On the one and only afternoon I need to get ready for an fancy evening event, my ultra routine 2-hour-nap-every-single-day girl wakes up after 50 minutes, ready to get up and get busy playing again.  Ugh.  I had only painted my nails in that time, let alone prepped dinner, had a shower, done my hair and make-up, or selected a purse to bring along.  With some serious mommy time needed, I pulled out a little independent play idea I’ve had in the back of my mind for a long while now…  Pipe cleaners and a strainer.  Now, if you’re on Pinterest, you’ve most likely seen this idea circulate dozens of different times.  And rightfully so.  It’s ridiculously simple, it requires only two very basic supplies, it’s super engaging, and it is great for fine motor skill development.  Just what the doctor ordered for a day like today (well that and some hot water, because when I went to have a shower I discovered we had not a stitch).  I set Grae up in her room, gave her the brand new bag of pipe cleaners she’d picked out at the store a few days ago, along with our kitchen stainer, showed her how to put a pipe cleaner through a strainer hole, and let her be.

Let me tell you, she seriously loved it.  There was probably about 25 to 30 minutes of silent, serious play that followed.  In fact, it was so quiet, that I kept peeking around the corner to see what she was up to, and there she’d be, sitting in the middle of her carpet adding more pipe cleaners to her colander masterpiece.

♥