Tag: infant play

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Water Table Sensory Play

Water play is VITAL for child development, and Mr. Man doesn’t shy away from an opportunity to get wet and messy… This week is perfect for us to get outside and play at the water table!

Playing with water while our new water table is being put together.

Early on we exposed him to water play in the bathtub and again with a simple bucket. That exposure quickly grew into splash pads, sprinklers, pools, lakes, and, of course, a water table!

sprinkler
water table
lake

Scooping, dumping, pouring, sea life, pond life, and lake life all get explored with water play. His new favorite is a watering can. This is great since this summer we will be planting a garden; he can practice his watering skills at the water table.

“Look, mom, I made a shower!”

We love our Pump & Splash Shady Oasis (exclusive with Costco; This one is only available in-store. Click here for a smaller one). It has already given us hours of exploration and fun and I know it will serve us well all summer long.

Infant water play

Mini-Man is still a bit too little… and unbalanced… to sit or stand at the water table. So we improvised a bit. He has to be included in the fun!

Infant Sensory Play with a water tray
Mini-Man really enjoyed splashing and grabbing his rings from the water

It was easy to put him in his little seat, fill his tray with water, and add teething rings to grab. He had the same opportunities to splash and find things, just in a safer and more controlled space… Not to mention, CONTAINED. I didn’t have to keep my eyes on him every second. Give this momma a break!

What are your favorite summertime, water-based, play activities? Leave a comment and share your ideas!

Enjoy other sensory ideas with You’re Only Young Once, relax with Lake Life posts, or start a new hobby with a Sewing project.

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Sensory Bin for Spring: Birds

Spring has FINALLY made its arrival here at the club and what a better way to celebrate that than with fun spring-themed sensory bins! This sensory bin was so easy to make and provided hours of fun.

Mr. Man loves to watch birds. He will sit in a chair, on your lap, stand on the couch, etc. all to be able to see more birds. This provides an amazing opportunity to talk about our ecosystem, migration, types of birds, and all things nature. He asks so many great questions and makes adorable comparisons between himself and the birds. 😊

So to foster further learning, I decided to lean into his interests and develop a sensory bin with a bird theme perfect for spring.

To say it was a hit may just be an understatement… he was so engaged it was hard to clean up and be all done at the end of the night! He engaged in pretend play by having the birds eat the seeds, color identification and sorting, size identification and sorting, and generally messy, sensory exploration.

Sensory bin with birdseed. Mr. Man pretending that the birds are eating the seed.

Don’t worry, Mini Man got in on the action. He did some tummy time with the sensory material in a bag. This allows him to safely explore sensory stimuli while also working on his back, neck, and arm muscles. He’s a hoot making all his faces and slapping/grabbing the bag.

Although he did want to play more with big brother’s sensory bin…. Soon enough buddy… soon enough.

This bin was so easy to make and I have lots of materials left over to make many more bins. See below for the “recipe” and developmental learning card. Head over to Pinterest and Instagram to see more sensory bin ideas!