oil (olive works just as well if that’s what you have) and 4 tsps of Cream of Tartar (available in the baking section of most large supermarkets).
Once thoroughly combined place in a pan over a medium heat stirring frequently and pulling away from the sides any bits that stick. Your playdough is done when it forms a ball as it’s pulled away from the edges of the pan.
Then if you’d like different colours, leave the dough to cool for a few minutes and then section into how many different colours you’d like. Form a ball, flatten slightly and add a few drops of food colouring to the centre. Finally, kneed until it’s an even colour and no longer stains the hands.
To keep; store in an air tight container. Personally I put mine in sandwich bags with the air forced out and then put these in takeaway food tubs bought from Asda for a couple of pounds. Then whenever I want 5 minutes peace; Arran shall we get the playdough?
Bath Time Play Time:
This is gaining ever more popularity on line at the minute. I have seen unicorn play with multi-coloured foam and bubble machines, dinosaur swaps with coloured water, plastic swamp leaves and little figures and of course; use of Gelli/Slime bath. I do know like these as they do not dissolve as the packet suggests and it took us weeks to clear the slime from the garden but I do love the idea of having a bath for recreation.
When we did it, we had underwater creature play turning the water blue (a little food colouring…well the internet said a little it was more like half a bottle), boats and some deep sea creature toys. It is a slightly more exciting bath time but a craze that is definitely taking off. In summer these work really well in paddling pools too!
Outnumbered 