How do I entertain the kids all day whilst stuck at home?

This is a guest blog by Karen Sidell – Play Expert & Parenting Mentor | Founder of Tot’s Playtime Box

We have been living in challenging times & have spent so much time at home, no wonder us mums are starting to feel jaded & fed up having to entertain the kids when we end up stuck at home on rainy days or in isolation!

We are constantly wondering whether our days out and plans with friends might be cancelled and just the thought of having to isolate at home for a few days let alone ten, is enough to make us sigh and utter a few bad words under our breath let alone it actually happening!

Adding in the British weather too with those rainy days, it’s exhausting spending so much time at home trying to find new ways to entertain the kids which don’t take hours to set up. It’s hard work!

Our Children are curious, they strive for adventure and need constant stimulation, so how can we keep them entertained without adding extra stress on ourselves?

The most important advice I will give you is to take the pressure off yourself, you are doing an amazing job & none of us have had to parent through a pandemic before. Stop scrolling Instagram & Pinterest for ideas that look amazing but are completely unrealistic & only end up giving you massive “Mum” guilt.

I have to admit even as a play expert, days at home always used to fill me with dread when my first daughter was little, but during the lockdowns I had to find a way to get through the days with a 4 year old and a baby and now I don’t dread days at home, I actually look forward to them!

I bet you want to know what changed?

Well, I started building a list of go to play activities. My list of ideas has been a savior on the days I don’t have the energy & headspace for playtime (Yes, I have those days too!)

So, to get your list started, here’s 5 of my favourite go to activities that are simple, super quick to set up but are great fun for you & your little one.

1. Balloon fun – cheap and simple, I always have a pack of balloons tucked away for days at home. Bounce them, squish them, play balloon tennis, keep them off the ground, the possibilities are endless. A great activity to release some pent-up energy chasing the balloons around the room & perfect to play with older siblings too.

• Stickers – My girls love stickers! I save them from the magazines and have a huge tin filled with them, the girls love to stick them along different lines on paper and Isla (2.5 years)  absolutely loves the Dot A Spot page from Tot’s Playtime Box workbook.

• Decorating Biscuits – I always have a pack of rich tea/digestive biscuits along with some icing sugar & sprinkles in the cupboard. Either make up a plain white icing using the icing sugar & water or add food colouring to make different colours. Decorate using sprinkles, marshmallows, sweets, grated chocolate & anything else you can think of. Great fun to decorate & then eat.

• Activity Boxes – Honestly having ready to go activities is a must and having a variety of activities stashed away for days at home is a godsend. We have a variety of crafts, messy play and activity booklets in the cupboard.

• Playdough – So many ways to play with a pot of playdough, roll it to make snakes, add googly eyes for monsters, use coloured rice and cupcake cases to make playdough cakes and make prints with plastic figures.

So, there’s my 5 favourite ideas to keep my girls entertained and I hope your little ones love them too. Take 5 minutes to start a list of some quick go to activities for your days at home and if you would love some more ideas, you can pop over to my website and claim my Free No Prep & Low Mess Play Cheat Sheet.

If you need to start building your stash of activity boxes, take a look at Tot’s Playtime Box, jam packed with 4 activities to entertain your little one and delivered straight to your door.

Written by Karen Sidell | Karen is passionate about helping busy parents make playtime easy! Fun & simple play which entertains little ones without spending lots of time setting it up!

Karen Sidell | Play Expert & Parenting Mentor | Founder of Tot’s Playtime Box