Pinecone Bird Feeder: A Fun Toddler Project & A Walk Down Memory Lane

Every Sunday I plan the week's activities. This is a must-do with an energetic toddler...at least it is for me. If I don't have plans in place, I find she watches a lot of TV and pretty much drives me crazy all day long. But we have a limited budget, so the activities must be free or pretty cheap. So, after working in the garden this morning, I found we still had some time to spare before lunch and nap time (Cora took an exceptionally long nap this morning) and I began to panic. Then, I saw the pine cones. Kate had found them in the yard this past winter and we'd put them on her bookcase in her room. So when I saw them my mind went back several eons to elementary school when we made bird feeders with pine cones, peanut butter and birdseed. Do you remember doing this in school? I wonder if they still do it.

Of course Kate was thrilled at the prospect of feeding the birds, so we set to work. I didn't have any birdseed so we used oats instead. Kate really just enjoyed eating the peanut butter out of the jar.



After gathering the peanut butter, some oats, and tying some kitchen twine around the pine cone, I proceeded to slather peanut butter all over the pine cone--top and bottom, inside and out. Kate helped a little with this but preferred eating the peanut butter.





Then, we rolled the peanut butter-covered pine cone in the bowl of oats until it was completely covered. So easy a 2-year-old can do it. Although it was a bit messy.



Then, we went outside and hung our beautiful pine cone in the tulip poplar tree in the front yard.



Now Kate and I are both watching diligently for a bird to land on our pine cone. As we went back in the house, my little innocent child was calling, "Here birdie, birdie, birdie..."

A fun, quick, and easy activity that anyone can do and that will keep Mama from resorting to Dora or Mickey Mouse.