Fun Play: Learning colours & Win a DUPLO prize pack

When was the last time you went to the bathroom without an audience? I actually can’t remember. One time I tried to use the bathroom with the door locked and the kids started sliding drawings underneath, and then screamed as they tried to slide their own bodies under too {kids, it’s a 1cm gap… you WILL NOT fit}.

We’ll do anything for five minutes peace and quiet. Well I will. Over the weekend I gave Lulu a whiteboard marker and told her to go wild on the windows. She did, and then moved over to the wall and went crazy there too. Rookie error.

But, seriously… how nice is five minutes of peace and quiet?
If you’ve got kids, you know what the bricks are in the photo above, right? Right. I’ve been a nanny for 12 years, and a mama for 7 and I’ve seen my fair share. It’s LEGO DUPLO. It’s always been one of those toys that the kids never get sick of, and the way they play with it changes as they grow and change too.

LEGO DUPLO is introducing to the world #DUPLOMumHacks. For me, a Mum Hack is something you do to buy yourself me-time, but in a way that’s good for your kids and good for you. I have kids that want to be within 1 metre of me at all times of the day, so this Mum Hack is a trick I use to get space to breathe and drink a cup of tea while it’s hot…and one I want to share with fellow mums.

We’ve been playing with LEGO DUPLO a lot lately, and along with baby dolls it’s one of Lulu’s favourite things to play {oh, as well as drawing all over the walls, she loves that too!}. Today I wanted to share a few ways I like to let my kids play and then I’m going to encourage you to share your own mum hacks for distracting the kids when you want to grab yourself some ‘me time’ … because PRIZES. The ways kids play with LEGO DUPLO would change from household to household, or childcare centre to childcare centre, so it will be nice to see how your kids play {meaning you get to go to the bathroom ALONE. Huzzah}. It’s all about the Mum Hack, {we’re calling it #DUPLOMumHacks}.

The way I’ve shared below is my favourite mum hack at this stage for Lulu, but I know that in another 6 months we’ll discover different ways to play with DUPLO that will suit what she’s learning at that age.

If I had a parenting style, it would probably be a little freestyle, organic, do-whatever-works. I like kids to make a mess {much to Hubby’s dismay} and to have fun and explore. Sometimes I go all out and do structured play {play with purpose}. Lulu is 19 months old, and is at that age where she’s starting to learn colours. Lacey, being an older sister, is loving being able to teach her, because that’s what older sisters do, right? H

We grabbed a few containers, so that we could sort the LEGO DUPLO into colours. You could use shoe boxes, brown paper bags or whatever containers you have lying around.

Then, we painted the side and base of each container to match the colours we had in our LEGO DUPLO.

And then it’s time to play. We’ll do a little bit of sorting the DUPLO bricks into their matching container, and then free play where the girls do as they please {and I have time to do what I need or want to do}. Yesterday it was piling all of the containers on top of each other and sitting a little rabbit on top. Tomorrow, who knows?

Other ways we like to play with DUPLO:

♥ Letting their imaginations run wild.

The girls build houses and play with the little people and make up stories as they go. Lulu thinks this is pretty hilarious. We have the My First Playhouse, My First Tractor and a few other pieces.
♥ Build them up and up and up. The blocks are big enough for Lulu to connect them together {gross motor skills}, so she’ll happily connect and disconnect them.

So, now I want to know your mum hacks and how you steal 5-10 minutes to yourself.

What’s your tip to help make mums life easier? Upload your idea to Instagram or Facebook, using #DUPLOMumHacks tag me on @fatmumslim, and be in with a chance to win a LEGO DUPLO prize pack. All entries will also be entered into the LEGO DUPLO Facebook Competition. Click here to find out more and see other entries{Not on Instagram? Share your idea either on my Facebook page OR in the comments below}. Each week over the next three weeks I will be picking the best photo and awarding that person with an awesome LEGO DUPLO prize pack including the My First Playhouse {RRP $29.99}, Number Train {RRP $29.99} and My First Construction Site {RRP $29.99}! Winners will be drawn 18th May 2015.

I look forward to seeing your photos, and how you let your kids have fun {and secretly grab yourself some quiet time}. x

If you want to discover more tricks to making life easy and grabbing 5 minutes to yourself? Head to the DUPLO Facebook page to find the tab with ALL the #DUPLOmumhacks.

Open to Australian residents only. Each prize pack includes three packs of DUPLO as listed above. Entries shared via Instagram and Twitter using #DUPLOMumHacks will be aggregated in the #DUPLOMumHacks Facebook tab and entered in the grand competition to win a LEGO DUPLO prize pack each month.