Hodge Podge: Dinosaurs, Astronauts and Glow-in-the-Dark Goop: the 10 best baby sensory experiences!

So, Daisy turns 20 weeks this coming Thursday and I've noticed a steady increase in her demand to be constantly stimulated with new sights, sounds and textures.  I'm not one to break the bank with toys and gadgets and I am constantly looking for ways to entertain and educate her as she grows and becomes more interested in the world around her.

I am really excited to introduce Gude from Hodge Podge, who has written a guest post about the best sensory experiences for babies.  Her blog, as she will tell you, is dedicated to ideas for crafting with children and is a real inspiration - I can't wait to see what ideas she has for my little one!  So, for today, I will leave you in her capable hands as she counts down her top ten.

Hi, I’m Gude from Hodge Podge, where I blog about crafting with, and for children.  I am so excited to be guest-posting here at Life is Peachy!Emma, a thousand thank yous for having me!  In keeping with Emma’s philosophy of positive mother/parenthood and creative inspiration, I hope this post will encourage you to try some fun, simple, low-cost sensory experiences with your baby.

Do come and visit me at Hodge Podge or follow me on Twitter for more ideas HERE! 

Babies are adventurous little explorers and love to put anything and everything into their mouths – it’s their way of discovering and learning about the world around them.  Food is therefore a common first sensory experience.  My boys (AKA Pickle, 2 and Chops, 1) have fed themselves ‘real’ food since they moved on from milk and while Baby-Led Weaning is not for everyone (and makes a HECK of a lot of mess), it is utterly fascinating (and hilarious!) to watch babies discovering flavours like yoghurt, cherries, pasta bolognese and chicken and avocado for the first time…

Another sensory experience, which is fantastic for even very young babies, is massage.  Anna at Little Lotus explains that baby massage can help ‘lower stress levels in the body and help unsettled babies relax… increase body awareness and stimulate the nervous system’.  It’s also a really lovely way to bond with your baby.

So, if you’re keen to set up a more creative or unusual sensory experience for your baby, why not try one of the following ideas? 

1. Raspberry spaghetti from the Imagination Tree yum!

2. Space sensory tub from Totally Tots - Pickle would LOVE this!

3. Ice-play & painting at The Good Long Road - great for hot Summer days!

and a Giant dinosaur ice cube (wow, just wow!) from Crumb Bums 

4. Sensory bags (no mess!) from Growing a Jewelled Rose- the doyenne of sensory experience!

5. Wet newspaper from Hands On As We Grow – so quick, simple and easy!

6. Coloured & scented rice (tutorial) from Play Create Explore Chops would try to scoff this stuff, no doubt…

7. Beach in a box from Mama Pea Pod – I would love one of these myself in the garden!

8. Goop and Glowing Bubbles – another genius and original idea from Growing a Jewelled Rose.

9. Dinosaur sensory bin from Rubber Boots and Elf Shoes.  Older kids would enjoy this one too, right?

10. Flower sensory bottle (no mess!) from My Little 3 And Me how pretty is this?!

NOTE: Please don’t ever leave your baby unsupervised during this kind of activity, especially those involving water. 

Finally - be prepared that they may not enjoy the experience.  If they are frightened, or uncomfortable in any way, simply stop and try again when they are a little older. Pickle HATED sand until he was about 1, but he can’t get enough of the stuff now!