Hi there! A couple of weeks ago I did a guest post over at Disney Insider Tips about my five favorite Disney activities for kids under four. I thought I’d share that post with you, just in case you missed reading about it over there! We went to Disney back in April and my then 18 month old and four year old had just as much fun doing activities to prepare for the trip as we did on the actual vacation! We made a Countdown Chain to give us some activities to get us pumped for the trip, so every four days we were doing some sort of Disney project! Here are my Top 5 Favorite Disney Activities for Kids Under Four {click on each title or picture for more information}:
1. Mickey Mouse Memory/Patterning/BINGO/Old Maid/Matching
I found scrapbook paper at Michaels that just had squares with Disney character heads on it….I cut all the squares out and made a variety of games with them. Lamination definitely helps protect the pieces from sticky fingers! Kids under four love {short} games that they can play with others. Games like BINGO, Matching, Memory and Old Maid can be tailored by the parent to fit the child’s attention span {less cards to match in the game of Memory equals a VERY short game!!}. Plus, the kids just love playing with and looking at all of their favorite characters’ faces!
2. Mickey Mouse Pizza Night
Ready made pizza dough, some pizza sauce and cheese make this a quick dinner that any age child loves to help make! They control what toppings go on their pizza and squishing the dough under their fingers makes it extra fun. Moms, add some new toppings to try {think mini pepperonis, chopped up onions or peppers, or ham cubes and pineapple} to make dinner healthier!
I don’t know about you, but my little girls are ALL ABOUT anything princess or fairy! So, when I was brainstorming ideas for our Disney Countdown Chain, making a fairy wand for my two little princesses was a given! All it took was some pom pom balls, feathers, a dowel rod, silver pipecleaners and hot glue. Instant hit!
A great patterning activity for toddlers is creating a “trail mix” type snack. I put separate bowls of Mickey Mouse colored {red, yellow, white and black} snack items out on the table and had the kids pick one of each item to put in their snack bags. One pretzel, one red dried strawberry, one black chocolate chip, one white chocolate covered raisin, and one yellow M&M….repeat.
These bags are a cinch to make if you are a sewer, using strips and sheets of felts {it doesn’t fray!}. But if you don’t sew, Hobby Lobby has ready-made bags, and then you can cut out a black felt Mickey head and ears, and hot glue them onto the bag. I got creative with felt earrings, noses, and glasses. If you have toddlers on the younger end, I highly recommend sticking with the basics {eyes, nose, mouth, glasses}, as my 18month old didn’t really care about the necklace or earrings I made! I also regret not making any funny mustaches!! Get creative, sketch it out on cardboard first, and then trace it onto the felt.
I was completely OCD when planning our trip to Disneyworld, and created an entire series {including the above packing list!} for all of the Disney planning and activities that we did to get ready. But these Disney activities for kids under four, were {by far!} the favorites in our house! Thanks so much for reading!
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My dresses come in three sizes, 18m-2T/3-4/5-6. The sets that I have made so far for McAdoodle are coordinating, meaning there are multiple sizes and patterns that match or coordinate with each other. {If you are like me and have two daughters, odds are they won’t want to “match”, but you’ll want their dresses to at least coordinate color and pattern-wise!}
