What To Do With a One-Year-Old On a Rainy Day

Last Tuesday I woke up hearing rain hitting the roof.  I just wanted to crawl back under the covers, but of course the Little Man does not understand that rainy days = lazy.  So, we had breakfast, I drank a cup of coffee while CJ played in the family room.  We try to get out of the house every morning now that he is only taking the afternoon nap- even if it is just to go to Target to spend the obligatory $100.  However, this morning there were no plans, and no motivation to go anywhere as just getting CJ out of the carseat would have make me soaked.  And it rained like this ALL MORNING.  Well, at around 11 I figured that CJ needed some structured play (and to get out of his PJ's).

I guess his pants are a little too big. 

What to do with a One-Year-Old?  Here's where I actually revisited a pin on Pinterest that had activities for 1-2 Year Olds.  I follow a lot of blogs, many of them parenting (with ideas for kids) but CJ is just too young for most of the activities.  So, Pinterest it is.  I also needed to find something that I had all of the materials for- so I decided on "Sensory Tub with Shredded Paper."  Basically, you fill a bin with paper from the paper shredder and then add a few "surprises" (I put in some cars) and let the kid go to town.   Just a week ago I witnessed CJ be able to entertain himself for at least an hour just playing in sand- same thing, right?

I set the tub in our living room, where there wouldn't be any distractions (he's not into ceramic bowls or expensive coffee table books quite yet) and thought he would dig right in.  Nope.  The stairs were just too close and he hardly ever gets the opportunity to climb them on his own accord!

Then the Little Man decided we were going to play a game where he walks (on his knees of course) around the house in circles while I chase him.

Finally, he thought maybe it would be fun to take out all of the paper and put it back in the bin again.  This occupied him for about 10-15 minutes until it was time to do another circle.  The circles and actual time at the bin took us up to lunch- so success if you ask me!  Here is the website that provided the activity- http://www.icanteachmychild.com/1-2-years/

Fall(?) Beach Vacation

My parents own a condo in Nags Head, NC, which is AWESOME- but with one downside.  We can't use it in the summer so they can rent it out to paying vacationers and not freeloaders like us. ;)  We've taken CJ down there three times now- last September when he was about 3 months old, in April when he was about 10 months, and last week (15 months).  Of course last year the Little Man could have cared less about the beach and I tried my best to make sure absolutely NO sand got on him.  (What can I say, I was a new mom.)   However, it rained the majority of the week we were there so only one or two beach visits.

The next visit, in April, CJ was crawling and at that point it really didn't matter to me how sandy he got.  I was more anxious to see his reaction to a huge sandbox.  Turns out, he thoroughly enjoyed it, and it was a little chilly so he still didn't get too sandy since he wore pants and a jacket.

I was CRAVING the beach this summer but we didn't get to go until this past week.  However, while I could have been sweating under an umbrella in July, I was basking in sunny, mid- 70's temps at the end of September.  It was gorgeous!  Again, CJ entertained himself in the sand, and did even get his feet wet in the ocean one day.  Although still not walking by himself, he got lots of practice holding our hands on the beach.  We made a point to come down almost everyday, usually after his nap so we wouldn't have to deal with getting sand in the pack n play. 

I was so thankful for the great weather.  Last year, the gloomy, rainy days weren't all that bad- CJ was still taking 3 naps so we had to be inside a lot anyway.  This year, we have a one-nap-taking busy toddler who is not appreciated by my parents' cat Phoebe.  In the mornings, we took excursions to Manteo, the aquarium, Duck, or on the semi-chilly days down to the beach so CJ could play (but with enough clothes on so he wouldn't get too much sand on him). 

I also was thankful for Kevin, who stayed back at the condo while CJ napped a few of the days so I could go be my lazy-self at the beach and read/nap.  My parents were awesome as well, keeping CJ entertained for a few minutes on the beach so I could grab a quick snooze.  Kevin and I even had a date night.  It truly was a snap back to reality on Monday as Kev started a new role at work and I went back to my giant To Do List (and 45 degree nights! Brr!).  And don't forget CJ, who again just has to be happy with me and walks down the street listening to birds and airplanes and no ocean.  :)

By the way, for those of you who do travel down to that area, there is a new frozen yogurt place called "Surfin' Spoon" on Beach Road- probably at about MP 10 that is really cute.  Check it out!  http://www.surfinspoon.com/