It appears that in the days ahead more and more of us will be stuck at home and I’m seeing so many moms scramble to get all the necessities purchased and still stressing about how we are going to fill all of our time.
With two small children I started to wonder the same thing when news of the severity of COVID-19 finally hit. Trips will be canceled, events postponed, fun hang outs closed. In a strange way I’m kind of looking forward to forced family fun time at home. It is such a rarity in our house with running a business, and a home. But still, I am a planner and this unplanned, indefinite amount of time is causing some anxiety. So what can we do??
1. Build a Fort
Lucky for us, we have a PVC frame DIY fort already and this will be one of the first things that goes up over the weekend. But if you don’t have a fort frame just lying around, get creative like we did when we were kids! Kitchen tables are a great place to start, adding chairs and other nearby objects. You can also use all those amazon boxes you have! Below you’ll see a giant box from an armchair we recently purchased. We build our PVC fort pretty big and all 4 of us can comfortably sit inside. It’s a perfect cozy spot for a rainy day.
2. Look Outside
Watch out the window and talk about what is happening – are the leaves blowing in the wind? Are there animals around? You may get to see the garbage being collected or the mail being delivered as well. Even if it seems that the world has come to a stand still, it hasn’t, we can still observe nature and find peace.
3. Lava
Do you remember this one? When I was a kid we’d pretend the floor was lava and we couldn’t touch it. Now the mom in me says “oh goodness, I don’t want the kids climbing on furniture!” but c’mon, we’re stuck inside and this will kill some time. I remember hopping from chair to chair, throwing a pillow down as a stepping-stone, and getting creative with other nearby items.
4. Dance Party
“Alexa, play some dance music.” It’s that easy! And then let loose and be silly with your kiddos. We take it up a notch and turn out all the lights and use lightsabers or glow sticks for some fun. If you don’t have any of those lying around, a flashlight works too!
5. Sidewalk Chalk
If you can get outside in the sunshine for a minute, get artistic with some chalk. We also have a patio cover so we can chalk even in the rain! Hopscotch is something my 4 year old is learning right now as well, so that’s something to get the wiggles out.
6. Hide-and-Seek
We honestly play this all the time anyway, so it’s an easy one and my son would be content to play for hours if we let it go on. Jazz it up by having your kid wear a go-pro and videotaping their excursion to find you. And when you find a real good hiding spot, resist the urge to help them find you and take a break for you!
7. Yoga
This is mostly for my sanity. I haven’t been to a yoga class in a couple weeks due to my ever changing schedule, and now the kids are home! But even the simplest of poses, like child’s pose, help me to de-stress and my kids can do simple poses with me. Here is a listing of more simple poses that kids can do along side you.
8. Play-Dough
As a bonus if you don’t have any (or even if you do!) you can spend time making your own. Here is one recipe for natural play dough. When you sit down to mold and sculpt, here are some ideas to get the ball rolling: see who can build the tallest structure, write your name in cursive by rolling the dough into one long piece, or teach color blending by mixing two different colors and learning what the result is.
9. Cleaning and Organizing
Ok, this doesn’t sound fun, but when given the gift of time, I like tackling the tasks that never otherwise get done. In theory, every toy has a home within our house, but things get mixed up in 5 seconds around here. Try making a game of finding all the pieces to a puzzle, or all the books from a set. Do this last though, because it’s just going to get messed up again!
What things do you do with your kids to keep them entertained all day long? Leave a comment below to share your ideas – we all need some help remembering how to have fun in stressful times!
