Continuing with my weekly boredom busters, here's something my kids have been enjoying this week: freezing their toys in blocks of ice then chipping them free.So simple it's brilliant. Little cars, pennies, toy dinosaurs, whatever is laying around (though I drew the line at the parakeet) they stick it in a tub of water overnight then have fun excavating it from the ice with a hammer and "chisel" (otherwise known as a screwdriver) the next day.
Lots of fun for my little archaeologists on a hot summer afternoon.
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Technorati tags: WFMW, crafts, children, summer vacation, ice
Love this idea! Thanks! That will definately work for me.
ReplyDeleteGreat idea!
ReplyDeleteSounds like fun - will try this! :-)
ReplyDeleteWhat a great idea. This is one I haven't heard before. I will suggest it to my kids and see if it will work for them!
ReplyDeleteMy kids will be all over this one. I can just picture them having races to see who gets theirs out first.
ReplyDeleteThe simplicity is brilliant!
That is so funny! And yet, I fully believe that I would've loved it too as a kid. Thanks for the great idea!
ReplyDeleteClever!
ReplyDeleteFun!
ReplyDeleteWe buried toy dinosaurs in dirt/sand box (water table). They loved excavating.
Really brilliant! As soon as X-man has enough control to handle a screwdriver and a hammer, we'll have to try this!
ReplyDeleteI absolutely love this idea- I'm on my way to the freezer as soon as I'm off this computer!
ReplyDeleteThanks
Cheri
Brilliant!
ReplyDeleteClever.
ReplyDeleteOh, that sounds like fun! I feel like an archeologist when I expand my garden. We always find odd pieces of broken ceramics, etc. (Old house, historic neighborhood)
ReplyDeleteOh My! This is GREAT!
ReplyDeleteWow. I don't know which amazes me more -- the brilliance of the idea or the fact that Alaska actually gets warm enough to melt ice.
ReplyDeleteKidding! I'm kidding.
I'll be using this something this week in 90-degree Minnesota.
My three boys did this when they were younger. Had to draw the line when they set fire to their younger sister's toys (mostly McDonalds trinkets) and recorded it on video.
ReplyDeleteMy kids will love this - thanks!A
ReplyDeleteBirlliant! I love it!
ReplyDeleteNeat idea!
ReplyDeleteLinda
Great idea! Although, knowing my boys, they'd end up hurling the ice blocks in a contest...
ReplyDeleteI LOVE this idea. My kids might be a little young for it still, but I'll probably give it a try!!!
ReplyDeleteMy kids LOVE doing this. It's free, it's fun, it's perfect.
ReplyDeleteThrough in some mouse bones and you can start training young paleotologists.
ReplyDeleteLove this idea. Love the photos, especially the trousers above the ankle and how you know it's time for school to begin. Clever.
ReplyDeletePoor parakeet! ha ha
We also have birdies, or budgies as we call them.
Another GREAT idea! We are taking Ethan to a dinosaur exhibit next week so this might be something fun to do when we get back. Thanks for the tip!
ReplyDeleteOkay, now that's a fabulous idea!
ReplyDeleteMy 6, 4, and 3 year olds will be all over this one! COOL idea (pardon the pun)
ReplyDeleteMy kids do this all the time. I have to kick their toys out of the freezer at times to make room for icecream.
ReplyDeleteWhat an idea - you're a genius! My girls would flip over this. We're are definately trying this tonight!
ReplyDeleteI think some of my boys would get impatient and just throw the ice blocks on the pavement to break them.
ReplyDeleteI saw something in a magazine this week about freezing various sized containers of water and using them as blocks of ice outside in the summertime.
That sounds very "alaskan" although I bet its not freezing up there right now!
ReplyDeleteI'm going to file this idea away for when my sons are a bit older, they'd love that!
May I suggest safety goggles??? Cece
ReplyDeleteThis is brilliant!
ReplyDeleteI have been known to freeze colored icecubes and then throw them in the wading pool or tub with them so they can watch them melt and play with them, but never thought of something like this. . . . Buddy would LOVE it. The only problem would be ensuring that hammers and screwdrivers were not used on each other . . . .
That is *such* a good idea. I'll have to file that away for the future.
ReplyDeleteNancy
What a fantastic idea. As soon as my daughter's old enough to be allowed a hammer and screwdriver, I'm trying this out!
ReplyDeleteYou're a genius. For real.
ReplyDeleteSo we've had to do this everyday since I found this idea on your blog! My son puts together a bowl just before bed - he found out that tootsie rolls don't work - they just made brown ice - He just fill the bowl with small toys and water (I make one for my 2 yo DD as well) and they chisel away at it with the business end of a wrench, while the dog catches all the chunks that fall off - it has been really good fun for all of us! Thanks for the idea!
ReplyDeleteI'll be putting you on my "resources" list, so I can keep looking back for new ideas. Thanks!
It sounds really great. . i loved this idea!!! hope it works for me
ReplyDeleteThanks for sharing!!!
So fun! I'll have to keep an eye out for thrifted tools since my little one has a few years before I'll let her loose with a hammer. :>) I linked this on my weekly roundup - can be found here. Thanks!
ReplyDelete