Toddler Activity: Pipe Cleaners in a Colander

The other day, Josie was having a "it's-one-hour-till-dinner-and-I-didn't-take-a-nap-again-today" meltdown, and I did what I had to do: I threw a pack of pipe cleaners and a colander at her and ran back to the kitchen. Jeremy was more appreciative than he could ever express (I assume).

(And yes, Jeremy was sitting in the background there with his hand on Genevieve's chest. She's not laying alone on the ottoman. No worries!)

I've been excited to use this activity and had been "saving it up" for a "moment." Josephine loved it just as much as I thought she would.

Obviously this is good for fine motor skills, and you should have seen how focused she was on the task at hand. She would also look at the colander and then at the pile of pipe cleaners and think about what color she "needed" next. "Yeah, another yellow one!" she'd say. So cute.

She was so proud of herself, and showed off her work to daddy.

Now that's a fine-looking colander.

My mother-in-law got Josie this colander to play with in the pool, but I have seen them in the dollar spot at Target. I got the two packs of pipe cleaners in the dollar section at Joann Fabrics. 

Here's a pro tip: Any time there are crafty materials in a dollar section of a store like Target, grab them, because if you go out specifically looking for them and have to pay 4 or 5 bucks for them and they're not in the dollar spot anymore, you're gonna be kicking yourself (Trust me, it happened with pom poms. Grrr.). Plus, craft supplies at Dollar Stores are not always just a dollar. I was shocked, too. Remember when the 99-cents store was ONLY items 99 cents and cheaper? Those were the days. Also Target always has tons of kitchen utensils in the dollar spot when kids go back to college, so if you see some, stock up. Kids love things like measuring cups and colanders (again, the measuring cups at our dollar store are like $3, so I would rather wait for stuff to come into season at Target and get it for a buck).

And there you have it, a classic toddler activity to heal a meltdown or give you fifteen minutes in the kitchen without a "helper" hanging on your leg.