Homeschooling and

Ten Silly Little Things You Can Do With Your Child in Thirty Minutes or Less!

By Jan Jennrich

Are there are some days when you just feel like you are just not doing enough fun stuff with your children? Sure, we spend lots of time with them and we know they are learning, but sometimes I wonder where the time goes. Why is that I often get to the end of a week and can't think of a single fun thing we've done together?

Well, if you are feeling like that, there's still time to fit in a little fun with the following ten quick ideas!

Send an e-card:
You'll find fun, free kid-friendly e-cards for all occasions at Yahooligans! E-Cards online at http://ecards.yahooligans.com/ We had fun picking out (and playing with) an interactive card we sent to Grandma and Grandpa.

Make a playhouse:
It never ceases to amaze me how much play power we can get out of our dining room table and some chairs with a few sheets tossed over the top. Mom and Dad have to bring the snacks and crawl inside to complete the picture!

Do an online Winter jigsaw puzzle:
This kept us entertained for a long time and we bookmarked it for later too. Choose your own puzzle picture and piece sizes as well as very interesting shapes!
http://www.dltk-holidays.com/winter/puzzles/index.htm

Invent food people:
On paper, in your imaginations, or with real food and toothpicks, this is a game that will get the giggles going. The game is to think of a person or an animal and then what food would make up what body parts. Like a watermelon head and lemon ears. Or an orange for a face, olive eyes, and a raisin nose. It's kind of a twist on Mr. Potatohead, I guess, and something my sister and I have laughed over since we were kids. Did you notice the food creature at the top of the page drawn by my thirteen year old daughter, Kelsey?

Plant a carrot top:
Remember this one? This is so simple I almost forgot to do it with my younger child. Just cut the fat end off a carrot leaving about 1/4" of the orange part to place in a bit of water. In a couple of days bright green spouts will come up, delighting kids of all ages. We put several tops in a low bowl on some pretty little river rocks and it looked like a zen meditation spot.

Make a contact paper collage:
When our little guy was a toddler, I wanted a way for him to create art without the yucky glue mess. I took a roll of shelf paper, turned it decor side down and peeled off the protective backing. Then my son kept busy and had a great time sticking magazine pictures, confetti, and odd bits of paper to the sticky stuff. This is still fun now that my kids are older! Get a large piece of paper and the whole family can dive in and make a mural!

Pick themes for the week:
In thirty minutes you can brainstorm at least five kooky theme days for the following week. What about a crazy hair day or nutty hat day? Backwards day could mean casserole in the morning (on upside down plates?) and french toast for dinner. On purple day, our daughter suggests, the family has a code word which you race to say whenever anyone spots the days' color. And of course, everyone in the family wears the color of the day as well. If you feel really brave, try food coloring in the mashed potatoes.

Mix up some edible play dough:
Check out this really fun recipe from Tawra Kellam, the author of the frugal cookbook Not Just Beans. It uses items probably already in your cupboard including margarine , light corn syrup, salt, vanilla extract or flavorings, powdered sugar, and food coloring (optional).
Find the exact recipe at:
http://www.frugal-moms.com/families/funbook/Boredom_Busters/71.shtml

Don't play by the rules:
One day my father and my daughter were tired of playing Yahtzee in the usual way and decided to invent their own game. Called Anti-Yahtzee, the new challenge was to get the lowest score possible! Can you imagine what this would do to a game of Twister??

When the well runs dry...
Stuck for a fun and goofy idea? Walk up, hug your kid, and say, "I feel silly and I've got a free half hour. What totally ridiculous thing could we do together real quick?"
I'll bet you just about anything, your child will come up with one terrific idea!

Have a very silly week,

Jan

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