4 Fun Ways to Pass the Time

 I've started cleaning out old files. You ever do that? Have those moments of thinking you would clean out old papers? I found magazine articles from 2013. I had saved them because they had great ideas to help get through those doldrums of life. To spark ideas on what to do in our down time. I came across some marvelous ones that I wish I had found sooner. However, there are plenty of chances for us parents to use them with things not being fully opened in most places. Especially if the second wave of pandemic hits and everyone is put under lock-down again. 

When you have a lot of toys...

Create a toy catalogue: Take pictures and print them out. You can put them into a photo album or glue them into a notebook. Let your kids pick which ones they want to keep out for now. The rest go into a stored state. When they are bored (at least 2 weeks later), they may pull out the book and "shop" for "new" toys. New selections have to be kept out for a certain amount of time before they can "shop" again. 

I had heard an idea like this before. Instead of photos in a book, however, you would take half of their toys, put them in some kind of container and put them away where the kids couldn't access them. When they got bored, you swapped toys. Ones in their toy box were put away and the stored ones were brought out. This renews their interest. It is like they forget they even had those toys and makes it seem like they are new all over again! No need to spend money, no need to hear the whining when they can't find something to do. Though, as far as whining goes, my kids know better. I take a toy every time they are "bored". I give it away. And they have to do reading, chores or reports to pass their time. They now see the word 'boredom' as a forbidden word. Like a curse word. 

This also helps keep the clutter down. The downside is, you have to have space to store those extra toys in. You can also use it to determine which toys they have absolutely no interest in anymore. If they don't order that toy in 6 months time - they don't truly want it anymore. 

If you have a big enough yard area...

Create a treasure mine! Get a small pool - think the plastic ones or a small blow up kind. Fill it up halfway with sand. Find little plastic gemstones, shells and pretty rocks (fools gold!) - whatever would bring excitement and fun to the kids, and hide them in the sand. Then fill up the rest of the pool with water. You can get little sieves pretty cheap these days. Let the kiddos "mine" and hunt to their hearts content. 

Satisfying a sweet tooth...

Bring out the ice cream! One of the best ways I have seen to end the summer, is through an ice cream tasting party. Some have gone so far as to even buy 10 gallon-sized varieties of ice cream. You line them up on the table and pass out sheets for the "judging". Have silly things like "Quickest to melt" or "Most intense flavor", etc. Once the judging has ended, you can then make sundaes! 

Another twist is to just have multiple types of ice creams, toppings, and fixings. Create a sundae bar. Everyone designs their ultimate sundae creation. Then let everyone vote to see who they think made the best one.

Make learning fun...

Bring the world to your doorstep! Or even choose a different kind of adventure. Check out Little Passports for all kinds of subscription options that bring fun to learning science, geography, and even history. I would love to get my younger son signed up for the Science Expeditions one. They can learn forensic science and fingerprint analysis in the first go! Every month after, they solve another mystery with science. And if you don't want to get a subscription, they also offer Pack options. 

What other ideas have you seen or tried? I'd love to hear them!

Creativity Blooms During Covid-19!

I'm so ready to be free again. For the bookstore to open. The library to reopen... We are missing Free Comic Book Day this year, people! Do you know how hard that is for us nerds? Star Wars Day is canceled. Besides posting a meme... UGH! Yes, that is my response to this craziness. 

And so...

To Pinterest I have gone in search of things to occupy the hours. Especially for the kiddos. No school, can't contact their friends, and no yard to play in. There is a pool at their Nona's house, but it's not like we can go there often. Dad works and has school. Mom can't drive them. Well, she could, but not with full confidence of safety. Sooooo.... Yeah. Pinterest ideas! 

We started time capsule booklets thanks to their teachers sending them out. Don't think anyone has finished theirs yet. They kinda disappeared after a couple days. But it was fun watching them get started at least. 

I tried doing a scavenger hunt. My daughter finished hers the same day I gave it to them. The boys took about 3 days? It was so easy too. They took photos of things they found with their school iPads, just like they do for school assignments. Their heart just wasn't into it like my daughters was. She wanted grand prize!

Now on to the next project. I saw this idea a long while back and decided to expand the options to make it more fun. But I used the principle idea to get started. Let's see how well this goes! Plus, I'm hoping that they can earn prizes from doing a great job. No half-hearted tries here. 

For those of you who want to try it as well, I've typed up the prompts so all you have to do is copy and paste into a Word page to print. Don't forget to write out the letter with the instructions. Or print our the one I've typed out for you. Good luck surviving the boredom! 

Bag 1:                               Bag 2:                                   Bag 3:

Take a photo                      of a zombie                          riding a dinosaur.

Make a movie                   of a mermaid                       baking a cake.

Write a story                     of a grandma                        flying in space.

Draw a picture                  of your parents                     riding a unicorn.

Create a dance                  of an uncle                            playing a game.

                                          of an aunt                             building a fort.

                                          of a sibling                           having a pillow fight.

                                          of a space man                     getting married.

                                          of a game character             fighting a bear.

                                                                                       dancing with cats.

Dear children,
I have a very important assignment for you. As you can see, I have 3 bags. 

• Take a slip of paper from Bag 1 for your assignment.
• Take a slip of paper from Bag 2 for the subject of your assignment.
• Take a slip of paper from Bag 3 for the scene of your assignment. 

NO redraws! You keep the first 3 slips of papers you get! You can help each other if you like, but I expect to have your completed assignments by 7PM tonight. 

 Good luck and may the odds be ever in your favor! 

You can always add your own! Make it uniquely fun for your own children. Change when it is due to when you get home from work or the next morning. Or do it as a couple with your spouse even! Hmm... I bet this would be better than the time my husband and I started writing a book together... Either way, I'd love to hear your ideas! So leave me a comment below and let me know what you think. What prompts would you add?