Things to do with your toddler that don’t cost much

 Okay so the weather is cooling down a little here in Victoria (some days anyway), and it’s not always viable to be spending all your time in the back yard with your little one.

I’ve recently gone from working 5 days a week, to only working 3. This means I have a couple of days at home by myself with our almost two & a half year old. He’s not the type of kid to just sit and watch a whole movie whilst I do things around the house (unless it’s Paw Patrol). So I try and get jobs done either whilst he’s napping, or get him involved in some way so he’s “helping” rather than getting in the way.

We’re usually up at 6am these days, whether everyone in our house is working, or not. He has an abundance of toys, but I’m not the kind of parent to do a toy rotation too often. 

I thought today’s post could be helpful and give parents some ideas of things to do out of the home, when you’re with your wild one. Next time, I’ll write all about some indoor activities you can try, for when the weather gets really cold!

We’ve only had a couple of weeks at home so far, so we haven’t flown too far away from the nest. However, something Hunter now loves to do, is go for a “babycino”. McDonald’s isn’t too far from our house, so I put Hunty in the pram, and we walk to Maccas for a babycino (sometimes nuggets too) and he has a play in the playground there too. It’s cheap and it allows you to have a little rest and enjoy a hot drink, whilst your child burns off some energy! If you're not keen on your little one having McDonald's, pack a lunch box and then you're saving money by not buying a Happy Meal.

The other week I took Hunter to our local leisure centre, which again, is quite close to home. I packed a swimming bag and we walked to the pool! Because it was school holidays, it only cost $5 for us both, but it’ll be good to make it a regular thing. He had so much fun, he didn’t feel the cold either so we stayed for about an hour. There was also water aerobics on for the older people, so little man loved the singing and dancing! Swimming is an awesome energy burner, as well as a great form of exercise for everyone.

Last week Hunter and I ventured to our local library. It’s been done up recently, and so we thought we’d check it out and see what’s there. I’ve published a post about the library already, so check that out to read all about it HERE! But it really got little man’s interest, and we headed to the Story time session they have on Thursday’s this week, which we’ll definitely be doing again! There was only two other kids there, and they did an arts & crafts activity after reading a story and singing some songs! We can get up to 50 books on the one library card, and I'm keeping my eyes peeled for other events they have on when we have days off together.

Bunnings also do little DIY activities for kids on certain days, which look really cool - we don’t live within walking distance for that though. Maybe we’ll catch the bus over that way when it’s a bit warmer and check it out. They also have an indoor playground there which Hunty loves, the struggle is trying to get him to leave!

I hope this gave you some ideas as to what you can get up to with your little one. The walking also helps us get out and about in the fresh air, but if you drive or take public transport, then at least you’re out of the house, right?!

Until next time!