Noticing the Happy

I’m a huge fan of all things sensory, especially for littles. These sensory bags are an easy way for babies to participate in our Theme Weeks and are easy to throw in a diaper bag too. I’ve done sensory bags in just gallon sized ziploc bags, but they don’t last nearly as long as the laminator pouch sensory bags do.

Items needed: laminator pouch, hair straightener, baby oil, glitter, patterned duct tape, sequins and cactus gemstones.

The most time consuming part of this was actually peeling the sticky part off of the cactus gemstones. I had found them at Hobby Lobby and loved how translucent they were, but they were a little persnickety when it came to removing the back.

So the first step to making a pouch is using your straightening iron to melt the sides of your pouch. I usually cut the lamination sheet in half – I think it’s a better size for babies to move around and manipulate.

Once your sides are melted (I go over them several times just to be sure it’s sealed), you are ready to put in your gemstones, sequins and glitter.

I have my husband hold the pouch as I pour in the baby oil. You only need to add enough liquid to fill 1/3 of the pouch – it will spread out when it’s flat. Try to be careful not to get baby oil on the top edges (where you will seal it) because sometimes the baby oil makes it hard to melt the plastic together. If you do, just wipe it off with paper towel before continuing.

After you have added the baby oil, use your hair straightener to seal the top. Let the plastic cool down, then hold over sink and check for leaks. If everything melted correctly, you are good to go!

Last thing I do is fold some decorative duct tape around the edges. It doesn’t help seal it, but gives me peace of mind since it LOOKS more secure. Plus the patterns are interesting for baby to look at. Mabel liked to chew the edges a little and I think it helped to have the tape there too.

Mabel LOVED playing with this. She liked to hit it, shake it, chew it. When you push on the pouch, all the cactuses move around and it’s fun to watch.