Going on a (Paper) Picnic

  Sometimes it is fun to make a special date for a stuffed animal. Even if they can't really eat, why not take them on a picnic? I saw this idea for "flat food," (as they called it) in the book The 2,000 Best Games and Activities.  

 They suggest cutting out food and give some ideas of what you can do once you have them glued down. We opted to make a date with the boys' favorite stuffed animals and go to the park and have a (paper) picnic.

It's really simple. Just find some old magazine with pictures of food in them. A magazine with recipes might be good, but even just simple ads are also a great resource. A little glue, paper plates and scissors, and you are all set!

The kiddos looked through some magazines for food that they thought their animals might like, or maybe they just thought they looked good! They worked their scissor skills as they cut the pictures out.

Next up was arranging them on the plates and gluing them down.

Once they are dry, grab your stuffed friends, head to a park or backyard or even just the living room. 

Then let them enjoy! (It is probably a little more fun if the kids have something real to eat too.)

My boys have liked doing special things for/with their stuffed animals. One of them apparently was having his birthday last week, so the kids asked if we would sing "Happy Birthday" to the animal. 

One of our local libraries also has a fun thing they do in the summer where the kids can drop off their animals for a sleepover. When we pick them up in the morning, there is a video of all the silly things they did all night away from the humans. (In fact, if you are curious, you can watch the video HERE. The kids LOVED it!) Stuffed animals can sometimes be an extension of a child and at least in our house, I feel like it is important to treat them nicely. These two - Peng and Bun are often doing things that are far naughtier than my kids will do, but somehow being able to have their animals be that way helps them. I'm no pro about this, just stuff I have noticed. Anyway, try out the picnic. Any time of year will work depending on where they take their little plates of food.