Rainy Days

Rainy days will always come around, and if you're on the East Coast you have probably had nothing but rain all week. I think I actually see sunshine right now, not sure what to do with it! Rainy days can be fun, it can be a nice change in the weather and pace with your children (or the children you care for), everyone loves a day where you can sit around and watch movies and nothing else every once in a while. Well, what should you do when that rainy day turns into a rainy week or two? Here are some helpful suggestions by yours truly to help get your kids and yourself through a rainy day or week without losing your marbles.

There are the obvious activities you can do indoors, like reading, building with blocks and rediscovering old toys that have been pushed to the back of the shelf. But after a few hours the kids will be running around going stir crazy (immobile kids will be fussy as can be). Here are the more creative suggestions.

Play ball.  Okay, I know you aren't "supposed" to do this in the house, but that is kind of a silly rule. I'm not saying get a baseball out, but you can use a beach ball, a big bouncy ball or a soft/squishy ball. You can then play catch, dodge ball, kick ball and baseball, just to name a few. Yes, I did say baseball. Get a plastic bat and a soft ball then, well, have a ball!

Play hide 'n go seek. This works for bigger kids and toddlers. My son loves it when I get down to his level and shout "Danny can't get me," I then run off and hide, he finds me and thinks it is great. If you play with bigger kids the game can get more complex, use more rooms in the house and take up a lot more time.

Follow the leader. There is nothing young children like better than to be the "boss," and by playing a game of follow the leader they get to do just that. This came can be adapted for younger babies, if you just hold them and lead them around the house, while you're leading them you can talk about everything they are seeing.

Have a dance party. This works for kids of all ages, even tiny little babies. Just turn on some fun music and break out into dance. It is great exercise and teaches kids dancing skills/how to let loose and have fun (no one wants there kid to have to be two sheets to the wind in order to dance when they're older). If you have a tiny baby who can't dance by him/herself just pick the baby up and dance with him/her. I'm convinced this is why my son randomly breaks out into dance ALL THE TIME, because I would pick him up and dance with him when he was just a little guy.

Clean the toys. Yes, it can be a fun activity for your child. My son loves helping, I can't tell you how many times he has unloaded a dirty dishwasher before I catch him. I don't clean my sons toys nearly as much as I should, but I got around to cleaning every last one during our rainy week. He loved to help. I gave him a washcloth with soapy water and let him go to town. I did have to go back over the things he cleaned to make sure they are really clean, but he loved helping and it killed a lot of time.


I'll pray for sun and wish you all good luck in entertaining the kids!