Help me think of ideas...

[Close2MyHeart]

Over the next few weeks or months I know I'm going to need to keep my kids and myself busy otherwise I'm going to go nuts. So I need some ideas, please!! Anything... can be messy or quiet activites... just anything!! Maybe you'll suggest something new I haven't thought of :) Thanks!!

[KatherineM]

Have you ever made Peanut Butter playdough?

1 Jar peanut butter
lots of powdered sugar

combine until it makes a dough

EDIBLE FUN!!

[Radosny Matka]

baking soda "volcanos"

Fill each tin of a muffin pan with a bit of baking soda. Fill a tupperware container with vinegar. Give child a measuring cup and let them experiment. My son loves making "fizzles." This is messy, so I recommend a bath towel under the muffin tin to help catch the spills. Also, you can dump the vinegar from the muffin tin back into the tupperware container and reuse it a few times. :D

[Mama Calidad]

Fingerpainting!

I don't remember how old your kids are, but there's an awesome list for young kids here:
http://www-personal.engin.umich.edu/~ajdrake/toddler/list.htm

[joystrength]

--mud pies? Let em get REAL dirty and then play in the water to wash off.
--Have a toy exchange with another mom, they bring a toy and take home one of yours for the week. (might take some forethought, though)
--new videos?
--tent with a blanket over the dining room table
--open a bag of beans into a bowl and let them "scoop" and line them up and try to stack them, etc
--decorate and make snowflakes (out of paper), make "snow' on the floor with baking soda, make some frozen treats (snow cones?) with their help and watch a "wintery" movie
--one of my friends made chocolate icing for her twins' first birthday cake, she had extra so she put them in the tub with the bowl and let them go (OK, that would be REALLY messy, but fun for all, right?)
--trip to the library?
--feed the ducks
--dress up in daddy's shoes and have races outside (or down the hall)
--this is so silly, but my kiddos love it: I spread out a sheet and let them sit on it, I then pull them through the house and make all kinds of noises around the corners, etc. They SCREECH. With three kids, though, I guess they'd have to take turns.
--I've also been known to let mine draw on our back glass door with crayons. I did it too, with a yellow! FUN!
--sidewalk chalk on the fence?
--sandbox?
--day trip to a firestation, farm, bakery, etc, TV station, anywhere where they can "see" how something works
--collages out of old magazines (the token glue-the-pic-of-the-food-to-the-paper-plate thing, etc)
--beads and dental floss or fishing lines to make jewelry or macaroni and yarn or candy and string for that matter
--making cookies, that could be stretched for a long time
--make your own french fries, one puts them on the pan, one stirs them up and one gets to taste first (slice potatoes, spread them on a greased cookie sheet and BROIL, salt them, turn them over and BROIL some more)> This is a biggie hit at our house. I almost always burn a few, though.
--fingerpaint with food-colored shaving cream
--a few new coloring books
--playdates
--can you call your church and see if you can go with your kids to just hang out in the nursery for an hour and let them just play with the "new" toys?
--pipe cleaners have entertained our two on a trip for a while, I just bend the tips over and twist to avoid any "sharp" points
--plant a few flowers in a pretty pot and take them to someone
--organize anything where the kids would/could help, throw away trash, etc--even picking up sticks and leaves out of the yard
--wad up paper and take turns trying to throw it into a wastebasket or laundry basket

OK, I"ll stop.
I haven't tried a lot of these, but I have inspired myself, so I might.
HTH!
(praying for you and your family, Becca!) :hug :pray

ETA: I just remembered this: We got a LOT of milage out of a dryer box (the box a huge appliace is delivered in). Ijust let my kids crawl in and out of it for two days. They also liked to crawl in and tip the box over, adn then they COULDN"T get out. Actually, 3yo DS liked to tip it when 21 mo DD was inside. Funny for him, not her! After this, I cut a door and a window and turned it on end. The cut end was on the floor. My DD quickly learned that this little "closet" was great when she needed some daily "privacy" diaper time, IYKWIM?HA! Anyway, that's just another suggestion. I was able to fold the box down at the store adn get it into my car, reshape it and tape up the top and top of the sides for support. Just another idea!

[Close2MyHeart]

Wow! Thanks for all the ideas. :) Today a friend is coming over, so that'll keep them busy. I think they'd love the edible play dough :) Maybe I"ll make that today and their friend can play w/ it too. I also like the volcano idea!! And I'm going to paste all these ideas into a folder so I can have quick access to them. Thank you!!! :hug