I believe one of the reasons for the success of this blog world is an ability to reach across oceans, borders and cultures and bring people together in a way not easily done before. This is especially true for the ultimate universal role…Motherhood. Women from around the world; sharing ideas, recipes, advice, laughter, tears and most of all the love they have for their children.
A great example of this comradeship is the blog I have been addicted to for over a year now. It is a little slice of Europe that I like to visit on a daily basis.
Babyccino Kids is a site that will introduce you to women from around the globe in one sitting. Here you will find clothing lines you’ve never heard of. Recipes with ingredients you never thought to use, and even a children’s book shop filled with titles reviewed and loved by the blog contributor’s. Best of all you find a wonderful conversation between ‘mums’ that will enlighten you and bring you back for more. Possibly a couple of times a day. Consider yourself warned.
I am delighted to have Esther from Babyccino Kids with us today. Her list is a great example of how being a mother is fairly similar throughout the developed world. At the end of the day we all want healthy, happy kids forming memories of their childhood that will be cherished forever. Enjoy!
Esther from Babyccino Kids
Meet Esther. She is Dutch, a wife, a mother of two, an architect, and an online publisher. All of this while being pregnant with her third little wonder. She has lived in four different countries. She likes to cook, sew, and craft. To top it all off, she seems to be pretty organized. Intimidated? Don’t be. She’s as nice as they come.
Fifteen original activities to keep your kids entertained in- house on a rainy autumn or winter day, without turning on the computer or the television.
- Prepare everything for a warm bath. Then go outside, paddle the puddles, get cold, get dirty, and get wet. Go back inside, undress completely while filling the bath, and warm up in the bath. Dress in loungewear and have hot chocolate.
- Bake cookies. Eat them. Again with hot chocolate! In fact, activity 1 and 2 may very well be combined.
- Make play dough. Not only playing with the dough is fun, but preparing it too!
- Think about old-fashioned family entertainment and bring out the board games. From ages four and up most kids will love it, and nothing is better for bonding and teaching your kids a thing or two about competing and being a good sport (winning or losing).
- Organize a fashion show with hats, pumps, dresses, gloves, scarf and glasses. Photograph or film the results and have a good laugh.
- Take out the building blocks or Legos and build an unconventional house. Have your children use their imagination!
- Make pizzas! Ready-made pizza crusts are easily available and always handy to have around. Toppings can include loads of veggies, pineapple, sausage and cheese. Fun — and an easy dinner on top of it.
- Paint a bus with people inside. A great art project for all ages!
- Re-organize your living room completely with the help of the kids. It’s fun, exciting and you can always go back. (Although you may very well decide to leave it this way!)
- Choose an animal and make it the theme of the day. Read about it, play it, make a mask of it, dress up like it, make up a story about it, eat like it, bath like it, maybe even sleep like it.
- Hold an indoor picnic with loads of finger food. How cozy! Kids love picnics – inside or out.
- Try potato stamping – these penguins are so cute! And most probably you will have the materials handy. Or why not create your own Christmas cards?
- Build an obstacle course. Use cushions, blankets, coffee tables, chairs etc. Who didn’t love this as a kid?
- Make a book. You can use old magazines, drawings, newspapers, etc. Make up a story or describe a special (family) happening. This could end up in a keepsake special.
- Reuse your rubbish for an environmental friendly craft project.
Happy rainy day!!
xxx Esther
What do you do on a winters day to keep your kids entertained?
Facebook
StumbleUpon
Twitter
RSS
{ 13 comments… read them below or add one }
I like to turn up the music, pull the coffee table to the side of the room and dance. It usually turns into someone hitting their head or something, but still fun!
we made these microwavable dough ornaments and decorate it. it’s quick and easy. http://www.simplymodernmom.com/2009/12/microwavable-dough-ornaments/
Okay I went to see the ornaments, which are adorable…but those snowflakes!!!! You have a beautiful site, thank you for leaving a link.
It may sound really simple and silly, but all of my kids LOVE a good game of hide and seek and will play for hours indoors! They get pretty creative with their hiding spots so we do have to go through a safety checklist before we get started, but it’s always a barrel of fun:)
What a great list…I have been needing help with this! Like Candace, hide and seek is a huge hit around our house right now. Even my almost 1 year old (in 5 days) loves the challenge of trying to find her sister. It is so fun to watch!
Great ideas, l like the making pizza idea you could also do a fruit pizza too. Kids love making pizza. A cute idea for kids, like playing hide and seek, hide a certain object like a mitten or something related to the cold weather and have them look for it.
Oh my goodness, I was only thinking about potato stamping the other day! Must be a sign and my 3 year old just loves any art project and I have rediscovered the love too. I’m no Picasso or Van Gogh but you don’t need to be. That valuable time on a one on one with your children is when the true bonding happens. I’m off to get paper, paints and potatoes right now.
For some reason popcorn is a big hit around our house. If we even say the word my boys get all excited and start chanting and running around. And the plus side is you can make crafts (glue on paper to make snowmen, string it, etc.) while you eat it. There are also plenty of recipes to add yumminess to it – even if it just involves cinnamon and sugar.
These ideas are great!! I’ll add them to my list!!!
x
finger paint with pudding, have a dance party/pick-up-the-toys party, bake cookies, do “special projects” that involve paper & any old odds and ends in the craft bin: paper, googly eyes, pom poms, felt scraps, ribbon scraps, etc. Have a book party: cozy up with favorite snacks and a pile of favorite books. Bonus if the snacks relate to the stories somehow. And when all else fails: we watch movie together.
Great ideas- since Paris is in a deep freeze right now, we are all about the indoor playdate! My favorite thing when I was little which I was reminded of by my daughter the other day when I found her under the dining table with all the pillows in the house- creating a tent. I used to do it with sofa cushions and blankets. My daughter Ella particularly likes when I put an extra large tablecloth on the table and she can use pillows to make ‘rooms’ underneath the table and chairs. Of course, once you have a great tent, you can have your picnic there as well. My secret save-my-sanity trick when a day inside starts to feel like is 72 hours long? Get your kid to take a nap by suggesting that they do it in the tent with their blankets from the bed and a flashlight for reading a story.
I love the make a book idea out of printed materials in the home. Not only is it a great way to keep the kids busy, but it is a wonderful emergent literacy activity as well!
Love the list and posted it on my site! Thanks!
{ 1 trackback }