I’ve been saving a collection of empty bottles and lids for a while now (think smoothie bottles, sparkling water, peanut jars etc.). Basically anything with a lid that a toddler can twist off. Today, I finally pulled out the collection and there were so many ways that Veronika and I could play with them!

We started with the obvious: placing all the bottles in front of her with the lids off, so she could mix and match and figure out which lid belonged where.

She was remarkably adept at this, I think because she knows some of these bottles by sight (like her favorite smoothie!). Sometimes she picked up a lid that was too big or too small, and I loved watching her puzzle through why it wouldn’t twist onto the bottle she’d chosen.

Next, we did a little learning. I lined up the bottles from big to small, pointing out the size differences to Veronika.

Older toddlers can solve this challenge all by themselves, but for Veronika at 19 months old, it was enough to introduce vocabulary about size.

We then filled the bottles with items from around the house that would range in volume from quiet to loud. Our items included: pipe cleaners (the quietest), a pen, craft sticks, and buttons (the loudest!)

She loved shaking these…

…so of course we had to put on some music and have a jam session. Then she wanted to get at the items inside the bottles, so the lids were twisted off once more.

Once the lids were off, we had fun rolling them on the floor! You could even have bottle cap races if your kids are a bit older.

Finally, we did an art activity, tracing all of the lids on a piece of heavy watercolor paper. (Older toddlers can practice their own tracing).

I asked Veronika what shape she saw. “Circle!” she said proudly.

We used watercolor paint to fill in the circles. I mostly was the one painting, filling each circle with a different color, while Veronika was more into the cups of water!

But the resulting artwork looked quite neat.

Just a girl busy with her bottle and lid collection!

How do you play with bottles and lids? Please share in the comments.

With only two weeks of home school left to go, I still need quick fixes to keep Veronika busy while big brother does his lessons! Today I was reminded that sometimes simpler is better. This activity required zero preparation to set up, and zero mess to clean up!

I just pulled out measuring cups (both the liquid kind and the dry kind) and a pot. That was it. And then I asked her to make imagination soup! My little chef soon went to town. She poured ingredients into the pot…

…took the lid off and on and enjoyed the clang this made each time…

…and of course tasted!

I loved watching her lift the measuring cups to her lips and make a slurping noise. “Is it yummy?” I asked her. “Yummy!” she replied. Those dry measuring cups are also great because they double as a nesting and stacking toy.

She kept very busy in her kitchen while Travis did his morning school work. I wonder what she put in her imagination soup?