Rainy Day? Keep Your Kids Busy With These Activities

I live in Portland, Oregon - duck country. It rains a lot, and even in the summer, when the kids are not in school, we get some rainy days. It's great for my garden, but having the kids indoors all day can be a challenge. Here are some ideas for keeping them amused.

Televison: What? Let your kids watch TV? Isn't that supposed to be bad for them? Well, there's nothing wrong with letting them watch for a half hour or so. That might give you a few minutes or peace and quiet to get the dishes done or check your e-mail. Take advantage of it, and don't feel guilty.

Board games and puzzles: Put together a boxful of these that you save just for rainy days. That way, it will be something new, different and exciting when a rainy day comes.

Painting: If you don't have paint, you can make some yourself out of items in your kitchen. If you have food coloring available, you can mix it with water to make watercolors. Or, you can cook up a cornstarch mixture and add food coloring to make finger paints. No food coloring? Make a batch of pudding, and paint with it. Mix some extra strong Kool-aid to paint with. Or even just white paint made from cornstarch and water can be used to paint on colored paper. Let the kids help make their own paint.

Cooking: Bake cookies. Eat them. 'Nuff said.

Put on a play: Take one of the kids' favorite books, dress up, and act it out.

Play balloon volleyball: Blow up a balloon, and see how long you can keep it in the air.

Dance, dance, dance: Put on your favorite music, and get silly! Be sure to use the air microphone and air guitar, too.

Record a CD: If your computer or iPod has a microphone for sound recording, practice up a few songs with the kids, and make your own CD. You can be the next American Idols!

Make some goop: Mix together 1 teaspoon of borax and ½ cup water. In a separate bowl, mix ½ cup water and ½ cup white glue. Pour the borax mixture into the glue mixture and mix. It makes a sticky, rubbery, weird substance often called goop, which is fun to play with. Store it in a plastic container, and it will keep for the next rainy day.

Play hide and seek: Even big kids enjoy this. Hide yourself away really well, and take a few minutes to yourself while they search.

Whatever activities you choose, remember that they're often more special if you save them just for a rainy day. A plastic rainy day box is an excellent way to organize and save your activities for when they're needed.

Also, everything's more fun when Mom and/or Dad play too. Take some time for yourself, but be sure to take advantage of the unexpected family bonding time as well. Remember, they'll be grown up before you know it!