What to do while we patiently wait for Spring's arrival

Sorry I have been MIA for a bit...it's been crazy wrangling these kids while we wait for spring to arrive in fair Madison.

 Today we headed to the Monroe Street Library to fill up our rolling cart of books to bring back to the Kids' House for the week. It's such a wonderful, small library; I can't believe we have been visiting them weekly since in 1988!

While we wait for the temperatures to to rise and grass to dry out, below are some creative indoor activities to keep feelings of stir-craziness at bay!


1. Puppet show! Put a show on for the kiddos or sit back and enjoy their imaginations. Decorate paper bags with felt, beads, yarn or just color faces onto them. If you don't have a theater, make your own with some fun fabric and tension rods. Click here for a super easy tutorial.

2. Make homemade playdough. Yea, you can buy it but why not go green and help your kids learn how to create their own creative medium.

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup flour
• 1/4 cup salt
• 1/2 cup water
• 1/2 tablespoon oil
• 1/2 tsp cream of tartar
• a few drops of food coloring

Mix all but the last ingredient in a small saucepan. Cook over a very low heat until it turns into a dough (it’ll take just a few minutes). Knead the dough on a floured surface until cool enough for kids to touch. Separate the dough into as many colors as you want to make. Put just a few drops of coloring in each ball and knead until evenly mixed. When done, put it in an airtight jar and store in the fridge

Source: SimpleMom.Net

Be careful that you DO NOT get any of the food coloring on your countertops (especially porous) stone or you might stain them. My daughter has a few flecks of neon blue in new new countertops. That increases resale value, right?

3. Cook! Kids love to help out. At the Kids' House I make food in large batches and freeze it (homemade burritos, lasagna, soups). Kids can help spoon beans, roll tortillas, lay pasta...you name it! And they get nearly instant gratification when they can eat what they created. Who doesn't like that?

4. Mystery Feely Box - Grab and old shoebox and cut a hole in its side so large enough for a little hand to wiggle in there.  Place an object inside the box and see if they can guess what it is. If they can't guess right away, let them ask questions or provide them with clues until they figure it out. It's a safe adventure and hones their deduction skills.

5. Pasta Art - I don't know about your kids, but Kids' House Kids LOVE fun shaped pasta. A plain old yellow pasta necklace, however, won't really bring out mom's eyes. Instead, place a handful of dry, uncooked pasta, such as ziti, bocconcini or itty bitty pennette, into a plastic zipper baggie. Add a tablespoon of white vinegar and 2-3 drops of food coloring (one color per baggie). Close the baggie and have the kids shake the bag until the pasta is completely colored. Spread those glorious little "beads"onto a paper plate air dry.  Once the pasta is dry, kids can use yarn to string together pieces to make necklaces and bracelets, or glue them to paper plates or construction paper to create a work of art.

Now go play!

Fun side note -
And for those of you born in the 1980s, my daughter Annie recently penned a blog post of her own taking a nostalgic look back. Check it out here. I bet I still have a few of those treasured items safely nestled into boxes in the basement.