Messy Play Activities Your Little One Will Love
Clean-up may not be your favourite part of parenting, but with these essentials for post-playtime pack-up, you can relax that little bit more while your little one gets a bit messy. Messy free play can encourage cognitive development and motor skills, helping to strengthen your baby’s muscles while kicking their imagination and senses into gear. Try out these play ideas, and pair them with easy clean-up items to make life a little easier.
Free-play with textures
Letting your little one get tactile with different textures can stimulate their brain and encourage curiosity. This one is as simple as filling a bowl with baby-safe foods or objects with interesting textures.
Supervising your baby as they move their hands through a bowl of rice is a great way to get them giggling, and a quick sweep or vacuum can help destroy the evidence! Add water to the rice and create a new feeling for their little fingers to discover.
Other good textural free-play foods include soaked chia seeds or oats, and sauces. Stock up on outfits, so a messy onesie doesn’t throw a spanner in your day. We love the 4Baby range for value and quality - check it out here!
Painting with sponges
Encourage your little one’s creativity with some sponge painting! All you need is some non-toxic paint, sponges, something to paint on, some wipes and a watchful eye. You might want to lay down newspaper or something you don’t mind getting covered in paint!
Lay out some paper, plates, empty plant pots or anything else you’d like painted with an original creation. Then, supervise your little one as they experiment with different colours and shapes – you could cut the sponges into multiple shapes and sizes.
Keep an eye on your little one as they access their inner artist, and keep the wipes on hand. Buy in bulk to keep the good times (and clean kiddos) coming.
Highchair tray finger ‘painting’ with rice cereal and food dye
Rice cereal creates a paste-like consistency that little fingers can enjoy dipping and smearing over their highchair tray for tactile, imaginative play. Add food dye to mix different colours and allow your little one to create while you’re prepping meals or enjoying some hands-free time while they’re in their highchair.
A highchair tray that’s easy to clean can make this messy activity a dream. The Maxi-Cosi Minla has an easy-to-wipe tray and a water-repellent zip-off cover you can put in the wash. Plus, the tray boasts four positions, and you can adjust the seat to 9 different heights to keep up as your baby grows for up to six years. Check out the only highchair you'll need from day one and beyond right here.