Being creative, thinking outside of the box and being resourceful, is the key to quarantine!
Many of my friends who have younger children and have asked me to put together a list of ideas. Suggestions of fun contrivance to occupy your children and well while avoiding cabin fever. This will be the time you will create great memories during a confusing time.
There are many lists already out there: I liked the NY Times “100 Things to Do” during the Coronavirus lock down. Single parents and families are working from home; I have added my spin on the variety of ways we can keep ourselves happy and calm by using inventiveness!
This series will contain three stories: one for families, one for women and one for couples. Although we have been advised to keep safe distance… please heed my advice according to your own beliefs, using tid-bits of ideas given here. Stay healthy, use precaution, and stay at home!
The web is a great place to search for new ways to entertain you, yours, or your family.
Reflecting on our boy’s childhood; our doctrine was to have fun, be safe and keep moving! They are now 20 and 18, only 20 months apart, so we had to be innovative.
We had a busy household, but we always created adventures. Old-school methods lead to a variety of interpretations, but our one goal as parents was to experience new cognitive and physical objectives.
1. Indoor camping
The boys couldn’t wait for the weekends to have every comforter, pillow and cushion in the house to make a sleep space in the family room or bedrooms. Tents made from sheets using chairs and couches, with flashlights ready. Extending the fun; mommy played the troll, begging for jellybeans outside the secure tent. Daddy would be the nice bear begging for peanut and butter sandwiches. Those boys would only come out to use the restroom or when forced to take a shower. They had healthy snacks/meals, army men, star wars figures, Legos, puzzles and game boards inside their sanctuary! Come Sunday night, a family team effort to get the house back to its original state. Now, your kids could take books, study, proceed with online classes inside ‘their home away from home!’
2. New Hobbies
*Writing a book, even using story-telling hand drawn pictures for younger kiddos. Encourage creativity to create a masterpiece! Have them travel to another land, another time in history. Show them pictures of other countries and cultures to get their creative juices flowing.
*You can order age-appropriate puzzles, pull out those fun inter-active games, teach a new card game.
*Everyone learns to knit or crochet. You can learn how to do this on the internet, also order simple materials online. There are numerous stitches that even young children can learn.
*Learn another language, download ‘Duolingo’, for all ages.
3. Baking
Even with the most elementary of baking supplies, have a biscuit making contest. Then whisper one secret ingredient into their ear! Vanilla, Cinnamon, Chocolate Chips, Raisins, Cranberries, Honey, Cream Cheese, Ginger. Then you have a taste test; everyone wins! The adult can make the sides; providing fruit, veggies, protein, dairy, etc.
4. Outdoor Activities
If you are able to go outside, searching for bugs, identifying them, logging them and safely returning them quickly back into their homes. We would also do this with vegetation, leaves, flowers, trees and grass.
5. Yoga and Meditation
*Try this, there are so many classes you can sign for online. They have kids yoga, exercise, and even mediation. You never know, for high energy kids like mine, it was about 10 minutes that they could diffuse and disconnect from electronic devices.
6. Scavenger Hunts
This was the best one! Lasted for hours with old maps, hidden treasures (and cookies), around the house. We would use luggage and locks; so, they would get clues for the lock numbers or another clue to find the lock key. They would guise themselves in duds according to one costume direction. Mommy, “Okay boys, looks like you are riding into Gulch City, go get em’ cowboys”! They transported themselves to another time; past or present. As they traveled to faraway lands as pirates, Roman soldiers or Power Rangers.
The sweet memories for me came flooding back as I wrote this. My husband downloaded old pictures today onto Alexa, we laughed and I cried happy tears. There is a reason behind every single one of their friends memories of our home…that their first ever sleep over was at “The Chambers’ House”! -Rhonda
