Hellobee Boards

no good ideas, but definitely following as we just moved too and screen time has been our friend lately!

Playing outside - I feel like fresh air in general helps my kids sleep so the more the better!

coloring/cutting

playing with toys

reading

Play doh - I will also bring out her toy cups/plates and ask her to make me a meal with the play doh.. And we have a few play doh sets/tools so we rotate those.

Kinetic sand - It gets messy so not something I would have LO do alone, haha

Doctor - She has a dr kit and I also asked the lab I went to for some of the bandage wrap stuff that they use after blood draws. She likes to fix up all her doll friends

Beads - She'll sit and string beads/cereal/pasta or whatever for a good amount of time!

Books - always!

@daniellemybelle: Well, you could always try to just let her figure it out. Xander has a ton of toys out, but honestly, he tends to just follow me around and whine while I'm trying to get stuff done. Maybe he'll eventually learn patience???

We moved 8 months ago and I pretty much could not unpack or organize anything while LO was awake. I would work on it in the evenings. My mom and sister came over a few times to help/watch LO so I could unpack. Honestly it just took forever (like 4-5 months) for our house to even look presentable and the master bedroom is still a disaster.
When LO needs chill time I usually sit with him and read books or build qith blocks. We can't really do crafts/play dough because at 26 mo he still eats everything.

How old is she? We had success with playdoh, just putting on fun music, and coloring. DS likes reggae. LOL. Maybe you need a mothers helper for a few hours here and there. My niece who is 9 sometimes comes over to play with him so I can chill.
@Veggiemama: I love this idea. I'll have to check some CDs out.

@daniellemybelle: MagnaTiles saved us! Kept the kids busy every morning for a few years!!

@daniellemybelle: haha my LO ate them the first few times too. Crazy kids!

The only way I seem to be successful is if we leave the house. We go to the park, zoo, indoor play spaces, a friends house, even sometimes just Target.

We just moved 3 weeks ago and he watches cartoons all day long right now (I have a 3 month old too and I'm a single parent up her so crazy tough for us right now). When school starts (2 more weeks) the only things he can do on his iPad are his listening homework ( 30 minutes) and abc mouse (educational activity). This usually gives me enough time to get ready in the morning. Then he can earn a cartoon on the drive home (15 min) if he doesn't have accidents at school. And he has to do abc mouse and listening homework before any other cartoons in the evening.

H is decent at entertaining herself. She reads/plays with books, does blocks, we color (but she doesn't eat them), haul around stuffed animals, and she plays with her kitchen.

@daniellemybelle: ok here's my idea, don't kil me. What if you use screen time to unpack so you feel better and then go on a screen time diet?

@daniellemybelle: we started at 2 years old with toddler time. He really got into it this year when they got the iPad app. The computer mouse was too tricky. My uncle is in the company so we get it.

Sometimes it's more work than it's worth but I always had my LO help me with chores. There are times where I don't get anything done besides keep him busy but other times he was helpful. Now at (almost) 3 he helps me put his clothes away, gathers dirty laundry and helps put his dishes and the Tupperware away. He loves to sweep and he will always put (the correct) things in the trash. And I always turn music on when we do chores.

At that age, a big shopping basket filled with random containers of different sizes, water and bubbles = about 20 minutes of fun time without having to get on pinterest. Painting was also another great activity.

Is your LO old enough to "help"? My daughter loves to "clean" so if I have to get stuff done in the kitchen, I'll fill up the sink, give her some toys or plastic bowls to wash. That way I can keep an eye on her and get things done. I then give her a few towels to clean up the floor since she spills most of the water on the floor. The good news is, that's another 10 minute activity!