Summer Bucket List Update: Sidewalk Chalk

Jo was mad that Oliver had a piece of the chalk.

She recognized her name!

* Watch a fireworks display on the Fourth of July.
* Bake a berry stars & stripes cake with Oliver.
* Run through the sprinklers.
* Go to a splash park.
* Play in the "creek" at the Children's Mordecai Gardens at the Denver Botanic Gardens.
* Watch our first parade.
* Ride the outdoor train at Belleview Park.
* Visit a petting zoo.
* Take the kids for a swim.
* Have a real outdoor picnic on the grass with a picnic basket.
* Watch a sunrise.
* Go for a hike in the mountains.
* Go on a road trip.
* Go out for an ice cream cone, and eat it outside!
* Make our own ice cream, and let Oliver choose the flavor.
* Pick and eat vegetables out of the garden we're growing at Grandma Judy's house.
* Eat cherry tomatoes right off the vine at Aunt Bonnie & Uncle George's house.
* Throw water balloons.
* Go tent camping overnight.
* Look at stars in the sky.
* Visit Andrew at work for lunch.
* Take the train downtown to visit Grandpa Larry for lunch.
* Go to the Fireman's Museum.
* Use sidewalk chalk.
* Blow bubbles.
* Take Father's Day photos with the letters that spell out "DAD" again.

                                                         

100 (Attempted) Ways to Entertain a Young Toddler, Day 83: Chalk Shapes

I've tried playing with chalk with Oliver many times. He's always interested in it for about one minute and then moves on to bigger and better things (like rocks, sticks, and leaves).

Today, I decided to use chalk to make a game. I call it "Chalk Shapes." I went outside and drew a purple triangle, a red (OK, pink) square, and a blue circle.

I gave Oliver simple directions to follow. I asked him if he could sit in the purple triangle, and he did:

I asked him to put his hands in the red square, and he put his hands on it (not bad!):

And I asked him to jump into the blue circle. Yes, Oliver (kind of) jumps now. He jumped in it and back out a couple of times before deciding my game was not very much fun.

He decided to ditch my "Chalk Shapes" game in favor of crunching some leaves. Then, a neighbor girl who is two years older than Oliver came by and played with the chalk. She told Oliver the name of all the shapes and drew some herself. Oliver gave her some sticks. So, apparently, my "Chalk Shapes" game is fun for some kids!

Because we already have chalk, I didn't lose anything by trying this game. It just didn't excite Oliver nor keep him busy. I give it a C grade.

100 (Attempted) Ways to Entertain a Young Toddler, Day 9: Sidewalk Chalk

Oliver is an amazing kid, but I have to admit: he's just not very interested in art. I try to sit him down regularly with crayons, but I'm lucky if he scribbles for two minutes before getting bored. Upstairs, he has his chalkboard that I made him. He almost never colors on it, but he sometimes asks me to. He doesn't like it if I draw lines and encourage him to draw them, too. He only wants me to draw letters, so I do.

Well, today, I thought getting outside with chalk might make a difference. I hoped it would open up his creative spirit! No such luck. He drew two lines almost immediately, but then insisted on putting the chalk in my hands. Trying to give it back resulted in whines of protest.I coaxed him into drawing a few more lines over the next few minutes, but he really wasn't interested. He enjoyed the outdoors, though, and liked watching me write letters with the chalk. We stayed outside for a good fifteen minutes before he wanted to go in, but unfortunately, the chalk was not a hit.I think sidewalk chalk would be a successful activity for most toddlers his age, but based on my experience, I give it a C. Chalk is cheap; you can buy a little package for $1 at Michael's. It's very easy since all you have to do is hand it to them. There's no difficult clean up (thank you, rain!). So, it really could be a good activity. Unfortunately, Oliver just couldn't give a damn.