Diaper Swappers

BeccaSueCongdon · 01-11-2013, 05:00 PM

Our "winter" is in full force here in Portland. Which just means lots of cold and rain. Bad conditions for my 20mo and 4yo to play outside for the usual hours+ they get in the summer and fall.

I'm looking for ideas for some gross motor (large muscle) activities we can do inside.

We live in only 500sq ft so its pretty cramped. But we have a DVD player. I'd love suggestions for kiddo exercise videos or games, or small climbing structures or things like that. :-)

mibarra · 01-11-2013, 05:05 PM

Toddler trampoline!

Rhianna'sMommy · 01-11-2013, 05:11 PM

Would you have room for a hobber ball thing or a rody horse type thing - my kids wear themselves out with those downstairs.

Spread pillows around the floor and have them jump from pillow to pillow without touching the floor

DottieHarley · 01-11-2013, 05:11 PM

DD is nearly 2 and requires some serious activity if she is going to fet any kind of decent nap or night sleep. Our home is similarly small.
- we encourage jumping on the bed

she knows to do it only if we are present, and the bed is ancient so she's not going to hurt it.
- we just got a play tunnel from ikea $15 and it velcroes shut. Lots of exercise for her AND the dogs!
- we let her throw soft balls in the house.
- if i am really desperate i take her to the mall and let her run around the play area!
- we have one of those three step slides that folds up and keep it inside. We actually have another one outside.

mamaspice · 01-11-2013, 05:11 PM

Subbing!

Mini tramps are great

We have a small play structure in our basement with a slide and a swing. It works for my 1 year old but wouldn't be that great for a 4 year old.

A mini basketball hoop and ball, hula hoops, nerf games...

Green Decals · 01-11-2013, 05:45 PM

Bilibo, plasma car, and balance bike! My kids spend HOURS each day with them, and sleep very well at night!

luvsviola · 01-11-2013, 05:50 PM

DS did in-home PT for 3 years...

His therapist put strings on the floor and he had to jump over them. She'd put them about 18 inches apart, and have 3 or 4 in a row. As he got older, he had to walk ON the strings.

Play wheel barrow, where you hold his feet and he walks on his hands

Exercises balls work on core strength. Kiddo has to sit on it, and you roll the ball around, so he has to keep himself upright. Bouncing is good for sensory input too.

Put a trail of stickers on the floor. Kiddo has to squat down with the bum over his feet to get them.

Bear crawl. Crab crawl.

Roll kiddo up in a blanket, and kiddo has to get himself out.

Get some small cones and cut holes in the middle of some foam plates. Use them to make cone towers. You could accomplish the same thing with cardboard blocks, but kiddos love the cones. Then, kiddo has to kick the tower over. This is a really good one for motor planning.

Hop on one foot.

Wiggle dance...when the music is playing you wiggle. When mommy pauses it, you freeze.

Red light Green Light Yellow light (slow) Purple light (spin around like a helicopter) Blue light (hop on one foot)

I'm sure I'll think of more things we did as the night goes on.

mrspopo · 01-12-2013, 12:30 AM

We've got a 20m here, and manage to get outside fairly often. The grass is usually pretty wet but I don't worry about it. For my sanity we make a lot of trips to the library for story time, OMSI, childrens museum, and the new aquarium that just opened up, the zoo too. World Forestry Center has a baby day. And Sky High & Pump It Up have their own toddler times. We're also on a local FB group that does gatherings fairly often for playdates. Most of those activities have free/cheap days, so PM me if you want more info on those. Oh and there's some local blogs that tell about all the neat local indoor places you can go to like Safari Sams and Out of This World.

For in the house, you can't go wrong with pulling a mattress onto the floor. We also like to drape up sheets to make a fort. I've been inspired by the Play At Home moms blog, and we got a small pool that we fill with different things like balls. If you have space for it, they also had a neat post about attaching hooks to the ceiling. Then they hang different things from it for the gross-motor stuff - like rings or a "swing". The Rody horse is a huge hit here too.

mrosehughes · 01-12-2013, 09:57 AM

Benny the bull or rody. We got that for DS when he was one and both he and his cousins (7 and 2) really love it. Great way to get wiggles out, and you can deflate/inflate it easily for storage (although we just leave it inflated).

Melinda29 · 01-12-2013, 10:10 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mibarra

Toddler trampoline!

Best $50 we ever spent!

01-11-2013, 05:00 PM	#1
BeccaSueCongdon Registered Users Join Date: May 2012 Posts: 3,194 Ratings: 44 Feedback: 100%	Indoor Gross Motor Activities Our "winter" is in full force here in Portland. Which just means lots of cold and rain. Bad conditions for my 20mo and 4yo to play outside for the usual hours+ they get in the summer and fall. I'm looking for ideas for some gross motor (large muscle) activities we can do inside. We live in only 500sq ft so its pretty cramped. But we have a DVD player. I'd love suggestions for kiddo exercise videos or games, or small climbing structures or things like that. :-)

01-11-2013, 05:11 PM	#3
Rhianna'sMommy Registered Users Join Date: Jul 2006 Posts: 5,363 Ratings: 99 Feedback: 100% My Mood:	Re: Indoor Gross Motor Activities Would you have room for a hobber ball thing or a rody horse type thing - my kids wear themselves out with those downstairs. Spread pillows around the floor and have them jump from pillow to pillow without touching the floor

01-11-2013, 05:11 PM	#4
DottieHarley Registered Users Join Date: Nov 2010 Location: Washington, DC suburb Posts: 1,624 Ratings: 64 Feedback: 100% My Mood:	DD is nearly 2 and requires some serious activity if she is going to fet any kind of decent nap or night sleep. Our home is similarly small. - we encourage jumping on the bed she knows to do it only if we are present, and the bed is ancient so she's not going to hurt it. - we just got a play tunnel from ikea $15 and it velcroes shut. Lots of exercise for her AND the dogs! - we let her throw soft balls in the house. - if i am really desperate i take her to the mall and let her run around the play area! - we have one of those three step slides that folds up and keep it inside. We actually have another one outside. __________________ 'ing and 'ing with DH since 05/05 Professional WOHM to DD 01/11 and two long doggies eswap Last edited by DottieHarley; 01-11-2013 at 05:13 PM.

01-11-2013, 05:45 PM	#6
Green Decals Registered Users Formerly: mumma1010 Join Date: Dec 2007 Posts: 2,685 Ratings: 137 Feedback: 99% My Mood:	Re: Indoor Gross Motor Activities Bilibo, plasma car, and balance bike! My kids spend HOURS each day with them, and sleep very well at night! __________________ Check out my massive ISO/IHA thread HERE!

01-11-2013, 05:50 PM	#7
luvsviola Registered Users Join Date: Dec 2006 Location: Central Indiana Posts: 15,189 Ratings: 115 Feedback: 100% My Mood:	Re: Indoor Gross Motor Activities DS did in-home PT for 3 years... His therapist put strings on the floor and he had to jump over them. She'd put them about 18 inches apart, and have 3 or 4 in a row. As he got older, he had to walk ON the strings. Play wheel barrow, where you hold his feet and he walks on his hands Exercises balls work on core strength. Kiddo has to sit on it, and you roll the ball around, so he has to keep himself upright. Bouncing is good for sensory input too. Put a trail of stickers on the floor. Kiddo has to squat down with the bum over his feet to get them. Bear crawl. Crab crawl. Roll kiddo up in a blanket, and kiddo has to get himself out. Get some small cones and cut holes in the middle of some foam plates. Use them to make cone towers. You could accomplish the same thing with cardboard blocks, but kiddos love the cones. Then, kiddo has to kick the tower over. This is a really good one for motor planning. Hop on one foot. Wiggle dance...when the music is playing you wiggle. When mommy pauses it, you freeze. Red light Green Light Yellow light (slow) Purple light (spin around like a helicopter) Blue light (hop on one foot) I'm sure I'll think of more things we did as the night goes on. __________________ Kristen Mommy to Abigail ~1/24/07 and Kendall~3/17/2011 and FINALLY adoptive mama to LEDGER~4/4/09!!!--G-J tube, asthma, oral aversion, reflux, SPD, drug exposure, and still searching for a diagnosis of the rest... Ask me about extended rear facing! Last edited by luvsviola; 01-11-2013 at 06:09 PM.