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If you never see another post from me again, it's because I've gone crazy and I'm locked away in an insane asylum. Seriously, is this winter even going to end?!? I just want to go to the pool with a cold lemonade (or adult beverage) and some pool toys, is that too much to ask? I do find though, that if I just give in and try to have fun with the kids, time goes much faster, especially in the evenings. So we do try to make our fun, even if it inside, and here is a list of our favorite indoor games to pass the time and burn energy:
- Hide the Blueberries....sounds strange but the kids sure enjoy it....
- Ring around the rosy: I find this to be a rather morbid game, because did you know that the kids during the plague used to sing it, and it actually about all the people dying? They would put a pocket full of posies around them to help with the smell...and the ashes were related to the fact that they burned people to try to decontaminate and stop the plague. But of course, the kids don't know that!! :-) They are happy to do this over and over again and they giggle hysterically every time we "fall down".
- The Monster Mash: I don't know why, but my kids adore this song. We turn it on and they dance around and beg me to dance with them. Sometimes I put it on repeat and they do four or five songs in a row!
- Jumping on a Mattress: Nothing gets energy out like jumping on a mattress, or as we call it, a trampoline. We put an old one in the basement and it gets used a lot.
- Hotter, Colder: Hide something while the kids have their eyes closed and then they try to find it. Tell them when they're getting "hotter" and when they are getting "colder". I loved this game when I was a kid and I bet if you add up all the time I spent playing this in life I could have gotten an undergrad degree in it.
- Hide and Seek: It's interesting because one year ago, this is how my daughter hid when she played this game. She was three then and she shrieked and giggled the whole time, making it quite easy to find her. We played it again last night and I swear it took me several minutes to find her. It turned out she was hiding under my office, behind a chair and didn't make a sound. She's really growing up!
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The other day my BFF, Dani, sent me a funny article about SuperMoms. This article defined it as someone who wakes up early to work out, who has a job but still takes care of the kids, and who tries make the kids eat healthy. There were some other funny ideals, but basically on paper, my friend said this was me.
I wanted to believe her. It is true that I wake up early to exercise. But mainly because I'm too cheap to buy new clothes and I'm barely fitting into my current ones. And yes, I try not to give my kids sweets. But again, it's selfish. It's because I don't want them begging me for sweets all the time so it's just easier to avoid the topic all together. And yes, I do have a full-time job and manage to keep it all together. But it's a struggle and it sure ain't pretty.
But one day recently, I was having a Super-Mom kind of day. I woke up early, knocked out a bunch of emails, had a great work-out, and showered, all before my kids woke up. Then I had a morning where I didn't have to yell at anyone. I went on to work all day, then I took my kids to the park and did my husband's laundry so he'd be ready for his next trip.
Lastly, I started to make dinner and was really feeling good about myself. What a day! I checked the timer on my home-made meal and I yelled (sweetly for once) to my kids that dinner was almost ready (hubby wasn't home yet of course). I opened the oven door and was thoroughly confused when I was greeted with cold air. What the heck???
Turns out that "Super-Mom" set the timer, but forgot to actually turn on the oven. My lovely casserole had been sitting in the cold oven for 40 minutes. The kids started fighting about some stupid toy and my perfect day was over. Oh well, I gave it a good run. I laughed and pulled out the chicken nuggets and canned peaches. Super-Mom theory debunked. It turns out we're all human. I slept in the next day and relished every second my extra sleep.
Thanks again for visiting and commenting! Work has been crazy and I'm sorry the blog has been lame lately! Thanks for sticking with me!!
I'm a bit of a wimp. Okay, a huge wimp. When my parents used to take us skiing (which in retrospect was very nice of them and was probably super expensive for them), I truly thought they were doing it just to torture me and a small part of me wondered if they could truly love me if they were willing to let me suffer through frozen toes, frozen hands, smashed peanut butter and jelly sandwiches and snow down my back.
It wasn't until I grew up that I realized the full extent of my wimpiness. I have tried to redeem myself and I even enjoy skiing now, but I have never fully become a "tough" anything. I have always admired those girls who could go out on the mountain and seem to fully enjoy pulling on some snowshoes and plowing through 10 inches of snow without complaining or go through labor "naturally" without screaming for an epidural. That's definitely not me...but I'm determined to make my daughter, and really both kids, that way. Don't get me wrong...I don't blame my parents because sometimes nature is stronger than nurture, but I really try to make them "shake it off", I try to make sure they don't whine a lot, and I have been taking my kids to the park several times a week, even in the cold.
The other day, it was only 28 degrees and I offered to take them to the park. They were thrilled since we've been inside so much. They were thrilled and I stood in the cold, cursing myself for my own stupidity and trying not to bite off my own tongue while shivering. And yet there they were...running around having a great time even though we were literally the only people at the park.
So when we got home a neighbor waved to us and said, "Good for you...raising a tough breed of children, that's great!", I was thrilled. I may not be tough but hopefully my kids will be!
Thanks again for visiting! I am thrilled to have you and love when people comment!
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I have officially found something that Little Buddy (2 and a half) never grows tired of. Vinegar and Baking Soda. We've done this before, but not for a long time and I think he's the perfect age to truly be fascinated by it. I just took our foil tins and sprinkled some baking soda on the bottom. Then I mixed up a small bowl with some vinegar and a little bit of green paint (had to stir pretty vigorously for it to actually mix together) and then I gave him a small eye dropper. Then I came back an hour later.
Kidding. I supervised of course, but this kid was literally thrilled with this and did it for over an hour. I had to change it out a few times and we went through quite a bit of vinegar, but it was totally worth it. You could almost see his little brain working as he watched the fizzle:
He begged me to do it again a few days later and this time I ended up giving him purple too, just to prolong the experience. Then he was really interested to watch the colors blend together and big Sister even started her own game of mixing paint together to see what happened.
Thanks again so much for swinging by! For more ideas on fun science projects with kids and ways to keep them busy, please (oh please) won't you check out my book?
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