Two weeks ago Kristie and I were visiting my parents' house and while Miles played, the four of us casually brainstormed a few different themed "weeks" of play, books, and activities that might be fun to put together for our two-and-a-half-year-old. It's a relaxed way to give our activities a bit of structure. (And oh boy do I love a theme.)
The first one we did was Farm Week! Here's what we made, played, read, visited, and supported...
(I also saved everything under a story highlight on Instagram.)
PLAY
- I prepped a couple of farm-themed activity boxes. (These sit in a stack in our kitchen, easy to grab when we need a distraction or quick activity for Miles. I put them together with fresh play prompts usually once a week when he's napping or after he goes to bed. This system was inspired by The Mama Notes!) One sensory box with oats, measuring tools, a few plastic farm animals, and yellow pom-poms, and one box of dried chickpeas with pieces of one of his farm puzzles hidden in it.
- I made a mini felt garden where he can plant and harvest his pretend fruits and vegetables, inspired by this tutorial. I cut up a pool noodle and covered the pieces with one length of brown felt, tucking it in around each noodle and hot-glueing in place.
- Inspired by Happy Toddler Playtime, I put together a farm-themed sensory discovery bag. I cut out animal photos from an old Grit magazine and laminated them, then "hid" them in a big Ziploc bag along with birdseed.
- Another prompt to get him engaged with puzzles he's tired of: I wrapped pieces from another farm puzzle in streamers so that he had to unwrap them before putting the puzzle together. (Another Mama Notes hack!)
ART
- I cut pig shapes out of pink construction paper, and let Miles get them all "muddy" with brown paint.
- I made horses out of toilet paper tubes and popsicle sticks (loosely based on this tutorial) and we painted them together (and added googly eyes).
OUTINGS
We're so lucky to live in a part of the world where we have easy access to all kinds of farms. We spent one day visiting Quonquont Farm (where Kristie and I got married seven years ago!) to pick blueberries and cut flowers from their garden. Each of us picked a bouquet to bring home, and quoted lots of Blueberries for Sal while we filled a pint. I caught a teeny-tiny frog in my hands to show Miles, who aww-ed a bit before saying, "Put it back where you found it, Mom." (My budding conservationist.)
That afternoon we visited Flayvors of Cook Farm, where we often go to visit the cows and eat ice cream. His favorite flavors are vanilla and black raspberry.
BOOKS & TOYS
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Two farm-themed toys that Miles has loved for awhile and gave some new attention this week are this plush horse set and this flower garden kit. And just a couple farm books that are always in rotation around here...
- Big Red Barn
- Click Clack Moo (great for introducing civil disobedience :)
- The Animals of Farmer Jones
GIVING
I finished listening to the New York Times podcast the 1619 Project this week, and I recommend it SO strongly! It’s shattering and beautiful and horrific. I felt especially impacted by June and Angie Provost’s story.
Since it was Farm Week, we'd been thinking and talking a lot about farming and land. I think Miles is not old enough yet to really grasp the centuries of land injustice and theft that underscore this country’s history, but he is constantly watching and listening to what the adults in his life are doing.
Please join us (especially if you’re having Farm Week for your family too!) and support an organization like the Northeast Farmers of Color Land Trust, which works to resituate Black and Brown farmers, earth workers, and land stewards. (Even if it’s just by giving a little, little bit every month.) Let your children see you prioritize this work. Tie it to themed play like Farm Week. Make it normal for them to hear you to talk about equity and reparations.