24th of July/Potty

Yesterday before Deacon's bath we had him sit on his little potty just to start to get used to it. He seemed fine sitting on it and then took his bath. I had moved it from in front of the toilet to next to it when we were finished. This morning when Deacon got up he went into the bathroom and asked me "where's my bathroom" several times. It took me a minute to figure out that he was looking for his little potty. I showed him where it was and he picked it up and moved it back in front of the toilet and sat on it. He also wanted me to sit on the toilet by him. Then he tried to carry it out of the bathroom. It hasn't actually been used yet, but I still wanted him to know that it needs to say in the bathroom. I had no idea he had an attachment to it already... I guess that's a good thing? Who knows... I have a silly little boy. For about a week now he has been taking off his shorts during his nap. One time last week he stripped down totally naked at Grandma's house. This is not my favorite stage to be in.

We had a fantastic 24th of July weekend! It started with the Bountiful Parade on Thursday evening with the Fenwick's where Deacon enjoyed hearing the bands play. He liked to dance to the music. On Friday Deacon played with his chalk for a while on our driveway and then Matt and I took him to the activities at Bountiful Park. He rode on the swings, the train, and got his first snow cone. He really loved the train and wanted to go on it again, but we had to wait a few minutes. When he got back on again, Matt waved goodbye to him which made him sad and he didn't want to go anymore. We ended the night with a little firework show, which Deacon loved. Livy came over on Friday night and stayed until Saturday evening. The kids played with the chalk again, played in our neighbors sandbox, went on a walk, and went swimming in the little pool in our backyard. Both kids were doing really well at laying on their backs and tummies in the pool. That evening we went to a BBQ at my Grandma Mecham's and then we had another family BBQ with the Fenwick's on Sunday evening. It really was a memorable weekend and we had a lot of fun!

Bountiful Parade

Taking a break from playing with his chalk with Grandma and Grandpa Fenwick

Cho Chooo

Riding on the Train

Watching the fireworks

Drying Off

Deacon has started to call things 'super' lately. When my Grandma Nelson came to visit he called her super grandma. When I put him in his Brazil shirt, he called himself super Deacon. And when he was at my mom's house he asked her for 'super.' it took her a minute to figure out he was referring to some alphabet cearel that has a super hero on it. I'm not sure where he learned super from, but I think it's cute.

When Livy asks to be held she says 'up you.' when Deacon asks to be held he says 'hold you.' He also thinks he needs stuff now and likes to say 'I need it.'

More Kids Ideas to Try

These are a bunch of activities I have found on Pinterest that I would like to try with Deacon sometime. He is still too young for a lot of them, but I wanted to have a place I could reference them all at once. 

Kids Activities

Cotton Ball Sensory Bin – This easy activity allows toddlers to explore the soft texture of the cotton balls, as well as giving them fine motor practice as they scoop and dump.

Materials: bowl, bag of cotton balls, kitchen spoons or scoops – Prep Time: Less than 5 minutes

http://www.hellobee.com/2014/12/05/20-no-mess-sensory-activities/

Stacking Snowmen

http://www.hellobee.com/2014/12/05/20-no-mess-sensory-activities/

Homemade Baby Guitar – This is super simple and fun for any age!

http://www.hellobee.com/2014/12/05/20-no-mess-sensory-activities/

Materials: Bread pan, rubber bands  - wrap rubber bands around bread pan

Zipper Board

What you will need –

Piece of cardboard

Variety of zips (differing sizes and colors optional)

Hot glue gun

Scissors

How to make your own DIY zipper board for kids

I began by cutting out a piece of cardboard from an old nappy box. I had 10 colored zips for this sensory board and so I made the size of the board a suitable size so that all zips would fit. It’s a good idea to firstly decide how you‘d like your zips to be positioned on the board. I considered how this board would be used during play and so making them zip in various directions was important to me. Use as little glue as possible and push to the outside. Make sure no zips zip completely off.

http://laughingkidslearn.com/2014/04/diy-zipper-board-for-kids.html/

Button Board

First, I took one big piece of felt and sewed large buttons from our button craft collection, spreading them out on the felt.

Then I took an old puzzle box and hot glued the big piece of felt with the attached buttons, on to the top lid.

I cut colored felt shapes with a button slit in the middle for attaching on the button box.

Could also wrap yarn around the buttons.

http://www.rockabyebutterfly.com/2012/01/button-board.html

Smashing Balls (baked cotton balls)

Mix 1 Cup water and 1 Cup flour

Add some food coloring (can do several small bowls with different colors)

Cover cotton balls with mixture

Place on foil lined sheet

Bake for 45 minutes at 300 degrees

Smash with hammer or feet (with shoes)

http://4herreras.blogspot.com/2012/02/smashing-balls-baked-cotton-balls.html

Contact Paper

Tape (painters) contact paper to a window or wall and let kids put pom poms, blocks, foam things on it. http://www.notimeforflashcards.com/2013/09/quick-easy-pompom-play.html

Fizz

Drop vinegar tinted with food coloring onto a pan filled with baking soda. Sheer minutes of colorful fizziness!!

Have several bowls of different colors and a dropper. Filled 9x13 pan with baking soda. Drop away.

http://indulgy.com/post/yEzmaJ9sE1/drop-vinegar-tinted-with-food-coloring-onto-a-pa

Cotton Ball Painting

Clip clothes pins to cotton balls to dip in paint. 

http://domesticmommyhood.com/kids-activity-cotton-ball-painting/#comment-4515   

Homemade Gak

Supplies:

Two 4 oz bottles of Elmer’s Glue

1 tsp. Borax

Water

Plastic Cup

Bowl

Food Coloring

Empty glue into a bowl. Fill the bottles with warm water and shake. Empty into your bowl. Add some food coloring. Add ½ C warm water to your cup. Add 1 tsp borax to the water and mix until dissolved. Add borax mix to your glue bowl. Start stirring and you will notice how it starts to become stringy. Keep mixing by using your hands and squishing around. You will notice after a few minutes that it has become pretty gelatinous. Let the kids play with it and it will become the perfect gooey consistency.

http://lilluna.com/homemade-gak-recipe/

Treasure Ice Cubes

Freeze some small toys and trinkets in an ice cube tray and then let them drop them into warm water to discover the hidden "treasure." Or watch them melt outside on the driveway.

http://www.playcreateexplore.org/p/activites-for-ages-1-3.html

 Easter Egg Matching Game

Trace the egg on cards and color and then match the egg with the corresponding card. And take the eggs apart and match them with what is on the card.

http://www.playcreateexplore.org/p/activites-for-ages-1-3.html

Indoor Bubble Blowing

Probably one of the easiest, cheapest, and entertaining activities. Add some washable paint and some dish detergent to a bowl of warm water, gave kids some straws and a couple utensils and let them play.

http://www.playcreateexplore.org/p/activites-for-ages-1-3.html

Water Balloon Cut-Up

Give child some water balloons and a plastic butter knife and simply tell them to use the knife to pop the balloons. It's not as easy as it sounds and will definitely promote your toddlers problem solving skills.

Example: at first he tried to figure out which side of the knife to use (smooth or serrated)

Then he tried to cut it like he's seen the grownups doing.

Finally, he tried using the knife differently...and stabbed the balloon

http://www.playcreateexplore.org/p/activites-for-ages-1-3.html

Playdough Filled Balloons

Fill balloons up with play dough. Roll out the play dough into a long thin line. Use one tub of dough per balloon. Stretch balloon as wide as you can and stuff with play dough. Press the balloon flat and get out as much air as possible. Tie with a knot. Soft, squishy, and moldable...a bit hard to put down actually. Another great thing about these is that the playdough will stay soft in the airtight balloon, so if you wanted to break it open at some point and play with the playdough, you could! Could draw faces on them or add eyes and pom poms. 

http://www.playcreateexplore.org/p/activites-for-ages-1-3.html

 Cozy Reading Area

Set up an area on the floor with pillows, blankets, and stuffed animals for a nice place for kids to read.

Toothpicks and Mini Marshmallows

 http://www.playcreateexplore.org/p/activites-for-ages-1-3.html

Comparing and guessing weights on a scale of small items

http://www.playcreateexplore.org/p/activites-for-ages-1-3.html

The “What’s Missing” Game.

Set out several items, let child look for a

few minutes, then have them look away

and remove and item and see if they can

remember what’s missing.

http://www.playcreateexplore.org/p/activites-for-ages-1-3.html

 

Glow-in-the-dark Fan

Tape glow sticks to a fan.

http://www.playcreateexplore.org/p/activites-for-ages-1-3.html

Plastic Cup Phones

http://www.playcreateexplore.org/p/activites-for-ages-1-3.html

 

Bubble Wrap Run

Tape bubble wrap down a hall for kids to run on 

http://www.playcreateexplore.org/p/activites-for-ages-1-3.html

Homemade Sensory Discovery Bags

         Fill zip lock bag with hair gel and sensory items. Can also use blue body wash. You can dye the hair gel colors.

           http://www.baby.co.uk/life_and_home/20150421mess-free-sensory-play-for-babies-and-toddlers/

Bag Painting

Tape a zip lock bag filled with different colored

paint to a table and let kids push the paint

around to mix colors and create their own art.

http://www.baby.co.uk/life_and_home/20150421mess-free-sensory-play-for-babies-and-toddlers/

Painting with Water

Give child painting supplies and try of water and let them “paint” the deck.

http://www.notimeforflashcards.com/2008/06/a-painted-house.html

  

Glow in the Dark Mason Jar

Take a mason jar and paint the inside with glow-in-the-dark glitter paint, then sit upside down on paper towel to dry.

https://s-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/originals/f2/dd/01/f2dd0122ce49c8cb7b1b055faf00ddfe.jpg

Paint Swatches! Get 2 of each from the hardware store, cut squares out of one and glue it to a clothes pin. you child will have a blast matching up the right colors. good toddler development!

http://lifeasmama.com/10-busy-bag-ideas-to-keep-your-toddler-entertained/

  

  

Masking tape and Hot Wheels keep the kids happy for hours! Brilliant

http://teachmama.com/quick-trick-fun-sticks-150-things-for-kids-to-do/

 Sprinkler

Turn a two-liter bottle into a DIY sprinkler.

 http://www.buzzfeed.com/alannaokun/creative-and-inexpensive-ways-to-keep-kids-busy#.orv1QqM0b

 Pool Noodle Track

Turn pool noodles into race tracks. Cut in half. 

http://www.buzzfeed.com/alannaokun/creative-and-inexpensive-ways-to-keep-kids-busy#.orv1QqM0b 

  

Toy Rescue

For a more harrowing game, stage a toy rescue mission. They can only be released with well-aimed water guns. 

http://www.buzzfeed.com/alannaokun/creative-and-inexpensive-ways-to-keep-kids-busy#.orv1QqM0b

Button Snake

http://buggyandbuddy.com/homemade-toys-from-felt/

Homemade Flubber

what you need:

3/4 cup cold water

1 cup Elmer’s glue

liquid food coloring

1/2 cup hot water

1 teaspoon borax (you can find this in a box in the laundry aisle)

directions:

step 1: in bowl 1 – mix together the cold water, glue, and food coloring. set aside.

step 2: in bowl 2 – mix together the hot water and borax, until the borax is completely dissolved.

step 3: slowly add glue mixture to borax mixture. mix well. pour off excess water.

https://schelastic.wordpress.com/2013/07/02/homemade-flubber-recipe-for-kids/