Floral Beads

I seem to spend more time than I probably should reading blogs of other mothers, with all these creative, active ideas for their little ones.  Usually, I look at them and think, "Wow, that would be fun, maybe some day I'll be that energetic".  But, occasionally, I try them out.  What the blogs neglect to mention usually is that their kids are 2-3 years older than mine, and almost without exception, girls, who don't see any small object as a ball useful only for throwing across the room.

But, I digress.  So, after seeing a blog about using these hydrated floral beads as sensory toys for kids, I found a bag 1/2 price at Joann's and thought it would be fun for Parker.  And he did love it, for as long as it took to scatter them allover the entire kitchen nook, kitchen, and dining room.  Then he was over it.

What the blogs also neglect to mention is that these slippery little balls pulverize if you step on them, leaving a slippery gooey mess all over the kitchen floor.  (Seriously, we used to use something very similar for our messy-events back in my youth work days)  Which, if you happen to be a none-too-sure-on-his-feet-19-month-old, means a lot of slipping and bonking your head.

So, that was an all-around disaster, but I'm not yet ready to give up.  Today, I plunked Parker & all the balls down in the bathtub (facing the wall, I'm starting to catch-on to him).

It was a huge success, and only one of those little buggers tried to make a break for it, all the rest stayed in the bathtub.  Actually, they're still in the bathtub, guess I'll have to clean them up eventually, but it's much less urgent than say, the kitchen floor.