Sometimes, the littlest gifts can be the hardest to find. So I thought I’d put together a list for some ideas for the hanging socks on your mantle (so weird honestly). I personally love stocking opening, we always open them last, like a “grade finale” of Christmas Morning! Now that we have a toddler in the house, it’s even more fun to continue the tradition. Sure, you can fill stocking with candy canes and pencils and cheap toys, but why not mix in a few useful items too! Useful items are always a plus and help reduce more junk in the landfill come Valentine’s Day.
STOCKING STUFFERS FOR LITTLE ONES
Construction Site Utensil Set – This “toy” doubles as utensils and makes mealtimes more fun! Perfect for the little ones in the “truck!” phase.
Sticker Books – Once again I love the Melissa & Doug ones, but any brand will do! Kids love stickers
Slippers – These toddler sized slippers come in a bunch of different styles for boys and girls. We have them for Emmett and they’re great quality and super cozy and warm!
Electric Toothbrush – a fun new toothbrush like this one from Nuby is useful and a great way to combat all those cookies & milk.
STOCKING STUFFERS FOR HER
Skincare Minis! You can never go wrong with something like a mini skincare set like this one (my favorite!) from Olehendriksen. (NOT SPONSORED, JUST LOVE IT)
Sheet Masks -Are self care stockings a thing? They should be.
TARGET GIFT CARDS – Honestly I could go on and on with little gift ideas, but all she wants is a Target gift card. I know you don’t think it’s thoughtful enough, but truly, it is.
STARBUCKS GIFT CARDS – She wants these too. The end.
2020 has been whack. Totally freakin’ whack. January started off with such promise, such potential. By February we had a few quick trips and flights on the books, by March, our calendar was cleared. The whole damn world cleared their calendars and hunkered down. But as May morphed into June, and I started to question my sanity, it became apparent that my little family of 3 needed to GTFO of our house. Desperately. Being locked up raw with a fussy husband, I mean, toddler, for months can really cause a lot of stress and strain, so a getaway was desperately needed, and downright essential to survival.
We started looking at options of stays within driving distance and nothing seemed right. Nothing seemed safe enough or a good option. That’s when we decided we were going to drive to visit my aunt and uncle in Traverse City, Michigan. They have room for us, have been totally socially distant, live on a lake with a pontoon boat (boats are the ultimate social distancing machine) and plus, my uncle flips a mean blueberry pancake.
But there was a catch. The drive was 15 hours NOT including stops. And we have a 16 month only mini human. SHIT. Okay, we’d stop half way. But where could we stop to ensure we weren’t exposing ourselves to covid?
Long story short, we decided we were just going to go for it. Yep, straight through. We were open to stopping if we absolutely had to, but the goal was to keep going until we were greeted by the friendly midwestern smile of Aunt Deb (who was definitely going to be pouring me a glass of wine as we rolled in.)
So, to get to the point here, this was our game plan. I was going to pack all our food, to avoid stopping and wasting time + possible exposure to covid. I was going pack smart and be prepared. We would pack our patience. We were prepared to make lots of stops, but ultimately, it was doable and we’d get there.
Since it was a 15+ hour drive with a toddler, when we arrived was important because if it got too late, we’d be way past bedtime and we’d have a meltdown on our hands. So we left early AF. Our car left the driveway at 3:50am (both ways). Bubs was asleep in his crib and the car was packed and running in the driveway. When we were ready to go, I quietly scooped him out of his crib, changed his diaper and immediately transferred him to the car seat still in his jammies. I turned on white noise on Spotify via bluetooth and luckily, he was quiet/ asleep until 7. So we had 3 solid hours of a calm, chill baby. People thought we were crazy for doing this, but honestly, this was huge and next time, I’d leave even earlier.
After he was fully awake, I hopped in the backseat and offered him his usual breakfast routine. Which is usually a sippy cup of milk, a banana and some dry cheerios. I tried to keep our usual “routine” in place as much as possible. Which is a bit of joke but I did try to pretend like it was a normal day.
Around 9am, he was getting fussy so we stopped. Another hot tip that worked great for us was bringing a small ball along for rest stops. We stopped a rest stops with lots of green space, so we kicked the ball around and he went chasing after it. Like playing fetch with a dog, only my dog was of the human breed. This was great for stretching his little, usually non-stop toddler legs.
The rest of the trip was a lot of keeping the baby entertained. I packed a ton of (NEW) books. This was also a win. I picked up a bunch of new books and didn’t give them to him until the we were in the car. That way, they were new and exciting. Books with flaps or touch and feel is an added bonus!
Meals were tricky for Bubs, as he really only eats “hot” foods for lunch and dinner. The kid wont touch a cheese stick or a cold sandwich so to be fair, he ate mostly bananas, snacks and pouches the entire day, with the exception of 1/4 of a peanut butter sandwich. I was anxious about this, but in reality, he was totally fine. He’d eat it if he was hungry enough. I packed sandwiches for my husband and I and had everything in a cooler that was easily accessible in the back seat.
I had the iPad loaded with pre-downloaded movies and shows on Disney+, Prime Video and Netflix. I did not bring this out until it was absolutely necessary, which was about the last 4-5 hours of the trip. DO NOT. I REPEAT. DO NOT bring the iPad out too early. It’s the hail mary to the finish line.
In total, it took us 16 hours to get there and 17.5 hours to get home because of traffic and several casualties like a cup of milk in the car seat and a blowout diaper. I will say, 16 hours is the MAX I would do again. 17.5 was two hours too long and we were all miserable. But we made it.
So, to simply all of the above, here is a list of advice:
Pack smart.Pack a things that are readily accessible in the back seat. Try your best to stay organized. I had a box like this and it was great for books, toys, snacks, change of clothes (keep a change of clothes handy so you don’t have to dig through the suitcase if needed,) diapers and wipes to keep in the back seat. (BRING A ROLL OF PAPER TOWELS AND A BAG FOR TRASH) It fit in the middle seat but was easily moved when I needed to scoot to the middle seat to entertain him.
Pack all your food. Pandemic or not, stopping for food adds a lot of time and money to your trip. Packing your meals ahead of time saves a ton of time you don’t want to add on to your already long trip. Put a cooler in the back seat where it’s easily accessible, don’t put it in the trunk. PACK MORE SNACKS THAN YOU THINK YOU’LL NEED. TODDLERS AND GRUMPY SPOUSES LOVE SNACKS. BRING THEM ALL. *Snack ideas, Goldfish, Cheerios, cut fruit / fruit cups, pouches, veggie straws, Ritz Crackers, bananas, puffs, yogurt melts, etc… Less messy the better, but get over the mess, it’s going to be a mess… BRING THEM ALL.*
Leave room in the backseat, you’re going to have to sit back there with your kid the majority of the time. This tip doubles as leaving a space for diaper changes. Changing a diaper in a rest stop bathroom is not ideal, so make sure there’s room in the car to lay your tot down for a diaper change.
Bring *new* books and toys. They don’t have be brand new, but bring them out of rotation a few weeks prior to the trip so they’re exciting and engaging for your little one. Interactive touch and feel or lift the flap books are a bonus. Books like this book and this book were great for us. We also had a lot of luck with straws in an empty water bottle! He enjoyed dumping them out and threading them back in!
Screen Time. Preload the iPad with movies, shows and if they’re old enough, games. We love Moana and Toy Story (Disney+) Blippi (Amazon Prime) and Little Baby Bum (Netflix). But don’t bring the iPad out until you absolutely need to (ie. screaming fit). This is your last resort. ALSO, get an tablet car mount or a case. We had this car mount for the headrest and it worked great. It fits a phone too! This also saved us!
Leave early. If it’s a very long road trip (longer than 8 hours) leave super early and take advantage of groggy / sleepy little ones. If possible, plan around nap times/bed times too.
GET OVER THE MESS – THIS IS HARD. Kids are messy. There are going to be crumbs everywhere. You can vacuum later, you’re in survival mode.
Be prepared to make lots of stops, but if baby isn’t crying, keep going!
Remember, people have done crazier things. Eventually, you’ll reach your destination and it will have all been worth it. Good luck and safe travels!
As if being a parent doesn’t come with enough pressure to be the “perfect” mom as it is, throw a pandemic into the mix and that pressure is now through the roof. The same roof of your house that you can not leave and has now become your office, gym, school, restaurant and playground.
Although doing activities with your little one is not something to do only during a pandemic, there seems to be more pressure to do them now. Also, the days can be long so incorporating a little activity for the kids can be something to look forward to and help pass the time while being somewhat educational.
I’ll keep it real, I’m not ashamed to admit I’m a “lazy mom” when it comes to activities. First of all, my baby is barely a year old, so it’s not like I can sit him down with some crayons and let him have at it. He’s not quite old enough yet to do arts and crafts or make me macaroni necklace, so we’re kind of in that in-between stage where he’s not a baby but not quite a full-on toddler either. But, I do like to find things to do with him that he will enjoy, don’t break the bank, may teach him a thing or two and most importantly, not make a huge mess.
So, I thought I’d share three simple activities for toddlers that are simple, inexpensive and not incredibly messy.
1. LAZY MOM’S WATER TABLE
This can also be dubbed the poor mom’s water table, but whatever you want to call it, it’s a fan favorite in this house! We live in New England, so it’s still too cold to play outside, so having a full on water table (like this) in my living room doesn’t seem like an option right now. However, one inch of water in a plastic tub did the trick just fine and kept my one-year-old entertained for a solid 25 minutes. (Anyone with a toddler knows that’s a pretty good stretch).
What you’ll need:
A plastic tub, bowl, or anything that can old some water in it. We actually used the plastic tub from the hospital!
Some household items or toys. I chose a whisk, a small bucket toy with holes that drain out, a measuring cup and a foam bath toy! Some items that sink and some that float keep it interesting.
Warm water
Towel
Optional, bubble bath or soap to add bubbles
Lay down the towel, fill the tub, strip them down and let them have at it! The floors will get wet, but hey, it becomes a 2-for-1 because the floors get a washing too!
2. TOILET PAPER ROLL SHOOT
Especially because toilet paper is such a prized item these days, why not let that empty roll get the proper send off before it make’s its way to the recycling bin like the hero it was. We’ve done this one a few times and sometimes Emmett cooperates and plays and sometimes he just plays with the tape, either way it occupies him for a little and it’s something different than his toy shelf.
What you’ll need:
Toilet paper or paper towel rolls, or a few of each!
Painters tape, or tape that won’t damage walls
Cotton ball, craft pom poms or even Cheerio’s or puffs if your little one tries to eat the cotton ball!
Tape the roll to the wall, show them how to put the ball through the toilet paper roll and let them have at it! I like to roll up a few pieces of the tape and stick that to the wall too. He loves to play with the sticky, crinkly tape balls too!
Don’t get frustrated if your little one gets more excited to rip the roll off the wall and run around with it, or to play with the roll of tape. Let them explore and be grateful you didn’t spent too much money, time or mess on this one!
3. BABY VAN GOGH MESS-FREE FINGER PAINTING
I will say this one was the least successful as far as keeping him busy for an extended period of time, but it’s still cute and he liked it for a few minutes. Plus, it’s easy and mess-free so I still consider it worth sharing! I think next time I will tape it to his high chair tray so he can’t run away! But we’ve done this twice and Em has played around with it both times.
What you’ll need:
Paint. I used a some old acrylic paint I had laying around.
Cardstock or photo paper. Regular paper ends up getting really wet.
Two zip top bags (You could always use Saran Wrap too and saran wrap it down to the table, floor or highchair)
Tape to secure
Put a few generous dollops of paint on the paper and slide into a zip-top bag. Then slide that bag into another bag. Trust me, the first time I did it with one bag and it ripped almost immediately. Then tape the bags down to the floor or their high chair and let them have at it!
As I mentioned, I think next time I will tape it to his high chair to keep his attention longer, but he did move the paint around so I don’t think it was a total loss. Plus, you can leave it there for him to come back to later, the paint won’t dry up right away inside the bag.
So no hard feelings if he runs away from it for a little while!
I can’t take credit for any of these because I found them on the internet somewhere, but I wanted to share my experience making easy, cheap and mess-free little ones in hopes to inspire you to do the same!
The Honest Mom 