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Frugal Indoor Fun
By: Nancy Twigg, Thu Jun 8th, 2006
Now that the weather is so cold, the kids can't go out and play
for long periods like they can in the summer. This means more
hours to fill with fun indoor activities. Although the
temptation may be to entertain the family by spending money
(going to the mall, renting movies, visiting a fast food
restaurant or arcade), there are ways to keep the kids busy
without draining your pocketbook. Here is a list of indoor
activity ideas that are all either completely free or cost very
little.
* Spend an afternoon writing letters or making homemade cards to
send to out-of-state relatives. Let the kids make drawings,
finger paint portraits, or collages to send to Grandma and
Grandpa to adorn their refrigerator. * Help the kids make up
skits or act out stories to perform for Dad when he gets home
from work. Along those same lines, help the children put
together a family talent show in which they sing, dance or do
magic tricks. For added fun, use a camcorder to record the
performances to watch later. The children will love seeing
themselves on TV. * Pull out the teapot and teacups and hold an
afternoon tea party. Along with your tea, serve finger
sandwiches and cookies. If your children are too young for tea,
serve heated lemonade or hot chocolate. * On a cold afternoon,
spread a blanket on the den floor and have an indoor picnic. Eat
the same kinds of picnic foods you would in the summer. * Go
camping indoors. Pitch a tent in the living room and let the
kids pretend that they are on a camping trip. Pull out the
sleeping bags and they can take naps in the tent or even sleep
the whole night there. Let them invite friends over for an
indoor camping sleepover. * Get the whole family together to
work a giant jigsaw puzzle together. Be sure to have plenty of
popcorn on hand for snacking. * Provide the kids with fruits,
vegetables and snack foods cut in a variety of shapes and sizes.
Ask the kids to use the different shapes to create their own
edible artwork. The only rule is that they have to eat whatever
they put on their plates. Be sure to take pictures of their
creations before they eat them. * Almost all kids enjoy playing
dress-up. Gather up all the outdated clothes, gaudy jewelry,
weird hats and bright makeup you can find and let the kids go
for it! Be sure to take pictures. * Pull out those board games
or card games. When's the last time the family enjoyed a
friendly game of Scrabble or Monopoly? Turn off the TV and enjoy
some family together time as you enjoy some friendly
competition. * Speaking of cards, why not use those playing
cards to build card houses? Compete to see who can build the
tallest card condominium. * Rather than renting movies from the
video store, borrow videos from friends. In return, offer to
lend them any videos you own. Be sure to return them promptly
when you're done.
About the author:
Nancy Twigg is the editor of Counting the Cost, a free email
newsletter about simple and frugal living
(www.countingthecost.com/index1.htm). For more creative
money-saving ideas, visit Nancy's newest website,
www.CreativeFrugality.com
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