A LIST OF TODDLER ACTIVITES...AND DID YOU KNOW THE WORLD IS RUNNING OUT OF FOOD

I have not tried any of these with the babeola, but I hope to in the future.

From The Toddler Busy Book by Trish Kuffner.

1.Ice Cube Bags- make some colored ice cubes with food coloring and put in a ziploc bag. Let kids play and watch as the colors melt and mix.

2.Where's Teddy? --Take yarn or string and attach to stuffed animal in a hidden spot. Make a trail with the string for your little one to follow.

3.Blanket Riding--Put baby on blanket and pull around room.

4.Snow Painting-- Fill spray bottles with food colored water and spray on snow

5.Rope fun--Lay out a piece of rope or yarn in a crazy pattern and walk on it like a balance beam

6.Wave Bottle-- Combine water (1/3 of bottle), baby oil (2/3 of bottle), food coloring, sequins or other interesting items in a water bottle. Seal shut with glue and shake to make waves.

7.Jungle Safari--Hide stuffed animals all over the house (keep a list) and go on a safari to hunt them down. For bonus fun, use a flashlight for looking in dark places.

Beyond filling my head with toddler entertainment ideas, I've undertaken a serious study of the state of food in the world, which, in case you didn't know, is a very sorry state. I've also been trying to plan an urban garden and somehow morph that activity into toddler entertainment as well.

This article about world agriculture is heavy denial-head-in-the-sand-inducing stuff, but, I think, really important to read and understand. All the source material is linked so you can read the research the article is based on for yourself.

Starvation...coming to a town near you in 2009.

As part of the whole Transition Town thing, I'm working on a community presentation about the state of world agriculture and its local impact and local solutions. So, now that the vomiting has subsided, I'm pretty busy.