Play In a Small Home: The Window

We've lived in several different places in the twins' first two years of life, see my post here.  Of course, when the babies are little, sometimes all you need to do is throw a blanket on the floor and you have an instant play area.

Fun at grandma and grandpa's house.

But one area you may not have thought of to turn into a play-place is the window.  Any window!

Do you have a window that is accessible to children?

We used to have a large, sliding glass door to our back patio.  When the boys were first learning how to  sit up and didn't move around too much yet, sometimes they just liked to have a few toys and look out the window.  The view was pretty grim, to be honest, but I think humans just respond to natural light and even a few pieces of greenery.  

As the boys got a bit older, I tried out an idea from one of my favorite blogs, The Imagination Tree.  Here is a link to her wet foam shapes on windows idea.  I used the idea on the same window pictured above, with foam shapes cut into various shapes.  I wet the foam and stuck them on the window, then let the boys do the same and play around with it.  We also did it on a towel in the middle of the living room using a large plastic tub as the surface, as you'll see in the video below.  It can also work in the bathtub, another great play place!

                                  

Even if your window isn't low to the ground, as your kids grow older and more coordinated, you could place sturdy step stools near them to allow access.  

Another idea is to put contact paper on the window and let kids stick things on it!  I haven't done this on the window yet, but I have put contact paper on the floor as part of our play.  

For more inspiration, check out my Pinterest board on the subject:  Window Play.