Summer Activities

Splash pads are awesome, my son started to love them before he could walk!!! Now he runs all over the place through them!! I have started to take out the hose in the back yard fo rhim to play with he loves it and it keeps him cool and wears him out for a fabulously long nap!!!

Have you ever been to Playmobile? It is a great place to go on a rainy day or day where you just want to stay cool and keep kids entertained. It is only $1 to get in and it is like a giant playroom. You can relax while your kids have fun. You can even bring lunch to eat and enjoy a cool place for your kids!

It is on military trail just north of blue heron blvd.

K. Lemoine
www.abbabyboutique.com

There is a place in West Palm Beach called Family Central that has a resource library for parents/children. It's free and open to all. It is a place to go and play with your daughter and then check out some different toys, books, puppets, games, puzzles, etc. etc.... for two weeks. I don't have contact info handy, but I'm sure you could check it out online or in the phone book. (They are located in "Prospect Place", I think on Dixie between Belvedere and Southern -- I think.)
I'm sure I'll be visiting with my now 18 month old daughter once I'm off for the summer to keep us busy. (I'm a PBC teacher.) Keep in touch and maybe we can meet up there one day!
T.
Mom to K. 18 months
EDD #2 12/7/07

Greenacres Library has a summer Storytime schedule, plus I'm sure other libraries do the same. Also, there are some really great local museums and nature centers that my daughter really enjoys. Another great option is to take her to a park with fountains to cool off.

Hi K.,

In Daytona, we have a place called Creative Playthings. It is essentially an indoor playground. I would look for something like that. Also we have play grounds with water fountains next to a beach. We also take our daughter to playgrounds after five, the sun is not so hot then and she can run around without getting exuasted. Can you find a class for your daughter, something like gymnastics or swimming lessons? The library has specific times for toddler storytime. Also we take our daughter to the mall with HER play baby stroller and let her walk it around. She's been coloring for a year now and we use paint that only paints on a specific kind of paper. We were working on her hand eye cordnation, using big beads and shoestrings. If you have a back yard, a wading pool is ideal, walmart sells a two ring pool for 5 bucks. We have a concret deck outside our town house so I take those mats that are soft plastic and put it under the pool. Hope these are helpful! Good luck, Jen!

The library
crafts at home
dance contests with you(great excersice)
musical seats
roleplaying
brushing hair
make a tent with blankets and chairs
i have so many ideas. I have a childcare here and we have tons of fun. If youd like some more ideas, drop me a line!~~kim

I attend a music and movement class with my 14 month old and we really love it. They have classes during the week and Saturdays. The instructor, Lourdes, super sweet and is great with the kids. check out their website if you're interested. www.peasinapodmusic.com

Take care,

JD

I have been in the childcare field my whole life. Here are some things off the top of my head. Go to www.crayola.com Tons of great ideas. Also google kid activities or crafts for kids. There are at least 100 things to do with a roll of toilet paper! paper plates too! The dollar stores has lots of craft stuff(foam, pom poms, wood sticks, playdoh, pipe cleaners, chalk, etc..) for a buck! Also fun with food. Do you have pets? I love making pet treats with kids. Google pet treats and you will get loads fo recipes.
What else, Scavenger hunts. Homemade musical instruments(rainsticks with paper towel roll and rice, drum with oatmeal canister and constuction paper to decorate, plastic plates that click together for a tamborine with rice, etc...)And kids love to dress up and play pretend. Color sheets. Maybe start teaching her to play games online. noggin.com, nick.com, disney...It will teach her fabulous hand eye.
It might work better for you to have a theme...every week or month. solar systems, garden, animals, body parts, colors, etc... Brainstorming always gets my mind going. Go to grocery store and buy everything purple. And all day long use the purple stuff. You can do numbers, alphabet, shapes, etc...
Another great idea is go to the library or a museum or an early morning stroll. or evening.
And sprinklers are lots of fun
Have fun and keep thinking! HTH!