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| photo credit: MyTudut via photopin cc |
When I started the feature “Teaching Tuesday”, I had intended to share an art or craft project, or a homeschool lesson that I was doing with my kids. But this week I’ve had to learn to do something very difficult…how to take a sick day…with kids. I’ve had only a handful of days in bed the past five years since becoming a mommy, and this past Sunday I was hit with a triple threat;
Coloring Pages
Playdough Fun
So I pulled out the playdough, (on the porch where it can get messy) and every cookie cutter for spring and Easter I could find. Oh and pipe cleaners from the Dollar Tree. Here’s the recipe if you want to try making it…I tinted it with a few drops of red food coloring and used vanilla to scent it. It’s so much nicer than the stuff you buy in the cans! And I promise, it literally takes 10 minutes tops to make. Plus the kids love helping measure the ingredients.
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| Gave them some googly eyes too…why not? |
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| Spring garden? |
Cereal Bracelets
By the afternoon it was monsooning, and the kids were hungry. So I grabbed the aforementioned pipe cleaners and a couple boxes of cereal…and let the girls snack while they made bracelets.
This is a great fine motor activity for both Lila and Emy, but Lila at age 5 had more fun with it. She played with patterns, and counted them. While Emy (age 2) struggled to get the O’s on the pipe cleaners…but sure liked eating them! And it was fun to watch Lila help her little sister.
Dress Up
Other Easy Ideas
- Spa Day – Break out the lotion and give each other foot massages. Also lip gloss and eye shadow are fun for them to play with, and are easy to clean up. We also like playing beauty salon, and practiced braiding hair on their dolls. And they like to brush my hair too!
- Frozen Paint – This is especially easy on snow days! Freeze some paint and have lots of fun!
- Librarian – I sat on the floor in Lila’s room and we played library. We checked out books, and read to each other in our bean bag chairs. It was a great way to trick them into cleaning up their books too!
- Shadow Puppets – Did I mention how fascinating flashlights are to kids? How about a lesson in shadows on the walls?
- Indoor Bowling – They love it. I hate setting up the pins 800 times.
- Wii – Easier to bowl on the Wii! And play age appropriate games while I relax on the couch.
- OD on TV– when all else fails, use the tablets and televisions. I mean you can never watch Frozen too many times…right? (Oh God make it stop!)
Great post, Kristen! I’m sure I’ll be needing these ideas one day. Pinning this now 🙂
Thanks for the pin! And hopefully you will stay healthy for a loooong time 🙂
What a great idea. All three Reed girls are sick today. 🙁 It is NOT pretty (emotions are running high here!). And I love your new header!
awwww…feel better Georgia. We will hopefully get through this and feel better tomorrow…
Cereal bracelets! Yes! I am so filing away this wisdom for a rainy — er, sick — day. And note to self: Buy pipe cleaners now. Somehow I don’t think I’ll want to peel myself off the couch and run to the craft store when I’m puking and/or stuffed up.
Dollar Tree has everything you could want…cheap!
Great ideas – love the cereal bracelets, must try!
These ideas are awesome! Totally pinning it right now — you never know when you’ll need it, huh? (Hopefully, NEVER!) Found you from the SITS link up, and your topic caught my eye as something useful to share with my readers. Great post!
Thanks Aubrey! I’m the queen of easy kid entertaining these days!
It is so difficult when mommy doesn’t feel good because life still goes on. I hate to say that I try those things above, and many times they work for a few minutes, but then the tv goes on. I don’t like too much media in my home, so that is always a bummer, but you do your best! Right? Being mom is tough and beautiful! Thanks! Found you at SITS
Yes Elizabeth, it IS difficult…but so worth it! I use the TV a lot as well…but these were other things that many of us forget about. Thanks for stopping by!
Wow you did amazing for being sick! I’m like, “Hey kids…want to watch Frozen again??” and then I continue to work on memorizing the entire script of Frozen because OMG WE WATCH IT ALL THE TIME. Ha.
Us too. So. Over. Frozen. But we watch alot of TV too…you do what you have to do!
Great ideas, Kristen. Thanks!
These are all awesome ideas! I am definitely going to use some of these today!