Camping with a Toddler - Activities

Some ideas of items & activities to keep a toddler occupied while out camping. Keep in mind that it might not always be sunny so you'll need some items for in the dining tent or camper.


Sand Toys: Bucket, Shovel, Sifter (could also use bowl, mixing spoon, funnel, etc. from the kitchen)

Ball

Small bag of Blocks

Crayons, Paper, and Stickers

Jigsaw Puzzle

Magnifying Glass (great for checking out all nature's goodies)

Bug Catcher

Doll w/ accessories (hard plastic doll, choose items that are easily washable)


Etch a Sketch

Lots of books

Finger Puppets

Playdough (store bought or homemade - see separate posts for recipes)

Nature Collage - Bring Paper & Glue. Go for a walk and collect sticks, leaves, etc. in a sand bucket.

Pet Rocks - Bring Acrylic Paint & Brushes. Find some large smooth rocks & decorate with faces or abstract art.


OTHER:
Drawing in the Sand

Collecting sticks for firewood


Searching for beach treasures


Swimming, Splashing, etc.

Campground Playground (if available)

Throwing a Ball or Soccer game

SNACKS!

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Check out this website for some great games you can print off and keep in the camping supplies for rainy weather.

http://www.dltk-holidays.com/summer/printables.htm

I printed out Dominos, Matching Game, and Bingo. There's a lot more to check out though so take a peek!
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Toddler Birthday Party Food Ideas

This was our menu at our 2yr olds Birthday Party. The party consisted of many kids and their parent(s) too so needed foods for both age groups.

Pigs in a Blanket
(1/2 hotdog wrapped in 1/2 a Pillsbury Crescent Roll dough - bake at 350 for 10mins - I pre bbq'd the hotdogs a wee bit first)

Cheese Slices

Pickles

Kielbassa & Garlic Sausage

Carrots, Cucumbers & Ranch Dip

Grapes & Watermelon

Veggie Dip (combination of cream cheese, sour cream, ranch dressing, and small bits of carrots, broccoli, green onion, pinch of garlic)

Mexican Dip (layered salsa, guacamole, sour cream with some taco seasoning and topped with tomatoes, green onions, and cheese)

Crackers, Tortilla Chips, Baguette Slices for the dips

Pretzels

Jar of Peanut Butter for those hard to please kids

Cake & Ice Cream

*The pigs in a blanket were a huge hit with even the parents and were the first thing to get eaten up*

Green Birthday Success!

We did a "Green" theme for our daughter's 2nd Birthday and it was a huge success. Here's some pictures of our decorations & activities.

There's also another post in the Birthday category with more details on a Green Birthday.

Decorations:
Two homemade banners made with felt, cord, and a glue gun. See separate post for more details.
Also made garland from our weekly flyers.

Craft:
I had several tins from my Cappucino Mix. I covered them in construction paper and then supplied the kids with stickers, ribbons, buttons, etc.

Some of the finished products:

The kids seemed quite excited about them and I heard comments from the parents that they thought it was a great craft.

Colouring Station:
My daughter had done a couple earlier in the week that we used to hang up as decorations.

Kids were supplied with crayons and colouring pages I had printed off the internet. We then hung them up.

Lots of fun with Water & Sand

Fun with Bubbles:
See recipes section for the bubble juice. For tools, we used funnels, potato masher, slotted spoons, etc.

They had fun but it was a little advanced for the younger kids. Some got soap in their eyes which they didn't enjoy.

Fun with Water & Minnows:
The biggest hit of the party seemd to be the clear rubbermaid bucket filled with water, rocks, a dozen minnows and some water toys. It was always surronded by kids and they had a great time with it. A few minnows were sacrificed but all in all I believe it was worth it!

Presents:
We asked on our homemade invitations for parents to consider giving a gently used toy or books wrapped in something recycled (newspaper, artwork, fabric, etc)

My daughter did receive a couple things like that and most of the presents had amazing artwork for wrapping paper and the most wonderful homemade cards.

Food: Cake was homemade. I didn't use any disposable dishes (that made for a lot of dish washing) and had finger foods so there were no utensils needed. I had washcloths set out for any mishaps so no papertowel would be inadvertantly used.



Loot Bags:
I had fun making these as I love crafts. See separate posts under Mommy Crafts. I made a little drawstring bag filled with peanut butter playdough, a cookie cutter, a small notebook, chunky homemade crayons, stickers, a thank you card made from some artwork, and little bags of candy.