Paint all the things! Seriously, when they’re tired of paper look around the house and just find anything expendable.
We had so many travel plans for 2020, and given current events, none of them are going as planned. Instead, we, like so many people around the world, are faced with the prospect of not just staying local, but staying home…..inside…with kids (insert panic here).
It’s starting to feel crazy for sure with all LA, Long Beach, and Orange County schools closing, along with all the meetups, activities, playgroups, and the like. We know social distancing is important to slow the spread of Covid-19, and we’re trying our best to do our part, no matter how daunting it is. Isn’t getting out of the house and seeing friends (both kid and adult) the best way to survive parenting young kids? What to do without playdates, school, basic routine?!?
Since we don’t have any travel adventures to share, I’ve brainstormed some of Kiddo Flyer’s (she’s got a new moniker now that there’s a new Baby Flyer in the mix!) favorite sensory, art, and close-to-home outdoor activities. Hopefully, they’ll help you get through the days (and maybe weeks) to come.
Okay, yes, this activity is messy, but the kids LOVE it. It’s extremely simple as well. 1: buy fake snow. 2: set up easily cleanable activity area. 3: Let them have at it. The product turns into fluffy ‘snowflakes’ that can be poured, packed, arranged, and just about anything else. It’s an added novelty if you live someplace, like we do, where it never snows.
An oldie but a goodie. If you’re a parent of kiddos age 1 to whatever, you’re probably well acquainted with these fun little things that expand overnight, or sometimes in just a few hours, from tiny beads into fun glassy-looking, squishy, slippery sensory toys. Fill up tubs, bowls, or even outdoor water tables or kiddie pools with them for plenty of independent playtime. Allegedly biodegradable and originally invented for water retention in gardens and flower arrangements. Watch tiny kids with them though, they’re not for swallowing.
Sidewalk Obstacle Course!
Especially for those of us who live in cities, but anywhere with some concrete will do. Up your sidewalk chalk game and get some energy out at the same time. Try combining hopscotch, ‘balance beams,’ dancing, hurdles, and really anything else silly you can think of. For bonus entertainment, we like to watch out the window to see how many passers-by enjoy our game themselves after we’re done for the day 🙂
These were all the rage in our house before the pandemic, and continue to buy us some kid entertainment daily. The bright colored tiles snap together to form all kinds of houses, castles, cars… you name it. There are all kinds of different sets and kinds. Some make a house, some have wheels, but they all can be combined into just about anything.
Color a Box!
Look, sometimes you just need to color a box, okay? Put the gigantic mountain of cardboard you’ve likely amassed while trying to get the last 142-pack of diapers, pounds of mac and cheese, or if we’re being honest…. wine club order, to good use. If there’s one thing that never changes about kids, no matter how tech-obsessed we all get, is that there’s nothing like a good cardboard box for entertainment and imagination. We found that the Chunkies paint sticks were the best for getting some satisfying color onto the house-turned spaceship-turned airplane (she misses travel too). Feel free to throw some colored painters’ tape into the mix while you’re at it.
Hope any of this helps with some entertainment while we all do our best to get through this together, while maintaining our social-distancing. We’ll post more ideas as we go, and please feel free to throw your anti-cabin fever activities in the comments, we’d love to see them!
And, if all else fails, try “how many times in a row can you jump up and down?!?!” It buys 60 seconds, and usually results in much needed giggles.
Stay healthy, take care!
~Baby Flyer Blog
Baby Flyer Blog 
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