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Monday 21 May 2012

Messy Farm Play

(Goblin is 31 months)
Goblin is really into tractors and farms at the moment. We go to Nature Nursery on a farm and it starts again this week so he is very excited and has been talking about farms non stop. He has also started doing a lot of imaginary play. This weekend he decided to do MESSY imaginary farm play. 
We had a lovely playdate earlier in the week and the kids had emptied the contents of the guineapig's cage all over the floor. I'd given the guineapig most of her straw back but there was still quite a lot lying around. Goblin decided to collect it up, put it in his tractor and "take it to the farm". He was going to give it to the cows. I asked him whether it was for them to eat or to sleep on. He looked confused so we talked about how cows sleep on straw but eat hay. I showed him the difference - we use both with the guineapig.
Hublet decided to be a manly man and rake up all the straw that had been scattered over the grass. But Goblin thought that daddy was just making neat piles for him to move to his tractor. Unfortunately Goblin running with straw is like something straight out of the Muppet show. He ran, flailing his arms form side to side and scattering so much straw back on the grass that by the time he reached his tractor he only had a couple of blades left. This happened repeatedly so Hublet's efforts to tidy the garden didn't really succeed.
I have to say that playing with straw was a great activity. Its messy but clean and can be raked up (after the play has ceased). Its not something I would have thought to go and buy as a toy for toddlers but it is actually a great sensory experience for them.
Something less successful from my point of view but very successful from Goblins point of view was the dried coffee grounds that I let Goblin play with later that day. WHAT WAS I THINKING!!!!
Goblin really enjoyed moving them around with his tractors and diggers - he told me this was a field. Unfortunately the coffee grounds stick to everything. They stuck to his pyjamas (yes he was still wearing them in the afternoon), and all his toys. But the worst thing was the grounds stuck to his feet and when he later came to sit on the sofa he rubbed the grounds into the beige sofa (yes I know its a ridiculous colour to have when you have a toddler but it was really cheap - probably because its a stupid colour). And of course trying to clean coffee grounds off a sofa with a wetwipe makes wet coffee, so then it turns into a coffee stain. AAAAGH!
We ended up sticking Goblin in a bath and having to deep clean the sofa. The only upside to the activity was how amazing the house smelt - I recommend this activity if you are trying to sell your house! I will not be playing with coffee grounds again in a hurry (much to Goblin's dismay, he has been asking for them). Maybe we'll do it again but outdoors, it is a ridiculously cheap way to provide a fun sensory material. 

I'm sharing this at 
Country Kids from Coombe Mill Family Farm Holidays CornwallClassified: MomTuesday Totslearning laboratory at mama smiles I Can Teach My Child

23 comments:

  1. Do I spy Woody pajamas? Bobo was dressed like Buzz all weekend...

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    1. Yes indeedy, we got them when we were in euro Disney and he loves them.

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  2. What fun Goblin seems to be having! My girls love playing with straw when i clean out the chook house (i give them clean straw of course lol)it's a great sensory medium. Those coffee granules might even test my patience! he did look to be loving them though!So cute piling up his tractor...the twins Dad has similar 'help' when trying to rake up the grass after mowing!

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  3. aww..look at your little man being such a hard little worker :)

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  4. I love how busy he is! Such cute photos of him moving the straw :-) And I feel for poor Hublet - often when making piles of leaves Dino Boy thinks they are created for jumping in! And the coffee grounds would be fun, shame about your furniture! I try to remember to pour some on our blueberry bush every now and again, maybe I should give some to my lad too. Thanks for sharing on Happy Family Times x

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    1. Are they good for plants then? I ended up putting ours o the flower bed but I didn't know if is was good for the plants.

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    2. They are for acid loving plants ~ blueberries, azaleas, rhododendrons etc. Only add it every now and again :-) Apparently it is even a bit of an insect repellant in the garden.

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  5. Oh, fantastic, he looks like he had a whale of a time! I could not do coffee grounds play - well, maybe outside! Aarrgghh, mess! ;-)

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    1. Hahaha thats so funny coming from you when the first post of yours I ever read was the one where you let on of your girls pour the powder paint and you had those hilarious photos of her covered on pink powder INDOORS!

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  6. How fun!! What wonderful things to play with for any little one. Thanks for sharing at Happy Family Times!!

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  7. Plenty of play with hay down on the farm here. It makes a great toy and then afterwards we just feed it to the animals! Hope you will join me on Country Kids too, and I totally agree, coffee outdoors next time!

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  8. We've never done authentic farm play! The pic of Goblin making dirt tracks is hilarious! I bet it was awesome fun!

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  9. Looks like Goblin had a lot of fun! :)

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  10. Loved reading this post. Had a few chuckles, totally know where you're coming from. Thanks for the heads-up on coffee grounds :)

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    1. They seemed like such a good idea at the time!

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  11. Oh, my I was LOL at this, "Something less successful from my point of view but very successful from Goblins point of view." I love all the fun he had pretending to farm. What a great idea to use straw for play, and your guinea pig has quite a posh abode. =)

    We have played with coffee grounds, but outside. She mixed the grounds with a tray of water she had, and she played with it for nearly an hour. Lots of fun and didn't get all over the house!

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    1. We bought the Guinea pig hutch when we had 6 of them, and believe it or not it was cheaper to get that one made than it was to buy a big one from a pet shop. It was really good value and I love that it has a little door at the back with our house number on it.

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  12. Look at how busy he is!!! And I hate to laugh about the coffee, but oh my goodness! And oh no! to wet coffee. and haha to beige being a stupid color. I've been wanting to do coffee grounds, but we will definitely be doing it outside! :) Also love that tractor! It is awesome with the trailer!

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    1. Goblin got that tractor from his grandparents over a year ago and I swear he has used it every single day since then. It is very cool.

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  13. Love this! Goblin looks like he had so much fun!

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  14. This looks like SO much fun! Maybe we'll try it outside, sometime :)

    Thanks for linking up to learning laboratory at Mama Smiles =)

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  15. Thanks for linking up with me, I still laugh about the coffee in the house!

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  16. I love that little red tractor! Seriously, it is SO cute! Working on the farm is so much fun for children...amazing. Thanks for linking to the Outdoor Play Party!

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