Your guide to activities and fun things to do with your preschoolers, toddlers and kids in silicon valley, CA

It's Not a Paper Towel Roll, It's a....

by bonggamom

June 08, 2009

We use lots of paper towels in our household.  We use them as potholder when cooking, as napkins during mealtimes, as tissues when anyone sneezes.  We use them to mop up spills, wipe down walls, clean bathrooms and toyrooms and everything else.  I'll admit it's not very eco-friendly, but we've got to do something with all those white paper towels in order to get to the real treasure:  the roll in the middle.  Because to a child, it's not just a paper towel roll!  Here are just five of the many, many things that a toilet paper roll can be....

1)  A sword.  Having two little boys as I do, I had to put that one first.  Put a paper towel roll into a little boy's hand, and even before you reach into your craft drawer for the crayons and tape, he'll run away, swinging the roll, making slashing motions and swooshing sounds.

2)  A telescope.  Or a microscope.  Or a camera.  Basically, it can be anything a person would want to glue his eyes to.  Tape two rolls together, and you have binoculars.  Which means my kids get to be pirates, astronomers, spacemen, spies, scientists, and aliens with really, really long eyeballs.

3)  A noisy surprise.  Wrap some colorful paper around the roll (making sure the paper extends past both ends of the roll) and seal one end of the roll by placing an elastic band around one end.  Insert candy or small toys into the roll, then seal the other end with an elastic band.  Show your little one how to open the cracker by pulling on both ends of the paper.  Presto, you've got an instant party!

4)  A musical instrument.  A paper towel roll makes a great guitar (tape the roll to a shoebox and stretch a couple of rubber bands over the shoebox). Or a rainstick (tape up one end, fill the tube loosely with beans, and tape up the other end).  Or a drumstick (give child a pot, no instructions necessary).

5)  A jewelry store.  Well, not the store, exactly, but the jewels in it.  Just cut the paper towel roll into cardboard rings about half an inch thick, and you have bracelets.  Snip a pair of the circles, fasten them onto your ear and all of a sudden you've got hoop earrings.
 

In short, those long, hollow cardboard tubes are an essential part of my sons' arsenal of tools for the imagination.  What else can a paper towel roll be?  Leave a comment and share your child's favorite paper towel roll fantasy! 

One Last Weekend Outlook: January 30th-February 1st

by Shawn Burns

January 28, 2009

This is Resolution month at Savvy Source, and it's become obvious in the past couple of weeks that I need to make one myself, and follow-through on it. I need to step back from the site and spend time working on my "About Me" page. See where it says "is in the middle of his PhD"? Yeah, turns out the middle is a churning mess and I need to dog-paddle a little bit. So this is a  Read more...

Things that matter and things that don't

by Bonggamom

January 06, 2009

Today, Being Savvy editors around the country are looking at The Big Picture, counting down the Top 5 Things that Really Matter with preschoolers, and 5 Small Things that Really Donâ??t. Here's my list: Top 5 Things that Really Matter with Preschoolers 1) Making food fun All-out food fights are discouraged in our household, but my kids enjoy eating peas with one's fingers, fashioning  Read more...

Indoor Christmas Activities

by Bonggamom

December 11, 2008

The weather outside may be frightful, but the fire is so delightful, you may not want to stay snug and cozy. Until your kids start to drive you crazy with their bored whining or their crazy, cooped-up antics. Here are some of my favorite ways to keep the kids occupied during the holidays: 1) Bake cookies Because ya gotta have holiday cookies, right? Make it easier on yourself by setting up a  Read more...

Holiday Gift Giving on a Budget

by Bonggamom

December 05, 2008

With the economy tanking like it is, it's no wonder that shoppers everywhere are tightening their purse strings and slashing their holiday budgets. But that doesn't mean you can't spread some Christmas cheer all around. Here are some ways you can stretch your budget and still give unique, thoughtful presents to the people you care about most: 1) Know before you go Start your gift-giving  Read more...

Weekend Outlook: December 5th-7th

by Shawn Burns

December 03, 2008

Even if you aren't going to be participating in or enjoying any of the activities and events I talked about yesterday you can still have a great time with your kid(s) this weekend around the Peninsula. And for the sake of variety this will be a concert/theater-free Weekend Outlook. I know you must be played out (that's kind of a pun). This Friday from 3-4pm is the first in Hidden  Read more...

List Day: The Tickle Trunk

by Shawn Burns

October 07, 2008

When I was growing up I would watch a show on Canadian public television called "Mr. Dressup." Mr. Dressup was a man who would do little art projects, tell stories, and most importantly dress up in costumes. He kept all of his costumes inside a big box in his living room, and it was called the Tickle Trunk. Every episode he would wander over to the Tickle Trunk and pull out a new costume  Read more...

The Children's Discovery Museum: The Wonder Cabinet

by Shawn Burns

July 09, 2008

I took Erin to the Children's Discovery Museum in San Jose on Tuesday. We've been before, but I wanted to bring her back now that she's a toddling walker instead of a mostly-stationary crawler. We explored both the downstairs area and the Wonder Cabinet, the special area for children under 4 upstairs. This post will be about the Wonder Cabinet. We happened to get there just as the art studio in  Read more...

Princess?

by Shawn Burns

May 22, 2008

I think my wife secretly can't wait to take Erin to http://www.pinkiesnailsalons.com/treatments/treatments.php ">Pinkie's for Princess manis and pedis. I shudder to think. And at least she'll have to wait another four years. But knowing that this place is out there, somewhere in our future, has me mired pretty deep in the Princess Funk. The Princess Funk is an emotional experience I  Read more...