{30 Days of Simple Toddler Toys} Day 12: Lacing Cards

Lacing cards give toddlers great fine motor practice for early shoe-tying skills.  They are a simple and quiet way to keep kiddos entertained, and are super cute and colorful!  These are on G's Christmas list.

There are lots of different options for lacing cards.  You can even make your own for a more personalized gift.  Just take some cardboard, trace the shapes that you'd like, cut them out, and add a pattern of holes with a hole puncher.  You can paint or color the shapes however you'd like, buy some cheap shoe-strings or yarn, and voila!  Homemade lacing cards :)  Hmmm....maybe a tutorial post is in order...

If you're not into making your own, here are a few super cute choices.  I'm feeling a very strong pull towards the Eric Carle and Dr. Seuss cards, they're just too perfect for words.

Skills:

• fine motor
• life skills
• concept skills

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Homemade Gak

It's been a long winter of illnesses for everyone, so G's been very isolated from the world.  Everyone was healthy, so my sister and I made plans to get the kids together to make homemade Gak!  We both remember making this when we were young, and how much fun we had with it.

We used this recipe over at Lil' Luna.  We experimented by halving the recipe, and it worked out wonderfully!

G had lots of fun just waiting for us to get the ingredients ready!

Homemade Gak
Skills:  sensory, fine motor, life skills

Materials:  
-4 oz. bottle of Elmer's glue (it seems that Elmer's creates the best consistency)
-1/4 cup warm water, and 4 oz. warm water
-1/2 tsp Borax (laundry aisle of most grocery stores)
-medium to large mixing bowl
-a cup