Busy Bag Swap for Toddlers

 Yaaay, I'm back! Sure enough, I was able to sign in with a different email address (the hubby's, who I made an author of this blog), and continue posting pictures. *Phew!* I'm so happy, because I've been waiting and waiting to do this post!

The busy bag swap- brilliant. A cute girl in my ward threw out the idea on facebook last month to have a busy bag swap for toddlers. I had never heard of such a thing, but I promptly got on Pinterest and typed in busy bag, and a whole PLETHERA of pictures and ideas swarmed in. I don't know where I've been, but apparently this is a pretty popular thing. Basically, a bunch of moms commit to make one craft each, and make enough for everyone participating, and there's a $1 price limit per craft. Then you get together and distribute your crafts to everyone, and end up with a bunch of activities that are great for on the go, whether you're at church or on the road.. (That's a picture up there of all the goodies we got in our busy bag swap).

 Here's a website that has 16 busy bag ideas with cute, simple pictures. To see another website with 12 ideas, go here. I love looking at all the ideas- it's a great way to get inspiration! The girl who organized ours made up a google spreadsheet with a list of ideas, and we signed up for the one we wanted to make. I'm so indecisive- it took me forever to decide what I wanted to make, because they all sounded so fun. I finally signed up to make the "Button Snake".

Button Snake

It's basically a piece of ribbon with a button sewn on one end, and a "stopper at the other end. Then you cut a bunch of felt squares or shapes with slits, and the child can practice buttoning skills by slipping the button through the felt pieces. I am NOT a sewer, so I was a little hesitant to take this on, but I figured I could handle sewing on a button. :) Mind you, I did have to have my mother-in-law reteach me how to sew on a button. And even thread a needle. I'm so pathetic.

We knocked out a bunch of ribbons with buttons together with the help of lovely sisters-in-law after a family dinner, and then I felt so proud of myself when I finished the remainder at home. There were 30 ladies participating in our swap, so I made 30 snakes with 15 felt shapes each. That's 450 shapes I cut out! It didn't seem like that much work though. I enjoyed feeling crafty for a few days. Here are a couple snakes all ready to go.

And HERE is the display of all the finished snakes on my living room floor before I put them in ziploc bags. Too bad I left them there overnight and didn't realize when Lexi moseyed into the living room the next morning and scattered them all over the floor. Minor setback.

 Here they are, carefully packed away in their bags, ready to be taken to the swap.

 I finished mine before the deadline and gave them to my friend to take to the swap, since I was in PA during the actual swap. She gathered all the other crafts for me and put them in a box, and then it felt like Christmas when I came home from my trip and got to pick up my busy bag box! SO many fun things. Here's what was included in our swap:

Bead Bottle, I Spy Bottle, and Discovery Bottle

 The beads are fun to shake. We haven't opened it yet, cuz Lexi would eat them in a second, but when she's a little older, or right now with Cam, we could string the beads onto a pipe cleaner to practice fine motor skills and making patterns. The I Spy bottle is so cute, and great for church! There's a list of the objects to find, hidden in the rice. And the discovery bottle has glycerin in it and acts like a snow globe with glitter and beads.

Pom Pom Stuff It 

 THIS is our favorite activity, by far. Lexi fell in love with it the first time she saw it, and she loves stuffing the pom poms through the different shapes on the plastic lid. There are pom poms of all sizes, and when she's not stuffing them in her mouth (little stinker), she loves putting them in, taking the lid off, dumping them out, and repeating.

Geoboard

 This one's awesome, and I guess since it looks so cool, I haven't even gotten it out for the girls to try. It would be a little over Lexi's head I think, but Cam will love making shapes with it.

Rainbow Rice and Dyed Pasta Sort

 I love that the rainbow rice came in nice layers of different colors, so that we can sort it ourselves. It's a great sensory activity. The pasta will be great for sorting by color.

Wacky Sack

 Isn't this so cute?? It's a balloon filled with playdough, which makes it super fun to squeeze. I love that my friend who made this put on pom pom hair and eyes for pizazz. Cami was super interested in this one.

Popsicle Velcro Shapes, Popsicle Puzzle, Emotion Matching

These are pretty self-explanatory. Cami had fun making different faces with emotions, and the popsicle stick puzzle is cute and simple. The sticks with velcro stick together to make shapes, and have colored dots on them to show which sticks go together.

Marble Maze and Fabric Matching Game

 The marble maze is so cool! It's made of really soft fleecey fabric, with lines sewn from either side to create a maze, and there's a marble inside that little fingers can move along in the maze. The fabric matching game is  sqaures of fabric that match with each other. :)

Clothesline

 Look how adorable! Little felt pieces of clothing can be hung with clothespins on the clothesline, which is a piece of ribbon that can be strung across 2 chairs or anywhere. We haven't tried this one out yet, but I'm excited to!

Felt Cupcakes, Felt Ice Cream, Build a Felt Rainbow

 How cute is this? Felt pieces of parts of ice cream cones and cupcakes (cupcakes not pictures) come together to make yummy treats, complete with sprinkles and toppings. And the felt rainbow is great for learning colors.

Lacing Cards

 These shapes are made of foam, with holes punched out along the edges, and yarn can be strung through them. We take lacing cards to church, and they usually provide a few minutes of activity.

Racecar Shapes

 I love this one. Shapes are laminated, and come with a washable marker so the child can trace around the shape. And the racecar can also trace around the racetrack.

Magnetic Pom Poms

 What a great idea. Just glue magnets to a bunch of pompoms, and stick them on a cookie sheet or the fridge for lots of fun. You can also work on making shapes or designs, or sorting by color.

No Sew Felt Fish

 These fish are so dang cute. They have magnets inside them, and the pencil has a magnet hanging on the yarn, like a fishing pole. What kid doesn't love fishing?

Nativity Puzzle

 Cute idea for the Christmas season. Foam nativity shapes can be arranged on the nativity picture.

Beanbag Toss

 This one was so impressive. Felt beanbags were sewn with rice inside, I think, and then the stoplight is also sewn. There are also several instruction cards with different game ideas. So fun!

Clothespin Color Wheel

 Match the colored clothespin to the same color on the wheel. I got to teach Cami about the primary colors and secondary colors while she worked on this color wheel, and it made sense to her. She enjoyed this.

Mix and Match Game

There are two of every object, so they can be matched together. You can do this with anything around the house!

We also got a tin case with sticker magnets of Disney princesses. Lexi wanted to eat the magnets, but Cami had fun placing the magnets around the inside and outside of the tin case.

*Whew!* That's a lot of stuff! It was an awesome experience, and I would love to do a busy bag swap for preschoolers next.