It was a rainy day. We had just returned from a crazy trip to Idaho to visit my sister and her family. (Crazy because we did this 5 hour flight and 4 hour drive with a three and one year old.) Of course, we brought hand, foot, mouth disease home with us. Yes my toddler spiked a fever at our terminal. That’s another story for another day.

Anyway, our day was already pretty much trashed. Rainy day, sick toddlers… Depressed Momma. These things simply do not mix well. I got my toddlers to bed for nap time and returned downstairs, a bit defeated. I started working on the disaster around me trying to find my home underneath piles of half unpacked clothes and toys. I came across some boxes I had set aside. My oldest daughter, Elaina, had wanted to build this robot she saw in a Highlights magazine for months now. I think she had all but given up on asking if we could make it.

When she’d first asked, I told Elaina that we could, of course, build the robot once I’d gathered enough materials. It had been months of gathering. I felt terrible that we hadn’t made this robot yet. I thought, we are doing this today or I am officially the worst mom to walk the planet.

In a wave of serious Mom guilt, I pulled the boxes from the raccoon nest that was supposed to be my craft shelf. I dug through my cluttered countertops and uncovered the bottle caps I’d been saving for this very moment. Then, like a madwoman, I began wrapping empty amazon boxes like it was Christmas Eve, only I was using tinfoil, not wrapping paper.

Elaina woke up from her nap and Jordan brought her downstairs. I will never forget the pure joy on her face when she saw the activity I had prepared for her. Her eyes lit up as if to say, “Mommy didn’t forget!” That’s what I was doing this for. That look, the fulfillment of my promise that we would build this dang robot. That look is absolutely priceless.

We had a good time putting the robot together. Elaina was just totally enthralled by this activity and was so proud of her creation. She’s been naming everything Telemachus (thanks Bluey), but she switched it up a little this time and called her robot, Telikinus.

What You Need to Make Your Own Recycled Robot

• Cardboard Boxes of Various Size

• Bottle Caps

• Tin Foil

• Colored Duct Tape

• Packing Tape

• Hot Glue Gun

• Pipe Cleaners

• Pom-poms

• Toilet Paper Rolls

• Snack Cup Lids

• Straws

• Cardboard Bar Code

• Paint

• Paintbrush

These are just the materials that I was able to conjure up. Of course, you are welcome to use whatever materials and recyclables you have lying around the house. Go crazy, the kids will love it! The more things I pulled out, the more mind-blown my toddler was. It goes without saying that you, the adult in the situation, will be in charge of the hot glue gun. Odds are your toddler will behave in one of two ways: wanting to wield the power of the glue gun or quaking, completely terrified at the prospect of burning herself. Mine was the latter so I guess I lucked out. Painting the robot was her idea, and I mean, why not? You can pretty much go wherever this project takes you!

How to Make a Recycled Robot

Step 1: Tape your Boxes Shut

We used an amazon box and a shoe box. Just find some packing tape and tape those bad boys shut! This makes step two a bit easier.

Step 2: Wrap Your Boxes in Foil

This should be a piece of cake for you, Momma. This is just like wrapping presents, which after countless birthdays and Christmases, you are an absolute pro! Granted the tin foil is obnoxious, but you’ve totally got this.

Step 3: Attach Your Robot’s Head

At this point my sweet toddler was awake and helping me with the action, so I do not have a photo of this step. Wielding the power of your hot glue gun, you can put a dab of glue on the larger body box and allow your toddler to stick the smaller box on top for the head. They are going to be so excited to do this. They are going to feel like they are a master engineer, NO ONE can attach a robot head with more finesse than your toddler. Man do I wish I had that kind of confidence…

Step 4: Accessorize Your Robot

This is the super fun part for your toddler. You have carefully selected an array of recyclable materials for your robot, and now your toddler can choose any of these materials for buttons, eyes, legs, ears, you name it! You continue to serve in your very serious role of the master glue gunner, and your toddler will go wild sticking things all over their robot. As you can see we have selected bottle caps for buttons, a barcode for a mouth toilet paper rolls for legs, and snack cup lids for feet. *chef’s kiss* If you look closely, you can also see a bit of Elaina’s hand, foot, mouth rash as well. Ah, motherhood.

Step 5: Paint Your Robot

There’s nothing like paint for a finishing touch! When Elaina asked, “Can I paint my robot, Mommy?” There was obviously only one answer, and truly what an artistic genius this child is! We added a bit of blue painter’s tape for pants because who in the world would want a pantless robot? Not my toddler!

Step 6: Take a Photo and Put it Where the One-Year-Old Can’t reach it

There you have it folks! Your very own recycled robot complete with straw arms, applesauce cap ears, and (my personal favorite) a pipe cleaner pom-pom hat! Elaina was very proud of her creation and wanted to take a photo with him. Today he stands in the bay window where I thought he was safe from the one year old, who I guess I forgot climbs like Spiderman. It’s okay though. There was minimal damage, and even more important, Elaina hasn’t noticed.

Your Turn!

Now you know just how to make your very own recycled robot. Our experience was full of chaotic fun. I’m really glad I got it together and was finally able to help Elaina with this project. It truly made her day, and helped her to forget her illness for a bit. Those of you who have had hand, foot, mouth know that it is no joke. Adults don’t always show symptoms, I wasn’t so lucky. This post actually took a week to write because I got hit with this thing, and I guess I am not as resilient as my toddlers. But, I digress! Whether you are sick or healthy, this activity is going to bring a lot of fun into your home. Share your robot building experience with us in the comments! We would love to hear all about it!