Fun with... Laundry!

Today (after throwing all the clean laundry from my bed to the floor) the kids helped me sort and fold the laundry.  It actually turned out to be quite a bit of fun, and used lots of good fine and gross motor skills. 

First we sorted the clothes into categories, and then I showed the girls how to fold different types of items:

The kids worked very carefully on this task and did a fantastic job.  If the folding was not quite right they kept trying until they got it.  Folding blankets was an extra challenge because it involved teamwork:

Finally we played a little game with matching socks (I confess - I pulled more clean socks out of the dresser for this).  We put all the socks into a pile and then had to run to the pile, find a pair of matching socks, run back to the other side of the room and put them down on the tray.  At first L didn't want to play, but after I offered to time her with the stopwatch, she suddenly became interested (a little competitive spirit in that girl).  She made me take a turn while she timed me, too (workout for the day - check!). 

 

E didn't want to play the sock game at all because she was sitting in Baby H's carseat pretending to be a baby.  It brought tears to my eyes to see what a big girl she looks like in the chair that we used to bring her home from the hospital as a 4-lbs preemie only 2.5 years ago.  How quickly they grow!

The good time we had with laundry reminded me that kids' activities don't always have to be complicated or pre-planned... there is fun (and learning) in even the simple everyday things. 

Oh, and I'd love to say this activity helped me get something done around the house.  But, alas, after the clothes were folded, the kids decided it would be fun to throw them back into the laundry basket and then engage in other miscellaneous mess-creating activities around my bedroom...