What Do You Do with Your Toddlers All Day?

I have a very "teach them to be independent" attitude. I just let them play most of the day. I invite them to help me with housecleaning tasks or to bring their toys near me if they want. I may give them an idea of something creative or different they can do with their imaginary play here or there. And I stop my housework every so often to read or just play with them whatever they want. But for the most part, I'm doing my thing and they are doing theirs and we just talk throughout the day.

With my twins, we'd color, play with puzzles, build block towers, watch Sesame Street, read books, build forts, build obstacle courses, and such. If you don't have any trains yet, I highly recommend train sets (like Thomas the Train). My boys discovered trains right around the time they turned two. They would play with them for hours on end. I loved watching their imaginations grow as they used the trains to tell stories.

My youngest just turned 4 and is in preschool 2x a week so I am a lil' out of the loop...but what we used to do was: LOTS of finger painting, then a bath...playing with puzzles and blocks....reading books...playing 'catch' with a soft nerf ball...letting them have at the DVD's (seriously! This was their favorite game, pulling then down off the shelf, then I would put them back-repeat-repeat-repeat! It NEVER got old :) Letting them 'help' fol laundry and put it away, also fun! Letting them get into their *special* cabinet in the kitchen, where all the tupperware goes!

When they were *really* young, like your 6 month old, I would lay down a big blanket on the living room floor and surround them with all their toys and stuffed animals...kept them busy for a good long time.

Does your local library have an Infant or Toddler storytime? Our library has been a wonderful resource for us - we're there several times a week, especially during the winter.

I only have one toddler at the moment, but we usually have outings every day of some sort, even if only to the store. Otherwise, they just free play, with the occasional craft.

Join a playgroup. That will give you lots to do!

We went to the airport, libraries, children's museums, train station, in door shopping malls, and regular errands and grocery shopping. My kids went everywhere at that age. A couple of hours and both were ready for a nap :)

As a stay-at-home mom, I always try to take advantage of some of the free or low cost activities out there. Most libraries have a toddler story time, I go to this once a week. We also do a sports class geared for ages 18 mo.-3 yrs. that's offered through the YMCA one day a week. We attend a mom's group one day a week that offers childcare. The other days are spent at home playing with toys, running errands, the park or having a play date either at my house or someone else's home. My kids were about the same months apart as yours and I just brought the baby everywhere.

We also do tons of arts n crafts...which is mostly just coloring, painting, finger painting, and gluing things to paper. I try to get them outside everyday, even in the cold...I just bundle them up, they love to play outside. I used to just sit my baby in a "baby sled" that had a back to it so he could sit up. Read books, dance to music, play doe.

we wrestle! lol. Seriously we do a lot, iI have a little boy who loves it! But we do random things also like put flour and water on his tray and let him go at it for a sensory experience if you are okay with messes....

My little one is that age and when my oldest (4) is at home I just let the two of them play the day away unless we have errands. On preschool days (3x a week) I try to get the grocery shopping done with just the little guy - he loves it! We talk about colors and all the things we see and he usually gets a treat (his fave is a cheese stick!).

On the days we don't have to shop I try to get him out and about - Focus on the Family has a great little kids room with that foam play structure stuff and a door that is closed so unlike the mall you don't have to worry about them racing off. We also have a membership to the Dinosaur Resource Center in Woodland Park - it is extremely small and to some it seems pricey - but since kids 4 and under are free, for $12 you can all go for a visit and if they seem to love it you can use your admission toward a membership ($40/year) for a single adult - they do have a military discount as well. I try to make it up there once a month with the boys.

Also, there are a number of meetup.com groups here in the Springs - I use to be more active in them but since the oldest goes to school now and the youngest has had some health issues I haven't been but one good one is called "Connect the Tots" - if you look it up on meetup you should be able to find it.

For indoor activities we do a lot of the things other people mentioned - my boys aren't big on crafting so much as mess making so for finger painting I just bring my plastic pool in, lay down some paper, strip them down to diaper and undies and let the mess making begin! Mid-day baths/showers are always a hit too!

Anyway if you wanted to get our little ones together for a playdate some time, just message me - I'm in Falcon - my little one doesn't have any friends his own age that aren't siblings of my oldest's friends so playdates get a little overwhelming!

preschool learning... kids love to learn... also get the older one involved in everything you do... cooking a meal? Let him chop some veggies with a butter knife. Doing laudry? Have him hand you all the reds or whites... let him help you dress and change the baby... if you are done with chores... get out toys and just PLAY! Kids can make believe for hours... enrich his play by expanding on what he is already intrested in... building a tower? Ask who lives there... what are they doing? Does it need a moat... as long as you are playing with him he will never be bored!

Even in the winter, I try REALLY hard to get out of the house...the house seems to stay cleaner that way, and it does me and the kids good :). As far as in the house...I've found that my children are so happy when I'm down on their level and playing with them...whether it's legos, dinosaurs, dress up, etc. They also like doing anything I'm doing...so I try to involve them in some way shape or form with some of the 'house' things. They bake with me...we have a little broom...I give them a damp rag if I'm wiping stuff down...etc. Other than that...we've done the typical...finger painting...paper mache....you can google activities with toddlers and I'm sure you'd find a bunch more ideas too :)

There are so many wonderful things that toddlers can do! He can enjoy play-dough, make your own (recipes are online) or store-bought. He can color with crayons (some kids like to color more than others) and paint or finger paint (use smocks and washable paint! painting with tinted pudding or yogurt on a plate is also great and eatable!) Finger plays are also a hit with this age group, you can find finger play ideas online or in books, my son who is 24 months loves “Roll, roll, roll your thread” and “Here is my Bunny” and will do them with me over and over! And books are of course great at this age, he may bot sit still for a whole book, sometimes you will just get through part of it, and you may just point out pictures and talk about them instead of reading every word, as he gets older and gets used to listening to stories his attention span will lengthen. See if your local library has a toddler story time, many do. It is a fun, free activity! Of course a toddler has lots of wiggles to get out, make sure he is getting lots of exercise throughout the day, I bought a small exercise trampoline with a good cover over the springs for only $10 at a garage sale and my kids love it! I also got a sturdy rocking horse (don’t get the kind with springs!) for cheap at a thrift store that my son likes to ride. It can be hard in the winter for little ones to get enough exercise because it is so cold out. I like to take my kids to indoor playgrounds but they can be expensive, you can also go to a fast food place with a play area and have fun there, you don’t even have to buy a whole meal to enjoy it, you can just get a little something for a snack like apple slices, cookies, milk, etc. Playgroups or mother’s groups can also be good, fun for you and your child! I know it is hard to start one or find one that you like; I am in the process of that right now since I moved to a new community a few months ago. If you do join a group and find that it does not work for you, you can always quit going and look for an alternative. It will get easier in the spring when you can simply take your kids to the park to play. Here are some good websites, there are many, many more:

http://www.mdpls.org/readingReady/attach/WebNurseryRhymes...

http://fun.familyeducation.com/sculpting/recipes/37040.html

We have a small slide and play kitchen in playroom, play with plastic ball in the playroom, musical bowling toy, finger painting and blow bubbles (with plastic on floor), sing & dance along DVDs.... I'm not a SAHM but do this on days off and weekends.

We get out and do something every day. Story time at the library, music and movement at the library, the environmental center has a free toddler/preschooler program every Monday morning, playdate at a friend's house every Wednesday (we take turns going for a run), and our local family center has an indoor play area with toys. Lots of people meet up there on Friday mornings. There are also many toddler activities you can pay for. I see many people out with their toddler and their baby...toddler gymnastics, a toddler music class, mommy n me yoga. When we first moved here I just invited other mom's over for a morning coffee/tea and chat every other week or so and I joined a MOMs group.