10 things to do in a hotel room with a toddler.

So being that we have been in a hotel for about 3 weeks and still have a little more than 2 more to go has brought me to search for things to do with a toddler. I haven't had much luck finding any sort of helpful lists. The few lists I was able to dig up were silly and basically pointing towards, there is nothing to do in a hotel room. I was determined not to give up! There has to be SOMETHING. These days with technology you end up playing a lot of games or watching movies. That's all fine and dandy until you are sitting still so much in one room and slowly losing your mind. The internet may be vast but sometimes you can stare at the screen thinking, "I don't know what to look up" or "What site should I visit now?" all while drawing a blank. Plus these activities aren't good for your toddler who is so pent up with energy that he/she won't stop bouncing off the walls.

If you were smart enough to bring toddler friendly board games along on your trip that is a great alternative to TV and movies. I was not smart enough to pack any games. I did however pack some of my sons preschool workbooks. Those workbooks are great...unless you have a toddler who wants to run/play because he hasn't been able to therefor is only able to focus on the workbooks for about 15-20 minutes! So here are the ideas I came up with that my son is able to focus on and enjoy.

     1. Play with toys in the bath. Luckily my son got some sea life toy animals before we arrived at our hotel so he has had those to throw in there. This is a great pass time for a few reasons. First your toddler gets to use their imagination, second they get nice and clean, and third it keeps him/her in one spot SITTING for a little while.

     2. Color in a coloring book. If you have a toddler, you probably got crayons and coloring pages or a book somewhere along the way to your hotel or from a restaurant. I know this is similar to the work book but it doesn't involve them to focus or answer questions as much as a workbook. My son likes to ask me what to color each spot, which kind of turns it into a learning activity since he is correctly following my directions (example: color the hat red and the boots blue).

     3. Play outside. Most hotels have a court yard or outdoor area of some sort. Our current hotel has a small field next to the parking lot. In the summer/spring you can play tag. In the fall you can build big leave piles, and in the winter you can make a snowman/snow fort. There are so many different ways to play outside no matter what season.

     4. Play hide and seek in the room. This can be a great alternative to going outside if it is raining or just bad weather. There is usually plenty of furniture to hide behind and luckily with toddlers and young kids you don't need to hide well. Take turns hiding and searching. This can also be educational by adjusting what number to count to. If your child counts to 10 no problem up the count to 15, then 20. You can show them how by counting first and then let them try. I had to tell my son to count to 20 but count SLOW because he was counting so fast I couldn't even get behind a door before he was coming after me.

     5. If you have a computer or access to some kind of music, have a dance party. Even little boys enjoy jumping around to music. BONUS, it wears them out!

     6. Make/play with sock puppets. You don't need to own puppets to do this. Simply get some socks and get creative for the faces; use washable marker, use stickers to make the face, and if nothing else make a toothpaste face!

     7. Have a ball? Roll it back and forth or make a course to roll it through. If it's a soft ball you can play an gentle game of catch.

     8. Take silly pictures. Chances are that you probably have something to take pictures with whether it's a camera, your phone, a laptop, or a handheld game system of some sort. Get the silly's out by taking goofy pictures together.

     9. Build a fort. Go back to your childhood. What did you do on rainy days, at sleepovers, or just when you were bored? Build a blanket fort! Use pillows, sheets, blankets, cushion seats...whatever you have available. BONUS, this could make nap time fun.

     10. Explore. Have you looked to see what your hotel has to offer? Go check things out. If you've explored your hotel thoroughly then head outside and explore your surroundings. You might get lucky and find a park or a neat store. Plus it gets your toddler and yourself burning a little energy in the process.

Well that's all I've figured out so far, like I said before we still have a little more than 2 weeks to go so it's possible we could find more hotel room activities. Good luck with your adventure and I hope this helped!

Ashley

Reisen nach Deutschland

Hallo!

Brot, Zucker, Bitte, Auf Wiedersehen, Teller, Tische, Obst, Tasse, Glas, Tschüs, Orangensaft, Apfel, Die Frau, Der Mann, Das Kind, Das Mädchen...

Okay, okay...if you haven't noticed those are all German words. I am working on learning German. Why German you ask? Well, my husband, son, and myself are now living in Germany for the next 3 years. It's exciting, yes! It is also a culture shock. Learning another language doesn't seem like such a big deal until YOU are the one who can't speak the language of the Country. Now just to clarify, the words above are not the only ones I know. I just figured that was enough to get my point across. :D

So I realize it's been quite awhile since I've updated this blog. I really am HORRIBLE at this. However, I am here now and will explain...

My husband requested to be stationed in Germany so that we may see some of the world while we can. It has been quite an interesting and stressful few months. We had to go to a bunch of appointments and make sure we did everything we needed to in order to be able to come to Germany. We drove cross country (West Texas to Central Florida) to visit family before we flew to the airport where we would board our flight to Germany. Once we arrived in Germany it was errand after errand trying to situates ourselves here. You don't realize everything that needs to be done until you arrive just because it is within a different Country. A different bank account to use with local German businesses, new phone companies you've never heard of, getting a P.O. Box and then figuring out how to forward mail to an APO address, taking the proper driving test, getting around and trying to FIND your way around, learning to interact in a different language...really the list goes on and on! Just like anything else though, with a little practice (and the occasional help from good 'ole Google) you will learn and adapt. There are still things we are trying to do and accomplish but some of them, such as learning a language, will take time and continuous effort.

On the bright side we are in a beautiful Country, we get to experience the seasons again, see a different culture, and travel. There are so many places to go and see that I don't think we'll be able to see it all even in the 3 years we'll be here. We sure will try though!

For now we are still in a hotel while we wait to move in to our post housing. Luckily we have a kitchen to use so that we can cook our own meals. The downfall of still being in a hotel is that there is not much to do. I haven't put a lot of thought into it yet but it is very likely that my next post will be; Things to do in a hotel with a toddler. Trust me I have searched Pinterest for ideas with no luck. So I am off to make my own list, wish me luck!

Bis Bald!

Ashley