What's this? What's this? There's colour everywhere!

Them little sprogs are expensive.  That is a known fact.  So, why not spare yourself unnecessary expenses whilst you still can?

Toys are a necessity for Baby's learning process - however in this day and age where technology rules, even a simple newborn-friendly toy can cost an arm and a leg.  We're all so focused on being up-to-date with the latest gadgets that we forget our childhood favourites were probably the most inexpensive toys of them all.

I've been looking up fun stuff to do, and inexpensive toys to acquire, whilst I still can.  Here's a list of fun ideas for Baby and you!


Anything
Seriously.  Look around you and choose a few items, then show them to Baby.  Take your time and allow Baby to observe them properly, whilst you explain what the item is.  Repetition at this stage is important, not boring.  So don't despair if you don't really have a lot of Baby-safe things.

Baby him/herself
Having a sister 9 years younger than me means I've had daily exposure to a Baby already.  One of my favourite memories from both my childhood and from interacting with my sister back then was simply playing tickling games, or pointing out different body parts, or peek-a-boo.

My mum still recalls quite fondly the hours we used to spend playing peek-a-boo back in the day.  Only in my case, the words to accompany the game were "Open" and "Closed".

Songs and handplay are fun and will last for a good number of years, especially once Baby knows what the words mean.


Paper

It isn't just Micah who is featured in the above video that finds tearing up paper amusing.  It seems to give babies a sense of satisfaction to create permanent change in such a simple manner.


This means one thing - keep all important paperwork out of Baby's reach.

Torches

Besides from being a convenient tool to have lying around, a torch can provide various sources of amusement.  Babies can find it fascinating just to see the light going on and off, to begin with.  Followed by chasing the light, and later on, playing with creating shadow puppets.

Boogie!
This is probably one of the cheapest source of amusement of them all Crank up the volume to your - that's yours and Baby's - favourite tunes and dance all over the place with Baby in your arms.  As s/he grows older, the dancing will evolve in something s/he'll be able to do unassisted. 


Travels
Most babies tend to like the whole travelling experience - so if you drive, sometimes all it takes to amuse your wee one is to go for  a ride.  If you, like me, don't drive, you can either ask someone to be the chauffeur or hop on a bus and make sure Baby can watch the changing scenery.


Also, a trip to the airport to watch planes take off and land can be quite amusing!



Boxes & Wrapping Paper
Sometimes people end up being disappointed when they give some expensive toy to Baby and s/he seems to be more interested in the wrapping paper and/or box it came in than the toy itself.

Wrapping paper is all colourful and provides different textures for Baby to be fascinated with.  If you give a gift to a baby, make sure it is wrapped - that is probably the only time in a person's life where they'll truly appreciate the wrapping paper.

Boxes, or the other hand, are marvellous.  They can provide endless hours of fun for children up until  their late childhood years.  After all, a box is rarely ever a box.  It can be a hide-out, a ship, a car, a plane, a train, a house, a workshop bench, a shop counter and a million other fun things!

Canned Foods
To tie in with the above-mentioned boxes, once your child is older, they may enjoy playing Make Believe and pretend to be a shop keeper.  I know it used to be one of my childhood favourites, much to my mum's desperation at seeing the larder being emptied, only to have to reshelve everything all over again once play-times were over and done with.

Building a fort
Be it a pillow fort, or a makeshift tent, this tends to be a childhood favourite with young children.  I must admit I still love the idea myself up to this very day and age!

There are a lot more games that are inexpensive and fun - all you have to do is let your imagination run wild.  If your imagination isn't as fertile, or you get stumped, a quick Google search will provide you with several ideas.  In the meanwhile, you can clicky here for a never-ending list of ideas.

Enjoy playtimes! I know I will!

Be crafty. Save some money.

In my previous blog, I've mentioned I like crafting things.  There are a variety of reasons why one should craft. It is fun, it helps you recycle stuff like old clothes, magazines, and junk mail, and it is inexpensive. I won't say it is free, because it isn't. You still need to buy certain supplies. But in the long run, it is indeed cheaper than opting for store-bought items.

Here are a few links to help you get started. If you find anything else that you may want to share, drop me a comment!

http://www.make-baby-stuff.com/index.html
http://u-handbag.typepad.com/uhandblog/2007/04/one_of_the_medi.html
http://scrapbooking.about.com/od/gettingstarted/ig/How-To-Scrapbook-/

Besides from crafts, the Internet is an awesome place to help you get things that you'd normally be costing you an arm and a leg throughout the child's... well... childhood... for free.

"Such as what?" you might ask.

Such as colouring books, and workbooks to help teach your child[ren] how to read and write.  All you need is to find a few minutes to download and print some material that is freely available online, et voila! Not only have you just saved yourself some cash, but you also get a say in what goes in the colouring/exercise book and what doesn't.

Again, here's a few links:

http://www.kidopo.com/
http://www.kidslearningstation.com/

There is also another source I have left untapped that can be a money-saver as well as healthier - home-made weaning food. I believe that deserves a separate blog though, so I'll leave it at that for now.

Here's a few pictures of stuff I have crafted myself:

Elf

 

 Golliwog [a.k.a. Golly Dolly]

 Ragdoll

Sample page from my Baby Book