Ideas for posting activities for 2.9 y.o.?

[AngelDog]

2.9 y.o. DS is busy working on a 'posting' schema and I am starting to get seriously cross with him posting stuff into stupid places. He's lost a piece of his favourite jigsaw through the landing floorboards, leaves the freezer door open trying to get things into the gap between fridge & freezer and is constantly in danger of damaging the dishwasher & washing machine by posting thin items into unsuitable gaps.

I need some alternative activities to give him to do instead as efforts to stop him aren't working. Any ideas? His preference is for posting small thin things e.g. laminated labels into thin gaps.

The obvious one is to make a cardboard postbox blue peter stylee. you could get him to post his letter to santa through it.

My ds likes posting stacks of his dad's business cards through the small gap in the kitchen cupboard door. Early on I nominated on cupboard in the kitchen as "his" and emptied it of contents and shelf so he can get inside and play/keep toys. He likes to sit in it and post things out through the crack or asks me to post things in to him. If you've got space in the kitchen I highly recommend it!

Taking the idea of using a box and making something - find a large toddler size box he can get in and post things in/out? Just an idea.

Ah, I bet he'd like the idea of business cards - will have to see if I can get hold of something like that.

He discovered the joys of small laminated things into the gap between the two parts of the kitchen table today. It took tweezers to get them out.

Argh, I sympathise. My 2.8 year old is doing the same. I only recently realised that the reason we haven't been getting much junk mail in the last few days (which gets left by the front door until we can be bothered to stick it in the recycling bin) is that DS has been posting half of it through the floorboards. God knows what else is down there.

My suggestion is to turn a sieve/collander upside-down and sit him at the table with some broken sticks of dry spaghetti and some dry beans and let him post them through the holes to his heart's content. I know they're not thin as such, but they are small so he might enjoy it.

DD2 is 2.8 and she loved emptying DD1 piggy bank and filling it back again.

Ah yes - he's never been interested in pushing things through colanders before, but I reckon it'd appeal now.

I'm keeping an eye on what objects he has access to - at a similar age, DH posted MIL's engagement ring between the step & carpet on their open stairs. When asked where it was, he could only say, "Posted it!" and they didn't find it till about 6 months later when they happened to have the carpet changed. Why he was ever able to get his hands on it remains a mystery.

Today he slotted lots of leaf shapes I'd cut out for autumn decorations into the top of a radiator, which looked nice and caused no inconvenience. :) We've also rediscovered his ELC shopping till, and inserting the card into the card reader has gone down well.

What about one of those flexible, plastic photo holders (like A3 size with lots of pockets for photos). He could fill it with laminated pictures and then empty it again and when the obsession abates you could use it for actual photos!

I probably haven't explained it very well, I'll see if I can find a link to one.

Like this !

Same issue here with lots of coins, spoons, puzzle bits stuck forever behind the radiators.
I have started collecting hotel room key cards, old store cards, gift cards, train tickets in a box and give him a few at a time. He posts them through door frames (door shut) and fetches the other side. We also have an airing cupboard and he does the same with that, posting things just under the handle and he likes hearing them plop to the floor inside.

I like that photo pocket idea!

Door hinges are a good idea too - our kitchen one is pinned back by an art easel so would be good for not trapping his fingers (and he was poking his fingers into it today anyway).