Inexpensive Toys/ Books for Visiting Preschoolers? [Archive]

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try2bfrugal

5-3-13, 6:04pm

We will have some visitors this summer with preschool age kids. If I wanted to spend say $25 to have a box of toys, used books or DVDs here for their arrival, how would you spent it if they were your guests?

The library has an ongoing book sale with 50 cent books. I am hesitant to borrow books from the library because then if they wreck them I have to pay back the full price. With the sales books I could get 10 or so for $5 and they can take them on the rest of their trip or I could just donate them back to the library. I thought I could borrow DVDs from the library to watch because they wouldn't be handling those.

Maybe play dough, bubbles, squirt guns, $5 worth of books and ? If I get stuff at the 99 cent store like squirt guns would it last a week or so?

Tussiemussies

5-3-13, 6:10pm

Like your idea of not using the books from your library. Everything else on your list sounds like fun. Maybe also sidewalk chaulk that they could use in the backyard if you have concrete in the back. The front is too hazardous at that age?

Have fun!

Valley

5-3-13, 6:20pm

A cheap flashlight, bean bags and a target, paper and washable markers, old calculator, play money and pads for a pretend store/restaurant, and a large bouncing ball gives a child a lot of creative options.

Rosemary

5-3-13, 6:49pm

* blanket-over-the-table fort.
* see if you can borrow some legos (may need duplos depending on the ages involved) or blocks from someone you know.
* dress-up. Put some random clothes and accessories in a box and let the kids have fun. Hats, purses, necklaces, shirts/blouses, skirts, scarves, old Halloween gear, old uniforms from various activities, shoes etc. Girls and boys alike love this at that age. The clothing does not need to actually fit a preschooler.
* keep an eye out for yard sales. You can get great things for this age group for almost free because there are SO many toys and kids at that age go through them so quickly.

Lainey

5-3-13, 10:25pm

I second a lot of these ideas, but I'd change the ball to a beach ball type - that way nobody gets hurt if they get bonked with one.

mtnlaurel

5-4-13, 8:08am

How thoughtful that you are prepping for their visit they are going to feel so special!!!

Playing in the hose is always a hit with my kids.
Scavenger hunts. When they first get there hand them 2 cheap pails and hide the goodies out in the yard for them to go find ????
My kids are crazy about flashlights too :)
Sidewalk chalk occupies them for a long time
Old magazines and glue for collages - you might need to help them cut out pix depending on skills

My daughter gets a ton of mileage out of magnetic board toys, she like to play pretend scenarios and they keep her busy for long lengths of time.
My son was a builder and could stay busy with building toys.

If you have the patience, my kids love to help in the kitchen.

This is out of the scope of your op.....These are more things for activities away from your home:
We go on a family tour every summer and I try to find Vacation Bible Schools when I'm visiting relatives. I find them online before I go. It's a great way to break up the day, the churches usually have wonderful programs with early ed teachers volunteering. And I get some quiet time to have adult time with my hosts. The cost is low, so if the kids miss a day or two it's not a big deal. If it is free, I send a donation to the church. The churches seem to love to have visitors from other places. And my kids love having other kid time. Kids can get totally wack-a-doodle after too much time in car/plane and when they are out of their usual surroundings and everyone is asking them what they want to do now or telling them to sit still and not touch the fancy stuff at Great Aunt Ida's house. Sometimes when we're visiting others, it's been a while since they have been around kids 24/7 and it can be a bit much.
This is not necessarily an idea that works for all and many could take offense at it - I'm just putting it here to share what I do, not necessarily something that works for everyone.

These are other things I do online before I visit:

Scope out playgrounds in the area.
Google to see if the town has a list of of kid activities - I have found some awesome free, inexpensive/interesting things to do.
When you are at the library get a list of library kid happenings in your library system

You might want to have some options to suggest to your guests that they can go out on their own, so you can get a few moments of peace. I hang with small people all the time right now, so I have my tolerance built up that many things don't even register with me -- like my radar is recalibrated to only acknowledge somewhere between richter 7-8, anything lower than that I leave to the kids to figure out.

Also, I would suggest that you get clear what the small people rules are in your house.
Where they can eat/drink. Shoes off or on in house. etc.
I love to know the house rules up front so I can help put them in place.
Sometimes learning doled out or fluctuating rules throughout a visit gets confusing for me & the kids.
You can say all this in a very nice way and not come off as a heavy.

Here is the best rule ever I learned from my husband's grandmother -- "You can touch that with 1 finger" -- it satisfies the touch/sensory urge and they can't do any damage.

try2bfrugal

5-4-13, 12:26pm

Thanks everyone. Those are all great ideas. The scavenger idea sounds like a good way to make even giving them the toys a fun activity.

mtnlaurel

5-5-13, 8:14am

try2bfrugal

5-5-13, 11:11am

Yesterday my DD pulled out a Memory game without any prompting and played all by herself
She'll be in Kindergarten next year

I am always trying to remember what toys the kids will play all on their own without needing any parent help - I like to give those as gifts

We actually have a couple of memory games for kids. I bought them for DH and I to play try to keep our brains from aging. I am glad you mentioned it because I might have forgotten about them otherwise since they are packed away in a closet.

Aqua Blue

5-5-13, 1:22pm

My 2 yo niece loves to play with my plastic andlittle wooden bowls when she is over even tho she has a bin with toys. I have some of those silicone ones that are squishy and she always wants to play with them.

Tiam

5-5-13, 1:33pm

Thanks everyone. Those are all great ideas. The scavenger idea sounds like a good way to make even giving them the toys a fun activity.

Just a side note. If they are preschoolers can they read? If you are planning a scavengar hunt, the key would probably need to be in pictures and not words. I do this all the time. Kids love it.

Paver1951

5-14-13, 1:35am

For what age? Babies don't really need toys at all until around 3-4 months, and even then, a little goes a long way. A few rattles with lots of contrast (black and white) and bright colors would be more than enough. Once baby reaches around 6 months, they need/want more stimulation, but you still don't have to go overboard. Some of my baby's favorite toys weren't toys at all, but stacks of empty yogurt cups that he could stack up and knock over, or empty salad dressing bottles I filled with some dry rice and he used them as rattles/shakers. Babies can have fun forever with empty bowls or tupperware and a big spoon to bang with. Don't focus on store-bought toys if you don't have the cash -- just look around your house and find things that are safe and interesting for a baby. Good luck and have fun!

Tiam

5-14-13, 1:39am

If you have room and patience it for it, a small wading pool filled with a good quality sand an some sand toys. And some shade Another one for wading in water also.

Paver1951

5-16-13, 12:35am

There's not a lot of super fun toys you can get for under 10 bucks except for ones that allow for imagination.

Maybe a doll or a set of blocks or play food? That way she can get lots of use out of it. And truthfully, imaginative toys are more fun than the flashy expensive ones.

try2bfrugal

5-16-13, 11:56am

I don't know their exact ages just that they are in preschool. Thanks for all the continued great suggestions!

mtnlaurel

5-17-13, 7:23am

Here's another idea I had after visiting a kid museum...
Save and tape up food boxes so they could set up and play grocery store.

I think all it would take are things you already may have or could easily get at dollar store:
- big faced calculator for cash register
- basket or pails for shopping baskets
- a few brown paper bags to bag the groceries
- save food boxes you would normally throw away

It's a little over the top, but my DD would go bananas for that.
She loves anything that mimics being a grown up.

Also, she could spend a whole day gluing cotton balls on a piece of construction paper.

mtnlaurel

7-14-13, 7:56am

try2bfrugal

7-14-13, 12:35pm

Hi Try2bfrgual - I don't know if your company has come yet or not, but I saw this fun thing to do with stuff already on hand (painters' tape & newspaper) that both of my kids (5&9) would love to do and they would have loved to do it when they were younger too

http://handsonaswegrow.com/halloween-activity-a-sticky-spider-web/

I just quickly looked at other places on website, lots of great ideas!

Thanks for the suggestions. Actually they have come and gone. We set up two little wading pools in the backyard - one with sand and one with water, plus the sprinkler. We also had sidewalk chalk, bubbles, squirt bottles, buckets and sponges, a bunch of kitchens containers and utensils, and a big pile of dollar toys. They were busy all day long just blowing bubbles, pouring water from one container to the next, squirting water on things and having tea parties with food and tea made from sand in the $1 tea sets.

At night we had cookouts with the patio set up with all sorts cute solar lights, and the kids had flashlights with rechargeable batteries, portable solar lights and lots of glow sticks from the dollar bins.

It was quite a fun and frugal play set. It worked out well and they were quite busy all day and night. Thanks for all the great suggestions!