All of a sudden, it seemed, the babies in our family were toddlers and kindergartners. Our family parties were noisy with active kids who ended up in time outs. Our first cookout of the summer was in a couple weeks. Knowing that some of the best memories came from extensive planning, I hunkered down days before our first summer backyard picnic to plan and get ready to have a wonderful time with our grown children and our five grandchildren. The food part was easy, a cook out is always fun. Now, what could I plan for the little ones to do to keep them happy and engaged?
I bought one inch paint brushes and spray bottles from the dollar store. When the kids arrived, I handed each child a spray bottle filled with water and a paint brush and sent them off to "paint" rocks, trees and anything else they wanted to paint within the confines of our fenced in backyard. First they squirted the item with one hand and then used the other hand to "paint" with their brush. They loved it. We had no arguing and plenty of time for the adults to mingle without running interference.
The following is a list of happy and successful ideas for year long fun that keep young kids busy, happy and not so prone to be in time outs:
Outside Fun:
1-Trampoline-we bought one with a netting enclosure. The parents had as much fun as the little ones bouncing around and chasing each other.
2-Hammock-a brightly colored large size Mayan hammock strung between two trees has become a delight for all five grand kids, all five kids can fit it in while one of the dads pushes them. When he gets tired, they take turns pushing each other resulting in much fun and laughter.
3-Mural Painting-this idea came from the Family Fun website. I took a sheet and hung it on the clothesline. Then I put various colored diluted tempera paint in spray bottles. In their swim suits, the kids pointed their spray bottles at the sheet and painted to their hearts content. When they were finished, we used the hose to rinse it all off and they began again.
4-Stepping stones-this was a big project but very worthwhile. Each member of our family made their own stepping stone to put in my circle garden. My husband and sons mixed the cement in our wheel barrow then poured it into plastic plant plate holders for moulds. They brought things from home to individualize their stones and added some of the things I had available. The littlest kids put their hand or foot print in their stone. We even made one for the dog!
5-sandbox-instead of sand which can be messy, I put birdseed in a plastic tub and gave the kids cups and shovels. They had a blast and the birds later ate the seeds they spilled.
Autumn
6-Annual fall party-we have tons of leaves at our house. I bought enough rakes for everyone. After we are done raking and the kids have had their fill of jumping in the leaf piles, we have a treasure hunt in a big pile of leaves. While the kids are busy somewhere else, I throw a bunch of stuff I purchased at the dollar store into the pile. Grandpa says, "Go!" and the kids dive into the leaves searching for their treasure.
Winter/Spring
7-Special Dinners-to keep the little ones occupied as last minute preparations are being made, there are items laid out to assemble simple centerpieces for our tables. Great Grandma does a wonderful job helping the kids work together. For Thanksgiving, the kids make a food-turkey: a melon for the body, a pear for the head and grapes on skewers for the tail with red peppers cut out for the details. At Christmas, the kids decorated a gingerbread house I put together from a kit. One of the dads piped the frosting and the kids just stuck on the candy. For Easter this year we will make egg flower centerpieces with toilet paper tubes and colored foam. (directions found on the family fun website).
After dinner fun
8-Card game: Fill or Bust is a card and dice game that any child who can throw dice can play. Each player receives points and you can stop the game at any time. It's mindless, simple and fun. It teaches patience and good sportsmanship.
9-WII-I am so glad we invested in this game. Our family loves the Sports games - especially bowling. This year we received a mini golf game that is exciting and easy to play.
There are tons of ideas on the internet for keeping kids busy. These are just a few ideas I found that work great for our family. I hope you'll try some out. Family times go much smoother when there's plenty for the kids of all ages to do.
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