Today I want to share some fun little activities to keep little hands occupied. We have had lots of little jobs to do today and I needed Buddy to happily play independently for short periods of time – with distant supervision of course! This got me thinking about all of the no preparation activities we use.
The instant rattle
This one was a chance find on my part. Buddy loves playing with the whisk from his discovery box, however some days it does not hold his attention for long. Enter the instant rattle – a few wooden blocks of Lego bricks inside the whisk. This is now one of Buddy’s favourite toys and I have had plenty of strange looks when he takes it out in the pushchair with him, but he is happy and that’s what matters!
Hard Skinned Fruit and Vegetables
Handing Buddy a lemon, lime or naval orange is guaranteed to give me up to ten minutes of time where he is entertained and happily distracted. The thick skin means he is unable to start eating it with his limited tooth supply. I watched him chase a lime across the living room for at least ten minutes this morning whilst I was putting our food shopping away.
Bubble Machine
Just switch it on! We bought ours for £6 and the entertainment value has been priceless.
You can get some amazing bubble recipes by following the link below.
Bubble recipes from baby savers.com
Box of Tissues
I prefer to use this as a last resort because it is pretty wasteful, however it puts a huge grin on Buddy’s face every time and I can’t put a price on that.
Pots, Pans and Measuring Cups
Just grab a few pans and utensils out of the cupboard and you have your own mini orchestra. I always try to chose the noisiest items because I know that they will entertain Buddy the longest.
Anything in Shiny Packaging
This works at home and in the supermarket. If Buddy starts becoming agitated and I’m not able to play solely with him straight away then I hand him something in nice shiny or scrunchy packaging. Popcorn is a big winner, however packs of straws, chocolate bars and packs of dishcloths have all worked.
Here Buddy is playing with a kit-kat whilst I made lunch. (Please ensure your child cannot open the packaging and never leave them unattended with objects in packaging)
What techniques do you use to keep your little one’s busy
The Train Driver's Wife 
Hi im loving your blog. So many great ideas. I just wanted to tell you I once gave a balloon to my daughter and got told off by my husband. Apparently its a chocking hazard because if it pops pieces of the latex can get lodged in the throat and doesnt easily come out. Sorry to be annoying I just wanted to share. Thank you for all the great ideas 🙂
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Hi Farah,
Thank you so much for taking the time to comment and I am so happy you are enjoying my blog. A few people have mentioned concerns to me regarding balloon play. We are fortunate in that our home is very open plan and I can constantly supervise Buddy with a balloon when he is playing with them. However I appreciate that not everybody has this opportunity and I would hate for any child to come to harm as a result of their parents or caregivers just wanting to play in a few different ways. I do state on my homepage that the activities I include in the blog are activities that I am happy participating in with my child however it is down to parents or caregivers to decide whether that activity is safe for them and their child. To minimise any choking risk I have amended this post and removed the balloon play. Instead I have included something I discovered the day after originally posting (I was slightly devastated I hadn’t thought it up a day sooner!)
Thank you again for highlighting the risk and I hope you continue to enjoy reading the blog. Please feel free to get back in touch anytime.
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I am beyond pleased that I found your blog (found it through netmums.) I did baby sensory when my dd1 was 3 months to about 9 months. She’s now 19 months and I’ve got a three week old dd. I absolutely loved baby sensory and your blog is giving me all sorts of fantastic ideas to continue at home . These rainy days indoors aren’t looking so bad after all!
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I’m so pleased you are finding some new ideas! I love sensory play and I’m always on the look out for something new to do. I hope you continue to find ideas here!
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