Hi Friends!
Over the past few weeks, I have had a lot of time to brainstorm and scroll the ‘gram for fun, fresh activities to do with the little ones during this quarantine time. My kiddos, Lily (6) and Camden (4) love staying busy, so I wanted to put together a list of ideas that will help you have a little fun during these uncertain times. Some of these ideas may be a little more “involved” while others may be more simplistic, but pick and choose to your liking! Most of these ideas are my own and some of them are from other accounts (which are mentioned below).
- Make a fort! You can do this by just grabbing some sheets and moving some furniture around or you can get this fun fort building kit that my kids have!
- Put on a show! This is one my kids do weekly! They love to create routines to share with Patrick and me featuring their best moves including but not limited to somersaults, cartwheels, and dance moves! They sometimes have productive struggles and don’t share similar choreography ideas, but most of the time they compromise and create a one-of-a-kind routine! Lily and Camden also love to get Alexa involved to add a little music to their magic!
- Brighten someones day! Have your kids write a note or draw a picture for a family member or friend. Share the picture via social media or text just to let that person know y’all are thinking about them. You can send the real deal to them if you would like! I think it is so important to teach children how small acts of kindness can make someone’s day!
- Do Fancy Fridays! I love this idea from @CristinCooper! You can get all dressed up and “fancy” each Friday to celebrate the hard work everyone put in during the week. You can make a fancy breakfast such as sprinkles in your pancakes or eat a colorful cereal. You could even do a themed lunch or candle-lit dinner! Regardless, grab a dress, throw some make up on, and make yourself a special drink while enjoying a fancy meal as a family!
- Make a family scrapbook! Each kid can make their own or you can work on one as a family! If you aren’t able to print pictures at home, just have the kids draw some pictures! This can be as fancy or as simple as you want it to be. You can staple some printer paper together if you don’t have an empty scrapbook laying around!
- Start crafting! We just got done creating a little craft room for the kids in our basement. The kids had so much fun gathering all their supplies and setting them up in their new craft room! You can create your own craft room or even a craft corner. Follow these mamas on Instagram for some fun crafting ideas:
- @ashleealaine she did a really cute DIY streamer garland and has the cutest Etsy shop which you can check out here!
- @aurelie.erikson has a fun daisy DIY in her story highlights
- @mythreewonders has a super cute wand DIY in her story highlights
- @themamanotes shares so many fun activities for kids that are simple and educational!
- Go on a nature scavenger hunt or try GooseChase! Grab an empty egg carton and have the kids head outside to find different things out in the yard to put in each space in the egg carton! You can also give the kids a checklist of different items they need to find outside! Also, if you haven’t seen the app GooseChase, definitely check it out if you have older kids! It is a digital scavenger hunt that allows the kids to take pictures and videos of their findings. There is a little prep work involved, but it is totally worth it!
- Family dance breaks! Getting through the day can be tough, especially when you are trying to work and parent all at the same time. Add in a few family dance breaks throughout the day (maybe right before you have lunch or dinner) to add a little more fun to your daily schedule! My kids love taking turn telling “Alexa” what we want to dance to!
- Wash the dog! If you pup needs a bath, why not get the kids involved and helping? I think it truly depends on the age of your kiddos, but Lily really enjoyed helping me give Scout (our Golden Retriever) a bath, dry him, and brush him out. Camden, lost interest quickly, but he enjoyed it for a little bit!
- Kids Yoga! I downloaded the CosmicKids app! They have so many fun themed yoga sessions for kids of all ages! You can also just go on YouTube and check out some free kids yoga sessions as well.
- Make a garden! It could be a fairy garden or the real deal! Here is the link to a create your own fairy garden kit. I have been thinking about doing a vegetable garden for the last year or so, and I think now is the time to get it rolling! Plus, gardening is such fun experience for the kids when they get to see the fruits of their labor!
- Bake together! Find a simple sugar cookie recipe like I did or create a 5-layer cake with all its glory. Let the kids get involved, especially with the decorating!
- Do a little spring cleaning! On a sunny day, give each of the kids a bucket and send them outside with a few toys that need a good washing. I would give them some washcloths, old toothbrushes, sponges, and a little bit of soap and let them get to work scrubbing down their toys! They actually really enjoy it, and its helpful! Once they are done they lay all their toys out to dry on the back porch!
- Explore virtually! Here are a few of my favorite sites:
- Create your own family cookbook! Everyone gets to add their favorite recipes to it. You can even let the kids draw pictures of the dishes in your homemade cookbook! Create a book out of copy paper or make it in Microsoft Word and print it out!
- Get to puzzling! This is a great time to get out a fun family puzzle and start “clicking” away! Also, when you finish, do not forget to Mod Podge and frame it!
- Put on a fashion show! Lily loves this one! I let her go upstairs and put on any fun, crazy outfit she wants to! She loves to come parading down the stairs to show me each look!
- Do a book tasting! I have done this with my students at school, so I figured why not try it with my own kids! I find that my kids have shelves full of books that have never been read. To give the kids a fun way to discover these books, I will put a couple stacks of books on the table. The kids will take one, look through it, and decide if they want to read it or not. Let them pick only 3-5 books they are interested in reading and put them in a basket that they can keep by their bed for story time each night. You can read one a night for the next 5 nights!
I hope you were able to find some ideas that will bring you joy during this time!
Enjoy and Stay Safe!
♥ Ash