By Bryn Huntpalmer / The Mother List
Summer is the perfect time of year to get some work done in the yard. If you have older kids you can put them to work raking leaves or even mowing the lawn but there are plenty of chores your toddler can help with too. This list will get you started with some ideas on how to occupy your toddler while you’re doing yard work.
1. Weeding – Even a two year old can help with weeding flower beds. Just be sure to point out what is a weed and what needs to stay in the ground, then enjoy having an extra pair of hands to tackle those summer weeds.
2. Watering – Get your toddler their own little watering can and let them water everything in sight. They will absolutely love getting to mimic you and help the plants grow.
3. Watching the baby – Sometimes when we are doing yard work we bring our 10 month old outside too and give our toddler the very important job of watching her brother. This can include things like alerting us if he crawls towards the edge of the deck or puts a rock in his mouth. Of course, we have our eyes on him too but she doesn’t know that and she loves being our “babysitter” so we can get more work done in the yard.
4. Painting – It’s pretty common knowledge that toddlers love to paint so next time you’re working in the yard with your toddler, give them a bucket of water and a giant paintbrush and ask them to paint the fence or the front door or the sidewalk, or the trees… you get the idea!
5. Sweeping Leaves – Although I wouldn’t entrust my toddler with a rake, she can really rock a broom. We ask her to help with leaf raking by sweeping all of the leaves on the porch into one big pile!
6. Clearing Brush – aka picking up sticks. Toddlers love playing with sticks so if you have a bunch of them in your yard show your toddler how to gather them into a pile. In the winter they can collect small twigs in a bucket as kindling for a fire.
7. Fixing things – Toddlers LOVE to fix things just like mommy and daddy. Give your toddler a small screwdriver and show them some “loose” screws in the fence or deck that need their help. This will entertain a toddler for ages and they feel so accomplished for being the fixer!
Writer | Blogger | Mama of two, Bryn spends mornings savoring her daily latte and evenings counting down to her next caffeine fix. A Texan at heart, she and her husband are now raising their two kids on the Oregon Coast and eternally in search of a decent margarita. You can find her on Facebook or oversharing on a daily basis on her blog, Her Own Wings.
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