Bath time goes under the sea with “Mermaid Café” — our new favorite interactive bath time game.
Play food and silly underwater customers make bath time a splash!
When we couldn’t decide between having a “mermaid” or “café” bath, I said, “How ‘bout both?”
Here’s what we used*:
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1. Plastic play food. My toddler and seven-year old stepdaughter both love our velcro fruits and veggies like these ones these like these ones you can “chop” with a play knife. They’ve been going strong in our house for four years, but I never thought to use them in the bath until now!
They also make magnetic play food now (but I don’t know how these ones would do in the bath, since they’re wood, but they look fun)!
*I also threw in our son’s This trusty bath ladle that is great for rinsing off kiddos but also makes the perfect “pot” for mermaid café’s “special stew.” (Not that it matters for this game, but I also really like how classy it looks).
3. Some random items from our beloved play kitchen.
*Tip: Kids don’t care what you use for this. Just grab whatever you have lying around. Play food can definitely make it more fun, but it’s all comes down imagination and connection.
How we play:
1. I dump everything into the bath and start asking eagerly,
“Excuse me! Excuse me! Is the Mermaid Café open yet!? I heard this new restaurant was opening and I just couldn’t wait. I just HAD to be the first customer!”
Playing the role of the excited, eager customer that needs their help always gets the kids excited. They smile and dive right in (even my toddler)! They want to be needed!
2. I pop up from behind the tub as different eccentric underwater customer characters. They’re all swimming in to the café to place their orders. Here were some of the most recent customers:
- Sleepy octopus ordering seaweed pie.
- Mer-baby ordering baby food in a baby voice. Yes, I even annoyed myself with this one, but they loved it.
- Influencer fish who wanted to take pictures of her food for all her followers. (Hey, how do you think I got these photos while staying in character?)
- Friendly stingray who wanted some comfort food
- Nervous blowfish who kept getting startled (puffed out my cheeks with a panicked look in my eyes for the full effect).
- Very hungry whale ordering EVERYTHING they had on the menu, in the largest size. (Not too far off from how I sometimes feel in real life). I did my best Dory whale voice from Finding Nemo.
I saved the whale character for last and informed them, as the whale, that I was going to eat EVERYTHING they had left in the restaurant. So the restaurant was going to have to close after me!
Humor and creative playfulness always help wrap up these bath time games.
Because it gives them little heads-up in advance. Works for me and kiddos much better than, “Okay, it’s getting late. Time to rinse off. Now! Come on!”
Who would you add to this underwater character list? I’ll definitely be visiting the Mermaid Café again soon, so let me know your ideas in the comments!
Other ideas for fun connection at bath time:
Hi! I’m Mia.
Mom, stepmom, wife, songwriter, performer, and theater educator.
I love sharing ideas, tips, and templates for connecting with kids through low-to-no budget, waste-free, creative play.
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