Entertaining a 3 year old?!?!?! HELP!!!

[Sign Of The Fish Burger]

LOL


Hi Mom's and Dad's

I have a question for all of you
Next week, I am house sitting for a couple at my church while the husband is out of town on buisness, and she works nights. So I will have Kaitlyn from around 5pm till the next morning.
So, I would REALLY like to make this a fun week for both of us. Now I have TONS of experience working with elementry school aged kids, but never anyone this young.
So I was wondering, what are some things that would be fun for me to do with her (indoor/outdoor, crafts, games, whatever)?
What about some entertaining meals? Or DVD's that I could rent for us?

Thanks for the suggestions
I am really looking forward to this. I can't wait

 

[~Mrs. A2J~]

My daughter is 3 and as far as DVDs our daughter's favorite thing to watch is Veggie Tales! They're good moral shows and they have a lot of music which my daughter loves to dance to. She also loves to color with her crayons either in coloring books or drawing pictures herself. She also loves to play outside and just get dirty She also loves to read books.

What time will Kaitlyn be going to bed? You may only have to fill 2-3 hours a night and a part of that can be with taking a bath (my daughter loves to play in the tub).

 

[Entertaining_Angels]

Make yourself a 'fun' box. Put in crayons, blank paper and coloring paper. Put in some bubbles. If you have a playtime tea set..this is usually a bit hit with little girls..nothing better than a tea party. Add a deck of kids cards. You don't have to play 'go fish' correctly but little kids love to play cards and you can just change the rules as you go along. Definitely have some books. Dr. Seuss and those types of books are perfect. You can also take milk and put it in a few little bowls and add food coloring to each. then 'paint' some bread with it (use a q-tip) to paint and toast it, butter it and eat it. You can also turn on music and just dance, run around and act silly. We're not a big tv family but Veggie Tales are always good.

Just a few suggestions but I hope they help.

 

[ShannonMcCatholic]

See if you can find Annies Bunnies and cheese (it is really good organic mac n' cheese- and the noodles are shaped like bunnies)

You could make your own pizzas.

Just cooking dinner and washing the dishes together could take up a huge amount of time. Then go outside for a walk- which with a 3 year old is more like a walk,stop, pick somethingup,walk,stop. Come in for a bath. Brush teeth, jammies, and books- and bed! Routine will yield better results than doing vastly differt things each night.

Ooooh- you have to come back and tell us how it went and what you decided to do!!

 

[Sign Of The Fish Burger]

thanks guys
These are great ideas!!

 

[CarrieAg93]

Making cookies is always a hit. I'd stick with slice and bake or, even better, the kind you just break apart. A picnic/tea party at a park one evening might be fun. If you have any funky clothes you might bring those along. Little girls love to play dress-up.

 

[HeatherJay]

My 3 year old LOVES to dance. Turn on some music (doesn't matter what kind) and dance around the room or the yard with her.

And, yes, bath time can last an hour and she's perfectly happy as long as she's got bubbles and a few bath toys to play with.

She loves to color and draw pictures.

And she absolutely LOVES to read stories (Dr. Suess and Curious George are her favorites).

Bubbles and balls are always fun.

Just a few ideas...

 

[erin74]

I reckon even the most boring of chores can be made fun for her because it's a differnt person doing it. If it were my son all you would have to say is 'but you haven't had a bath my special way' or 'you haven't eaten my special pasta' or 'you haven't done dishes the way I do dishes' - hook line and sinker is all I can say about my son. Something we would have to pull teeth to get him to do can be done so easily when it's someone else!

My only other advice - try to keep things quiet - 3 year olds can get pretty excited which makes going to bed pretty hard, so try and find a book that you can take and read to her - Dr Suess' Bedtime Book is an excellent one - longish and works up to sleep really well. If you tell her when you get there that you are going to read it (or any 'special' book) to her, but not until right before bed, you will have her itching to get to bed. Do lots of yawning when you are reading it to her and she'll be asleep before you know it!

good luck and let us know how it goes

 

[Addicted2~Jesus]

Do lots of yawning when you are reading it to her and she'll be asleep before you know it!

ROFLOL, I cain't do all that yawin before we put Kat to bed.... it ends up her coverin me up with em covers lol

 

[Sign Of The Fish Burger]

Woah these are awesome guys!! Thanks so much I can't wait to do all these fun things!!!

 

[Hisrosebud]

old socks make great puppets.

My 2 year old loves making flowers these days. Take 2 coffee filters. Let her color them (markers bleed through nicely) then scrunch them, pinch them and put a pipe cleaner for a steam. Open up the filters to see the pretty leaves.

Speaking of flowers, my children love to plant green bean seeds. (they grow quick).Have her put a wet paper towel in a plastic (see through disposable type) cup. Fill with water, put in bean. She can take it home and watch the roots pop out of the bottom and the plant grow up. A story about Jack and the beanstalk helps the intrigue if you act it out before you plant them.

A trip to the library is free, she can get books, videos (ours has veggie tales) and play puzzles.... here on Tuesday nights an awesome story teller entertains our children.

When I have someone else's kids, I make it a party. We put blankets up in the living room to make tents, and sleep there....

Homemade pizzas? My children love to make them all by themselves on english muffins. Just slice them open, let them scoop out sause and sprinkle on cheese. Toast on broil until cheese melts.

3 year olds are great, they are inquisitive and active...if you go on that walk, bring a brown bag and see what things you can find that "God made". We came in with about 20 different types of mushrooms one time and then looked up on the internet to identify their names. Keep their hands away from their mouths, and wash hands up good afterward.

have a fun time and let us know how it went!
Jane

oh, for a silly treat, ice cream cone cupcakes are fun. You make a cake batter and poor them 3/4 full into flat bottom ice cream cones. After they bake, decorate with canned frosting and sprinkle like a cone. Kids love them...