Spray Bottles

Little Drops of Water Fun

• What: Water spray bottles
• When: 12 months and up
• Why: Entertaining, affordable, useful
• Where: Amazon

Need something simple to keep your little one entertained? Try a basic spray bottle. You can get them online or at most stores for very little, but your child will enjoy it for years to come.

I have one for each of my kids. If you use spray chalk, you can repurpose the empty containers into their own personal bottle. Want to keep them busy even longer? Let them decorate their bottle with stickers or painters’ tape or anything else you have on hand.

My kids use their spray bottles in the bath, on windows, to water plants, and just for plain fun. They work great in wading pools or spray parks during the summer. My youngest even likes holding his in the stroller and spraying water along our path as we walk. It can keep kids busy while you clean with the real cleaning supplies, or even help them feel useful around the house with chores they can handle from a very young age, like caring for plants.

Now that my kids have gotten older, they can fill their own spray bottles at the sink, in the tub or pool, or from the hose or rain barrel. That means it requires almost zero work for me. (I occasionally still have to help remove or attach a lid.) Sometimes I marvel at how kids love the simple things best, and spray bottles definitely belong on the list of those things.