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Tag Archives: car and truck activities

Backyard Truck Garden

7 / 30 / 19

Backyard Truck Garden | Mama Papa Bubba

It feels like we’ve had a slow start this year, but summer seems to be here in the Okanagan and Sam’s been enjoying his little backyard truck garden again!

Backyard Truck Garden

Here’s what inspired us creating a truck garden… This hilly corner of our yard filled with dirt, rocks, and loads of debris discarded by our big old tree.  Now if we knew that this home was our forever home, we’d probably do something different, but without wanting to invest a whole lot of time, energy, or money, a truck garden turned out to be a fantastic solution.

Of course every yard is going to be different, but I do think the truck garden concept could be adapted to many different spaces, hilled or flat.

Backyard Truck Garden | Mama.Papa.Bubba.

Another fun part of this project?  Other than the little orange pilons and some paint, we only used things we already had on hand to put it together.

Backyard Truck Garden | Mama.Papa.Bubba.

First up were these road bricks…  They started out as regular old bricks left in the yard by the previous home owners, so I painted them grey with a sample of outdoor paint I picked up and then added some little yellow dashes freehand using some acrylic craft paint from the art cupboard.  More than a year later, these have held up super well. What I love about them is that they can be moved and configured how ever Sam likes, and they give him an opportunity to do some heavy lifting.

Backyard Truck Garden | Mama.Papa.Bubba.

The other little upcycle / repurpose project we did was turning some wood and flooring scraps into these road planks.

Backyard Truck Garden | Mama.Papa.Bubba.

I had previously seen this idea on my friend Chelsey’s site, Buggy and Buddy, and when I found a bunch of wood scraps left in one of the sheds, I knew it would be perfect.

Backyard Truck Garden | Mama.Papa.Bubba.

I just painted the boards a charcoal-y black colour using an outdoor paint we already had, then freehanded the white dashes using a small paintbrush, some acrylic craft paint, and an old metre stick as a guide.  And voila – wooden roads and ramps!!

Backyard Truck Garden | Mama.Papa.Bubba.{this post contains affiliate links}

Then we added all of the fun stuff…  Our kids’ garden tool set for raking up branches, creating dirt mounds, etc., a big bin of DIY blocks Brad and his dad made using some 2×4 and 2×8 scraps that were also left in our yard, and Sam’s collection of Green Toys and Wonder Wheels trucks.  All of these have been gifted to him over the years and they’ve seen endless hours of play.  They’re big, sturdy, and made from recycled plastic. These are the ones he has currently:

dump truck

recycling truck

fire engine

tow truck

cement mixer

Backyard Truck Garden | Mama.Papa.Bubba.

I also created a little picnic space at the top of the truck garden using our kids’ picnic table from Ikea and a little black and white striped umbrella, but I didn’t find that it got used a whole lot last summer, so I skipped it this summer and kept those items on our patio below instead.

Backyard Truck Garden | Mama.Papa.Bubba.

It was a cute little set up though!

Backyard Truck Garden | Mama.Papa.Bubba.

Possibly the biggest hit of the space?  This little sit-on excavator we got during a campaign I did with Canadian Tire.  Sam just LOVES it and could spend ages scooping up loose dirt and moving it to a different space or filling a bucket.

Backyard Truck Garden | Mama.Papa.Bubba.

I can’t tell you how much play this little space has seen!

Backyard Truck Garden | Mama.Papa.Bubba.

Here’s a look at the whole thing…  It’s certainly not the prettiest thing, but it’s such a great spot for playing in the dirt, getting filthy, and enjoying trucks.

Backyard Truck Garden | Mama.Papa.Bubba.

One final addition that’s also been a favourite?  These PVC pipe ramps!  While this wasn’t something I felt comfortable taking on myself, I took advantage of my brother being in town and he helped me pick up the largest piece of PVC pipe Home Depot carried and then cut it in half vertically.  We sanded the edges and created these ramps that smaller cars can ZOOM down!

Easy Inexpensive Backyard Truck Garden | Mama Papa Bubba

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Icy Blizzard Car Rescue

3 / 7 / 194 / 15 / 19

Icy Blizzard Car Rescue Activity | Mama Papa Bubba

YOU GUYS…  It’s March 6th and currently?  It’s snowing.  SNOWING!!  I can’t even.  And so, when you don’t have the power to change the weather, you may as well enjoy it, right?  Except for that it’s cold and miserable….  So we brought the blizzard inside. {Just enough to fill a small bin – my kind of blizzard.  Hah!}   Mixed Sam’s very favourite thing (vehicles, obviously) and created an icy blizzard car rescue that he absolutely loved.

Here’s how I did it…

Icy Blizzard Car Rescue | Mama.Papa.Bubba.{this post contains affiliate links}

First of all, I picked out a few Hot Wheels / Matchbox vehicles from Sam’s collection and placed them into a small bin with just a couple of centimetres of water and two drops of aqua liquid watercolours (one of my very favourite art supplies – they’re super vibrant and super washable).  Then I popped the bin into the freezer, arranged the vehicles as I wanted them, and let it all freeze over night.

Icy Blizzard Car Rescue | Mama.Papa.Bubba.

When it was time to play, I sprinkled some snow on top in order to add to the whole blizzard feel, but if you don’t have snow you could certainly skip this step.

Icy Blizzard Car Rescue | Mama.Papa.Bubba.

Next up, I set out a few ‘tools’ to assist in the rescue…

  •  toy tow truck and snow plow for added imaginary play possibilities
  • some jars of warm water coloured with liquid food colouring (you could use liquid watercolours to ensure washability) paired with our bulk pipettes and our Learning Resources zig-zag dropper to help melt the ice
  • a little wooden hammer for breaking / chipping away at the ice
  • some coloured salt (just regular table salt and a couple of drops of liquid food colouring shaken in a reusable bag until uniform in colour), also for melting ice

Icy Blizzard Car Rescue | Mama.Papa.Bubba.

Here’s the finished play invitation!

NOW…  I just purchased this  FLISAT table from Ikea {even though we really didn’t need it} and although I’m already so, so in love with it, you certainly do not need a fancy sensory table to set this, or any other sensory play invitation, up.  A smaller bin inside a larger bin would work perfectly, as would a blizzard bin with a tray of tools next to it.

Icy Blizzard Car Rescue | Mama.Papa.Bubba.

When I told Sam that the vehicles were stuck in an icy blizzard and needed to be rescued, he was thrilled.

Icy Blizzard Car Rescue | Mama.Papa.Bubba.

I briefly ran through the tools with him and he was off!

Icy Blizzard Car Rescue | Mama.Papa.Bubba.

I feel like ice rescue activities like this one {and this frozen ocean animal rescue and this frozen ocean mermaid excavation} are great for helping kiddos develop grit, patience, and perseverance because they take a good amount of time and effort.

Icy Blizzard Car Rescue | Mama.Papa.Bubba.

While Sam immediately went for the warm water and salt, he soon moved onto trying the wooden hammer.

Icy Blizzard Car Rescue | Mama.Papa.Bubba.

What I didn’t anticipate is that he would create his own warm salt water mixture in hopes of that being the winning solution…  Clever little nugget!

Icy Blizzard Car Rescue | Mama.Papa.Bubba.

It took some time {and maybe a tiny bit of assistance from Sister – she just can’t help herself!}, but he eventually got a truck loose.

Icy Blizzard Car Rescue | Mama.Papa.Bubba.

Of course Miss Chloe was right in on the action as she always is.

Icy Blizzard Car Rescue | Mama.Papa.Bubba.

One thing I should mention is that the combination of cold and salt can sometimes bother little ones’ hands.  Miss G’s never minded – even after ages of play – but after dunking his hands in water and then into the salt, Sam told me that his hands felt ‘hot’.  A couple of things you can do to if your little one seems to have sensitive hands: a) let them play with gloves on or b) have a bowl of clean, warm water and a small towel nearby.

Icy Blizzard Car Rescue | Mama.Papa.Bubba.

Of course as time passes, the vehicles become easier to rescue…

Icy Blizzard Car Rescue | Mama.Papa.Bubba.

And then it gets REALLY exciting!

Icy Blizzard Car Rescue | Mama.Papa.Bubba.

This will definitely be done again in our house.

Icy Blizzard Car Rescue | Mama Papa Bubba

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Muddy Monster Truck Derby Sensory Bin

1 / 22 / 191 / 22 / 19

Muddy Monster Truck Derby Sensory Bin | Mama Papa Bubba

Okay, so before you see this awesome muddy monster truck derby sensory bin and think it’s all fun and games over here all day every day, here’s what you need to know…  This morning Sam came along for the school run in undies, a t-shirt, and a sweater.  In minus four degree {celsius} weather.  No pants.  No socks. No boots. And no jacket.  Let alone a toque or mittens.  Thank goodness we do the whole car blanket thing and he at least had that once in, but you guys – this morning was a doooozy.  We got home, I moped a bit, he continued to shout and whine and throw things, and I made a cup of coffee and gulped the whole thing back in bed with the door closed.  Then we hugged it out, agreed to start our morning over, cleaned up, and put this sensory bin full of mud and monster trucks together.

Thank fricken goodness sensory play and calm music have the power to turn a day around.

Muddy Monster Truck Sensory Bin | Mama.Papa.Bubba.{this post contains affiliate links}

Here’s what we used to put this taste-safe, scented, amazing-feeling sensory bin together…

  • one of our go-to Sterilite sensory bins (any shallow bin will work)
  • cornstarch from our play cupboard (when it comes to cooking with it, I always use an organic version)
  • cocoa powder
  • a couple of small toy monster trucks

and later on, these Green Toys cars too.

Muddy Monster Truck Sensory Bin | Mama.Papa.Bubba.

If you haven’t guessed yet, our ‘mud’ for our monster truck derby sensory play is CHOCOLATE oobleck!!

Muddy Monster Truck Sensory Bin | Mama.Papa.Bubba.

We didn’t even bother mixing this up in a separate bowl!  Sam just dumped the cornstarch and cocoa powder straight into our bin…

Muddy Monster Truck Sensory Bin | Mama.Papa.Bubba.

Then whisked it up…

Muddy Monster Truck Sensory Bin | Mama.Papa.Bubba.

And mixed with a wooden spoon as I gradually added water.

Muddy Monster Truck Sensory Bin | Mama.Papa.Bubba.

You can play with the amounts of each ingredient to create thicker or thinner oobleck, but here’s our recipe…

CHOCOLATEY OOBLECK
  • 2 cups of cornstarch
  • 1/2 cup of cocoa
  • 2 cups of water

Whisk the cornstarch and cocoa together well.  Add the water and stir with a wooden spoon {or better yet – your hands!} until the oobleck has a uniform in texture.

Muddy Monster Truck Sensory Bin | Mama.Papa.Bubba.

I gave the chocolate oobleck one last mix before Sam very enthusiastically popped his monster trucks in.

{It goes without saying that Chloe was in on the fun in approximately 2 minutes flat.  Seriously – this kitty of ours loves sensory play just as much as Grae and Sam do!}

Muddy Monster Truck Sensory Bin | Mama.Papa.Bubba.

It obviously depends on the size of your bin, but our layer of oobleck was thin enough to leave very visible monster truck tracks and Sam noticed right away.

Muddy Monster Truck Sensory Bin | Mama.Papa.Bubba.

Muddy Monster Truck Sensory Bin | Mama.Papa.Bubba.

He also realized how insanely neat oobleck is to touch and hold and squish.

Muddy Monster Truck Sensory Bin | Mama.Papa.Bubba.

As for the mess?  With activities like this one, I just remind him to keep his hands in or over the bin.  The truth is that the oobleck mud dries up on surfaces and is a cinch to wipe up, but I still don’t want it all over the kitchen obviously.

Muddy Monster Truck Sensory Bin | Mama.Papa.Bubba.

Part way through his play Sam asked for something for the monster trucks to drive over, so that’s when I offered him a few little Green Toys cars.  We lined them up just like you’d see at a monster truck show and after getting a thorough drizzling of mud, the monster trucks began driving and jumping over them.

Muddy Monster Truck Sensory Bin | Mama.Papa.Bubba.

Muddy Monster Truck Sensory Bin | Mama.Papa.Bubba.

Although this addition was initiated by Sam, starting simple and adding things in here and there during play is one of my go-to methods for extending play activities.

 Muddy Monster Truck Derby Sensory Bin | Mama.Papa.Bubba.
Muddy Monster Truck Sensory Bin | Mama.Papa.Bubba.

Also his request?  ‘A tool and a bucket’, plus later on, a ramp which I chopped from an almond milk carton.  This was during a full one-hour play session and though I have a feeling that it would have lasted significantly longer, we had to put it on pause for nap time.  With the promise that he could continue later on in the afternoon, of course.

Muddy Monster Truck Derby Sensory Play | Mama Papa Bubba

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Easy Paper Tunnels for Little Car Lovers

7 / 9 / 18

Easy Paper Tunnels | Mama Papa Bubba

Sometimes the very simplest things turn out to be the biggest hits, don’t they?  Take these insanely easy paper tunnels for example…  A totally random idea, thrown together on the spot, and yet Sam just loves them. 

Easy Paper Tunnels | Mama.Papa.Bubba.

Do all little car lovers have a ‘thing’?  I once nannied a little car lover who was obsessed with speed bumps.  Like LOVED speed bumps.  And Sam’s thing? Tunnels.  

Easy Paper Tunnels | Mama.Papa.Bubba.

I don’t know what it is about them exactly, but he just freaking looovvvves tunnels.  He’s constantly searching them out for his toy cars and will basically transform anything he can into a tunnel.  Even if it’s your leg – hope you didn’t plan on moving any time soon {hah!}

Easy Paper Tunnels | Mama.Papa.Bubba.

So this afternoon when he woke from a nap talking about a tunnel for his purple concrete mixer, this little paper tunnel idea popped into my mind and it couldn’t be easier.

Easy Paper Tunnels | Mama.Papa.Bubba.{this post contains affiliate links}

Basically you need two things –  washi tape and card stock {I love this stuff from Ikea – it’s super sturdy and the colours are gorgeous}.  Oh, and a hard surface of some sort.  All I did was cut some of the card stock in half and kept some whole, then folded little tabs on each side, and washi taped them to our coffee table to form little rainbow tunnels.

Easy Paper Tunnels | Mama.Papa.Bubba.

Easiest thing EVER.

Easy Paper Tunnels | Mama.Papa.Bubba.

He collected up a bunch of different cars and trucks, placed them in the middle of the table, and then drove them around and through the paper tunnels one-by-one.

Easy Paper Tunnels | Mama.Papa.Bubba.

One thing I really love about this activity besides it being so easy is that while the paper tunnels are fairly crash proof, the fact that they’re just paper taped down onto a table encourages Sam to practice slow, controlled, gentle movements – something that doesn’t always come naturally to him.

IMG 4372

These remain on our coffee table currently and probably will for a while, but when we’re done with them, we’ll just take them off and tuck them away until next time, probably reusing the same paper tunnels several times over.

The Easiest Paper Tunnels for Little Car Lovers | Mama Papa Bubba

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Mini Racer Wall Ramps

5 / 21 / 185 / 22 / 18

Mini Racer Wall Ramps | Mama Papa Bubba

This boy and his cars.  He just loves them.  Throw in a ramp and he’s pleased as punch, so imagine how thrilled he was about these mini racer wall ramps we put up on our landing today! {SOO thrilled.}

IMG 3759{this post contains affiliate links}

It’s incredibly easy, but here’s what we used to create our mini racer wall ramps:

  • several mini racers (anyone else remember these from their childhood?)
  • several cardboard tubes (we repurposed most of ours from our car ramp sensory bin)
  • a roll of painter’s tape (though we used this decorative Scotch masking tape)
  • a pair of scissors

IMG 3762

Now because most all of our paper rolls were the ones we used for our car ramp sensory bin, we didn’t have to cut ours in half lengthwise, but if you do have to do that part, it does take a little bit of effort… Sharp, longer scissors are key in  my opinion.  With your paper tubes cut, it’s as easy as running a long piece of tape down one edge and sticking it to the wall at an angle.

IMG 3761

There’s really no right or wrong way to do this…  You can have the ramps work together or separately – up to you.  I decided to start at the top and got Sam to stand near the wall to judge how high we could go with the first ramp.  I thought it would be fun to make the ramps work together if possible, so with each addition, I got him to send one of his mini racers down and then positioned the next ramp so it would catch the car once it launched off the first.

IMG 3764

Once we had all of the previously cut ramps up, I asked Sam what he’d like to do with our one new paper roll –  cut it and make two new ramps or keep it as is and make one tunnel and he was absolutely certain that one tunnel was the way to go, so we hung it as is.

IMG 3767

And then we were off!

IMG 3768

He’d simply place a mini racer, wheels down, at the top of the tunnel or one of the ramps and then watch it go.

IMG 3766

The transition from one ramp to the next didn’t always work out perfectly, but he didn’t mind one bit.  If a car got stuck sideways or wheels up, he’d go help it and then step back to continue watching it race down.

IMG 3779

Part way through we added a basket to catch the cars that were flying off of the last ramp and crashing into our window, which added a fun element.

IMG 3777

I don’t know how long this will stay up on our wall for, but it’s not going anywhere anytime soon.

Mini Racer Wall Ramps | Mama.Papa.Bubba. Blog

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Car and Truck Colour Sorting

2 / 22 / 182 / 26 / 18

Car and Truck Colour Sorting | Mama Papa Bubba

Oh my goodness…  This boy and his cars and trucks.  He’s nothing short of obsessed.  The other thing he’s been really into for months?  Colours.  Smack the two together and you’ve got a car and truck colour sorting activity that’s incredibly easy to pull off, but super engaging for little car and truck lovers like Sam.

Car and Truck Colour Sorting {this post contains affiliate links}

Here’s what you’ll need:

  • coloured construction paper {CAN}
  • sticky tape
  • small cars and trucks in various colours

Car and Truck Colour Sorting

Set up couldn’t be easier…  Basically choose a surface {we went with our coffee table, but a floor would be great too} and loosely tape sheets of construction paper in various colours down to it.  These will serve as your colour categories or ‘parking spots’ or ‘garages’ if your little one is as obsessed as mine is.

Car and Truck Colour Sorting

Now this activity was actually inspired by something I saw Sam doing in the playroom a few days earlier {he was colour matching his cars and our SPRI balance pods {CAN} while carefully placing the cars atop the pods} so I knew I probably wouldn’t have to give him much guidance…  I simply set out a little basket filled with his cars and asked if he wanted to park them in their spots and with that, he got started.  My favourite thing was watching him with this little aqua car…  He went back and forth between green and blue several times before deciding just to hang onto it – hah!

IMG 2455

After that it was smooth sailing though…  He’d often tell me the name of the car and then its colour as he was placing it in its spot.

Car and Truck Colour Sorting{aqua car makes a reappearance}

Car and Truck Colour Sorting

At the beginning, he’d announce the colour of the truck or car and then simply place it down on the coordinating piece of construction paper…

Car and Truck Colour Sorting

But before long he was ‘vrrooooooming’ his cars across the coffee table and slamming on the brakes when they’d reached the parking spot.

Car and Truck Colour Sorting

Doesn’t this look like a total blast?

Car and Truck Colour Sorting

I’m guessing Sam thinks so because we’ve already played it again TWICE!

Colour Sorting with Cars and Trucks | Mama Papa Bubba

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Car Ramp Sensory Bin

2 / 6 / 182 / 6 / 18

Car Ramp Sensory Bin | Mama Papa Bubba

Oh, how this little boy of ours loves cars, trucks, tractors, and all things that go.  Help him set up some sort of ramp and he’ll send vehicle after vehicle after vehicle down that hill. It’s his jam.

One day a little while back while Grae, Sam, and I were down in the playroom, this idea sort of randomly sprung to mind.  Brad had tucked a bunch of empty wrapping rolls in our play closet earlier in the week and Sam was enjoying his trucks but was frustrated that the ramp he’d set up wouldn’t stay in place.  While I briefly thought about trying to help him tape his giant ramp in place, I remembered our stash of paper rolls just waiting to be used for something fun, and that’s when this little car ramp sensory bin was created!

IMG 2161

Now thinking back, I’m pretty sure that this idea was inspired by The Imagination Tree’s awesome cardboard tube racing activity…  I remember seeing her beautifully painted tracks and colourful images a long time ago… I probably just didn’t realize what a little car enthusiast I’d have on my hands one day in the future!

Car Ramp Sensory Bin

Our ramps certainly aren’t as pretty as hers and maybe one day we’ll paint an entire set of paper roll roadways {how fun would that be?}, but these certainly did the job and setting everything up was incredibly quick and easy.

Car Ramp Sensory Bin

Because this little set up was completely impromptu, I didn’t take photos of the set up process like I usually do, but I think it’s pretty self explanatory.

Car Ramp Sensory Bin{this post contains affiliate links}

All you need is a pair of scissors, some cardboard tubes, painter’s tape {CAN}, and a big, shallow bin {CAN}.  {Any big, shallow bin will do, but this huge under the bed bin is one of my absolute favourites for any kind of sensory or small world activity.}

Car Ramp Sensory Bin

All you have to do is cut the tubes in half lengthwise, trim them down to whichever size you like, and then use painter’s tape to secure one end to the edge of the bin and the other to the base of the bin.

Car Ramp Sensory Bin

Add a bunch of little vehicles and it’s time to play!

Car Ramp Sensory Bin

The beauty of having your ramps contained in a big bin?  The cars zip down quickly, but stay within reach!  A bin of this size also means that there’s more than enough room for several kiddos to play at once, and Miss G actually did play alongside Sam for quite a while.

Car Ramp Sensory Bin

While we’ve tucked our bin away for now, I’ve saved the paper tube ramps to use again next time and I’m certain it won’t be long before Sam requests this activity again.

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