Toddler Activites - Nesting and Stacking

1) When choosing nesting and stacking toys for your toddlers, look for those that have only a few pieces. Toys with too many pieces to figure out can frustrate toddlers.

2) Make a nesting game for your children by collectintog paper cups in three or four different sizes. Place the cups, right side up, on a table. Show the children how to place the cups inside one another, starting with the largest cup. A set of measuring cups also works well.

3) Boxes make a nice nesting game. Set out three or four boxes in different sizes for your children to nest together.

4) Purchase plastic eggs in small, medium, and large sizes. Put one of each size together to make a fun nesting toy for spring.

5) A nesting set of pots makes a great toy. Your toddlers will love experimenting with them to find out just how they can nest together.

6) Toddlers especially enjoy stacking rings. You can purchase commercially make stacking rings or you can make your own. A small bathroom plunger and some shower curtain rings or large metal canning jar rings make a fun game.

7) You can also make a stacking rings game out of a wooden bottle-drying rack and some old napkin rings. Have your children put the rings on the dowels of the rack.

8) Make a different kind of stacking toy by cutting the tops and bottoms off plastic 2-liter bottles to make cylinders. Cover the cylinders with self-stick paper, if you wish. Show your children how to stack the cylinders on top of each other.

9) Collect several small plastic containers that are all the same size. Let your children stack and unstack them.

10) For an unusual stacking game, collect plastic cups and saucers. Show your children how to stack them by alternating saucers and cups, then let them try to make a two or three cup tower.

Indoor Safari Trail

Yes - I sure did!! I bought a "family" of each different animal - one family per step!! And of COURSE I have a little tiny baby of each animal - to add to our wall when we adopt our daughter!! Anyway - Meer wasn't too impressed with it at first, but now he points to each different type of animal as we go up the stairs - like a safari!! Naturally his favorite are still the fish! But it's good. He wants to hear the names of each animal, so it is a good learning experience... I figure, anyway! ha ha ha!! And YES - they are from www.ocramgirap.com ...except we shop at the store, not online! ;-D

Chess Challenge

So on Sunday we bought THE cutest chess set for Meer – made by Ocram Girap. It has the jungle animals as the chess pieces, and is SUPER CUTE!! Kush is quite the chess player, so he offered to play me a game… WHAT a SLAUGHTER. Not joking. And Kush being Kush – well – safe to say teaching isn’t his forte. So I looked online for some place that could teach me…

I found this super neat site – chess playing for kids, basically! It is at www.chesskids.com and has a FULL resource section of Downloadable and printable BOOKS – lesson plans, really – for you to learn step by step!! They ask for donations, but you can also print out the books for free! By clicking on the title of this post, it will take you to the page where the free downloads are…

Exchange Rates and Money Info

Our Kenyan Shilling is worth about:

67ksh per USD

56ksh per Canadian dollar

88ksh per Euro

I know it says different rates on the internet and at your bank - but here it is pretty much constant. Also - bring large bills with you - like $100's. "Smaller Bills" (less than $50's) get a crappier exchange rate. Not joking!

The easiest way to convert it in your head (if you are Canadian), is to double the shilling amount (so if it is 200ksh - make it 400), and then move the decimal place over two places (so 200ksh would be $4.00).

The largest note we have here is 1000ksh - which is about $20.00 Canadian.

Also good to know: bank machines work well here for withdrawing cash from overseas accounts, and the fee is about... $3.00!! There is a maximum daily limit of whatever it is - $500, or something. Bank machines are available in all normal shopping complexes - easy as pie.

You will require $50USD cash at the airport to pay for your visitors visa. And bringing some cash with you is always a good idea - until you get yourself sorted out and know where bank machines are, etc.

;-D

Local Shopping - Infant Formula

Here is what the baby food isle looks like at our local Nakumatt store... sorry the one of all the formulas is blurry! (darn!) The best type of formula looks to be this SMA Gold - it's new. For cereals, it's Cow and Gate... for about 485ksh per box.

If you have any other questions - just let me know! ;-D

Toddler Activites - Ice Cream Colors

This is the most hilarious thing ever! It is a free print out thingy from a site called www.first-school.ws/ . (By clicking on the title of this post you will be taken directly to the ice cream page!!) Anyway - I made a set and used that bluetac stuff to stick it onto the wall, but Meer LOVED ripping them off SO much, I glue-gunned them on the wall with velcro! (a big tall strip vertically, and then horizontal strips on the backs of each scoop and cone) It is just hilarious to watch him be "destructive" - he just loves it!! Hope you enjoy it too...

;-D

Toddler Activites - Bottle Toys

LARGE SODA BOTTLES

Toddlers love to shake and roll rounded objects. Take advantage of this natural curiosity and fill large soda bottles with interesting things to observe. Be sure to secure the top of the bottles, perhaps even gluing them shut, or wrapping them with tape.

BOUNCY BEANS – Put various large dried beans in a bottle for your child to shake and roll around, listening to the sound it makes.

RAIN BOTTLES – Put some rice in a bottle and make your child a rain bottle as they tilt the bottle up and down.

POP CORN POPPER – Put some popped corn in the bottle and encourage your child to roll in around the room, popping the corn.

FLOATING OCTOPUS – Blow up two very small balloons and tie. Place them in the bottle and then fill the bottle ¾ with water. The balloons will bob around and look like baby whales.

MINI TOYS – Look for mini cars, animals, balls, dice, etc. to place in a bottle.

BEACH SCENE – Place ½ cup sand in the bottle, along with some mini shells. Pour in some water, tinted with blue food coloring.

BUBBLES GALORE – Pour in some water, tinted with blue food coloring and some dish soap or some bubble bath. Shake up the bottle to make bubbles.

GLITTER BOTTLES – Drop in some glitter, sequins, metallic confetti, glass jewels. Fill ¾’s with water and shake.

FEATHER BOTTLES – Fill the bottle with ten or twenty small feathers.

BOWLING PINS - Empty soda bottle make great bowling pins for toddlers.
Set up three to ten soda bottles.
Have your child stand back and roll a ball towards the bottles.
How many did he knock down?

Tile Wall Transformation

Well - THIS is what we have done with our new patch of off white tiles in the kitchen! Not TOO bad, hey?? We have a cup of white board crayola markers hanging on the wall - incase our little Picasso gets inspired! Although so far he is only interested in tossing the markers on the floor, and then putting them back in the cup! ;-D

Toddler Activites - Wall Cups

So this is actually my own brilliant idea!! I saw our plastic cups in the cupboard, and was like - OH YA!!! So I taped them up on the wall, and Meer just LOVES emptying and filling them with various things - keeps him busy, that's for sure! In the same breath, I am also sure he will get sick of it soon, but if it amuses him for a week or so - I will be thrilled!

The Big N.O.

So yes - it has HAPPENED. Meer runs around the house saying, "Nah! Nah!". I ASSUME it is him saying NO!!!!! (gasp) Yup. But I really did enjoy the week that he only said, "Yeah"... ha ha ha!!!