Foam Pumpkin DIY Bath Puzzle

How to Make a Easy DIY Pumpkin Bath Puzzle

Make bath time a fun learning experience with this easy foam bath puzzle.
Did you know that when wet foam sticks to the wall tiles? so you can make any type of puzzle in any theme and at any level of difficulty depending on what colour foam pieces you have and the interests and skills of your child.



Finished Puzzle and one very Proud little boy.





I had an Orange foam piece so in the theme of Halloween I cut out a pumpkin shape head. Using permanent marker I drew on a happy jack-o-lantern face. Then cut it into a puzzle! Depending on the age and stage of your child you could do a puzzle with 4-5 horizontal pieces or cut it in to many smaller intricate pieces.




Step 1: Cut and draw your pumpkin, then cut your puzzle pieces.

I floated the pieces face up in an orange bath and Dimples had fun piecing the puzzle together. I added some food colour, and black pompoms in the bath to make it extra fun and Halloween themed.



Step 2: Pour your Halloween Bath and float the puzzle in it.

The Pumpkin was a challenge but Dimples managed it with a little bit of focus. I refrained from jumping in or offering too many hints, I waited for him to ask for help and because he accomplished it all by himself with only a little help from myself he was extremely proud of himself.



Step 4: Let them go and offer hints if needed.

Tips:

• Have distinguishable features so that your child can see an Easy start, for instance the grooves in the Pumpkin Head at the top or 'hair'.
• I did all the pieces with straight cuts but one different wavy smooth cut through the centre so that this was a definite win for Dimples or a start point and you should have a clue, like a corner of an eye or a smile.
• Have a bit of the drawing/texter on almost every piece to distinguish the front of the puzzle from the back, when there are too many blank pieces that look similar it gets difficult because the child has to decide which way the piece faces, back or front as well as in what direction.

If you were wondering, the Permanent marker hasn't come off the Pumpkin Face at all, it didn't smear or run at all and after use the foam pieces dry almost instantly. Dimples has done the puzzle 4 nights in a row so far at Bath time and the puzzle hasn't changed or faded at all.  Each time he is very pleased with himself and then tells me that the pumpkin has gotten old, and is crumbling away as he knocks it back into the bath. Knocking it all off after his success is just as fun as making it. Then we just stack the pieces up and put it up for next time.



 Thanks for visiting!

 

 Happy Adventures :)

Bat Bowling & a BOO! Halloween Link Party

Halloween is nearly upon us, but instead of the usual messy sensory play in this adventurous household Dimples has been getting physical with some cute Bat Bowling pins.

It took about 10 minutes to make these DIY batty bowls. I used 6 small empty water bottles with some black water-colour paint in them, screwed the lids on super tight and shook the paint around inside. I simply used a glue gun for the rest. I stuck some orange ribbon around the lids, I cut some bat wings from black cardboard leaving enough room for a fold, these were also glued on with the gun and of course 2 batty button eyes. Done! Ready to roll!! 

What you need

 

We used them outside for a while and Dimples experimented with different size balls. We took turns and had a proper game of bowling then took it inside and dimples continued by him as I cooked tea. He lined them all up next to each other and in a triangle set. Slowly creeping forward each time he bowled, it was so funny to watch. Great active fun indoors and out.

 

If you're a regular on my blog you may have noticed we have been doing lots of Halloween stuff. I love Halloween and its a great holiday for children to get into, lots of funky colours, fun activities, strange food and don't forget a great excuse to dress up.

 

In celebration of Halloween and all the awesome ideas out there, myself and fellow Australian Mum and child focused blogger Stephanie from Boy mama Teacher mama thought we would host our very first linky party, a Halloween central spectacular.

Welcome to Boo! A Halloween Linky! We are excited to see your Halloween activities and to share them with Halloween fans around the globe.

Boo! A Halloween Linky 
is co-hosted by Adventures at Home with Mum and boy mama teacher mama

When you link-up you will appear on both sites. Please feel free to share any post you have related to Halloween. We welcome crafts, activities, play ideas, recipes and costume ideas. The Linky will run from October 19th through until November 3rd.

Throughout that time, Adventures at Home with Mum and Boy Mama Teacher Mama will feature a few posts that we think will interest our readers.

 

A Few Guidelines

• Please link your favourite post featuring a Halloween activity, craft, recipe etc. Feel free to link more than one post, but please no more than 4.

• Please do not link giveaways if they are not related to Halloween.

• Grab a Boo! A Halloween Linky Button and display it on the post you are linking or somewhere else on your site.

<div align="center"><a href="http://www.adventuresathomewithmum.blogspot.com.au/" title="Boo! A Halloween Linky"><img src="http://i1072.photobucket.com/albums/w377/stephfw18/HalloweenLinky120.png" alt="Boo! A Halloween Linky" style="border:none;" /></a></div>

• Once you have linked-up, share the love and visit a few other posts from the linky. And don’t forget to leave a comment.

A Reminder

Linking up gives

Adventures at Home with Mum and Boy Mama Teacher Mama permission to feature and share your post via various social Medias including Pinterest. If you are featured, we may grab a photo from your blog for use in the post and, of course, we will share a link back to your site.

 

Thanks for linking-up!

Happy Halloween!

 

Wicked Witch of the East Legs

 

Wicked Witch of the East

As in the classic Wizard of Oz Movie, the Wicked Witch of the East gets flattened by Dorothy's house.  If you recall the move the Wicked Witch ruled over the little munchkins and slaved them until she was flattened by the flying house. The Wicked Witch of the East was wearing some striped stockings and the Red ruby slippers and after she was squashed by Dorothy's house she wilted away and turned to dust leaving nothing but the magical slippers and the munchkins were forever grateful to their saviour.

 

Well here is our version, Dimples' magic flying cubby house landed on this Wicked Witch and flattened her. She didn't have red ruby slippers but she did have your typical Witch boots, pointy toes ugly looking and a little scary, these are too small for me now and I think were given to me years ago but will never be worn and some bright striped tights that we got for $2 at the bargain shop but you could really use any old tights that you find laying around or you always grab something cool and inexpensive at the Salvation Army or Saint Vincent DePaul 2nd hand shops.

 

It worked well and looks pretty awesome under the cubby house.

The perfect Halloween Decoration; All we did was roll newspaper into the legs of the pair of over knee socks, tie the tights together at the top and put on some boots. The stuck it under the edge of the cubby house, and Dimples (who has never watched Wizard of Oz) thought it was hillarious.  

 

 

 Happy Adventures