Keeping the kids entertained during the holidays and at weekends is always the most difficult part of parenting. Although children have more to keep them entertained than ever before, they also get bored much easier. To help you and them find something to keep them busy, here are some excellent DIY ideas that you can all do together.
Transform a TV Unit into a Cool Kitchen
Do you remember those old TV and entertainment units that ever home used to have? Well, rather than throw them out, you can transform them into a kitchen play center. These units typically have a space for a television on one side, and cupboards along one side and at the bottom. Sanding down the wood and repainting white will be the first good step. You then need to transform the cupboards into an oven, a cupboard for food, and perhaps a dishwasher as well. You can also adapt the open area for the cooker, sink and a place for a microwave. If you add some toy kitchen utensils, it will complete the look.
Make Some Crazy Putty
In recent months, there has been a new craze in making your own putty and slime. There are many different recipes on the internet, so you and the kids can have a lot of fun trying to make them all. Some of them include glitter and other ingredients to make them extra special. You need to be careful, as some of them might contain ingredients that could be a choking hazard, so you might want to avoid making them with small children.
Building Block Activities
You have your kids kitted out in their best designer clothes which you can find more about here, but you also have a long car journey ahead of you. Kids love Lego and building blocks in general, so creating something that they can use while on a car journey will be an instant hit. Take an old tin lunchbox, or one that has rigid sides, and clean it out thoroughly. You then need to glue a building block board into the lid of the lunchbox and another to one side of the inside of the box so that you can store the blocks. You will then have something that will keep your kids entertained for hours, so hopefully no more ‘Are we there yet?’
Revamp Their Bedroom with a Little Mermaid Decoration
If your children are big fans of all things Disney, they will love having their bedrooms made over in one of the film’s themes. For example, if they love The Little Mermaid, then there is a great way you can make their room more nautical. Take some netting and drape it around the top of the walls. You can then add some shells, plastic fish and perhaps even some mermaids for effect. To make it even nicer, why not add a string of lights in the shape of starts around the netting? If they have a lot of stuffed toys, you can also get some netting to make a hammock for them.
Glow in the Dark Playdough
Apart from putty and slime, there is another recipe that you and your children can make – Playdough. There are many ways that you can make this versatile dough, and it is totally natural, so if it does mistakenly get eaten, then it won’t hurt. As well as the typical types of Playdough, there are also special types such as glow in the dark, which is ideal for a play den. Making the Playdough is fairly straightforward, so you and your kids can easily make some up when you have a free moment.
Add Some Color to Your Fan
With the summer comes the warmer weather, and this means fans for the kid’s rooms. Most fans can be a little boring to look at, but there are some great ways you can jazz them up. One way is to get some permanent pens and color in the blades of the fan in rainbow colors. That way, when you turn the fan on, you will get a nice swirly rainbow effect. Another idea is to use glue and colored glitter to make the blades sparkle. When they spin, any light hitting them will sparkle and shine and give them a magical effect.
Pumpkin Play Sand
Kids love to make things, and they also love the texture of things like wet sand, which is why something like pumpkin play sand is such a good idea and one that will keep them entertained for hours. The recipe is simple and quick to make, so you can always make a batch if your kids are starting to get bored. You will need some play sand on hand and some pumpkin pie spice, but that is optional. The great thing about this sand is that it stays damp so that you can re-mold it many times over.
Have a Polka-Dot Bath Time
If you have children that are not always happy when it comes to bath time, then you can try to make the whole experience more fun. One way is to add some polka-dots to the walls of the bathroom and even in the water. You can get some plastic or static material that sticks to the walls, this makes them easier to remove afterward. The plastic circles can also be used with the bathwater so that they can float on top. The kids will have a lot of fun playing with the circles and moving them around on the walls. You don’t have to use circles, you can use numbers, or shapes as well.
Outdoor Scrabble
When the warm weather arrives, there is nothing better than playing games in the garden. One of the best ones that also helps to teach them spelling is outdoor scrabble. You can make the letters out of paper that you can laminate to protect them. You can then place them on the grass to lay out the words.
There are many ideas that you can use to make your kids have a great time. Most of them you can do with your kids to get some quality parent and child time.