27 Fun Things Families Have Done to Shake Things Up
Now that we’ve got a few weeks of “sheltering at home” under our belts, we’ve had some time to settle into a routine. Or lose our minds, depending on the day. There’s the boring stuff which happens every day, like cleaning, working, schooling, etc; but there’s also been a few fun ways that we have come up with to entertain ourselves. Like making ridiculous TikTok together (follow me on @mommyshorts over there!), parachuting eggs from our second floor balcony and playing our version of The Price is Right.
Yep, we made a little game show set-up in the kitchen and then I had Mazzy and Harlow compete to guess the correct prices of household items— like a vase, my sunglasses and the dining room table. Oh my god, they honestly have no idea what things cost and we laughed so hard. Mazzy thought a cantaloupe was $10 and Harlow thought our dining room table was $120. The worst/best moment was when Harlow guessed a strawberry squishie was $6 but she lost because it was $5.99 and the rule is— closest answer without going over! Fun times.
I asked everyone in the Remarkably Average Parents Facebook group to tell me something fun (or super weird) that your family has done to keep things interesting at home. Here are a few of my favorite responses.
27 Fun Things Your Family Has Done to Keep Things Interesting at Home
1) “I told my kids that we were going to see a movie, that we’d have to go in the car but they didn’t have to get dressed because it would be just our family. I had them prepare their baggie of candy like we normally would sneak into the theater. We got in the car and drove to the theater but I “forgot” my candy and had to turn around. I made them all get out of the car and handed them a ‘movie ticket’ I made that said ‘1:00 showing of Onward, Seat #4.’ My husband welcomed them to the ‘theater’ and tore their tickets. He had labeled the couch with seat numbers so there were no fights about who was sitting where. He had made popcorn so the house smelled like a theater. All the blinds and curtains were closed so it was dark. We had a great time at the movies!” – Tami
2) “We had a parade for my son’s 4th birthday. My dad even made a banner for his Jeep.” – Cassi
3) “We put up one of our tents to be used for camping indoors and also as a place to go when you just need a break. Everyone in my house has already used it.” – Amatise
4) “We had a fancy dinner. We even used the wedding china, and everyone had to get dressed up.”- Heather
5) “I’m trying to let the kids have more fun than normal, and I’m saying yes to things I normally don’t, like running through the sprinkler even though it’s not summer yet, digging in the mud, drawing on our faces. The kids are enjoying it.”- Janell
6) “I was super proud of myself for shopping for matching Easter outfits early this year. It’s the first Easter with three kids and I was determined to coordinate. Well, obviously we’re not going anywhere anymore, so yesterday we dressed in our best, took some pictures, and then played outside. It was so much fun. My son was ridiculously excited to wear a bow tie to match his little brother.” – Kristen
7) “I’m letting my 13-year-old paint a mural on the back of her bedroom door.” – Kelly
8) “We decided to have Thanksgiving in April. Why not? We used the china and silver, and it was so much fun cooking as a family. The kids did a lot of the cooking!” – Catherine
9) “We went to the ‘beach.’ The girls were thrilled, we ate a picnic on the towels and built a Lego sand castle!” – Melani
10) “My daughter and I dressed up for ‘Formal Friday’ after getting tired of living in our pajamas. It was really fun – my daughter is wearing my prom dress from 1996!” – Brandi
11) “We are having costume parties over here!” – Caitlin
12) “My mom made a list of items for the kids to find around the house, like something smelly, something soft, something red, etc. Then she led the scavenger hunt over facetime so that the kids had to run around the house and report back with the items. Kept them busy and it made for some pretty good babysitting!” – Ilana
13) “I ordered a costume from Amazon, and we walked around the neighborhood waving at our friends from afar.” – Erika
14) “We’ve been taking turns ranking each other in order of who our favorite family member is for the day, a la Dance Moms. Yes, the dog is included. And please excuse my 16-year-old for giving the finger.” – Veronica
15) “We adopted a puppy! What better time to train a pup then when we’re all home. Adding love to our home right now was the best decision ever.” – Karen
16) “We converted most of the play room into a fort.” – Kris
17) “I’m teaching my daughter how to make eggs. And incidentally she has now learned a new word – egg!” – Danielle
18) “The beaches are closed, so we used our homemade ‘pools’ in the backyard!” – Heather
19) “We took out decorations from their last birthday party and used them to make a carnival in our basement. We had a bounce house, tickets, games, prizes and cotton candy.” – Courtney
20) “We have woods in our backyard that we haven’t explored in the three years we have lived here. We finally explored them, and it was so much fun!” – Amanda
21) “We’ve taken up hitting golf balls into the pool.” – Sasha
22) “We put up a six-person tent in our formal room, complete with a full-sized air mattress. I have no intention of taking it down before this is all over. The kids are 7 and 10 and they sleep and play in there together.” – Jamie
23) “We ordered caterpillars, which I’ve always wanted to do with my kids but never actually done! They are thriving and the kids are learning.” – Cassi
24) “We turned the driveway into a giant game of Chutes and Ladders. To be honest I pulled my butt muscle making this. Thankfully the kids have played it more than once, so I suppose it’s a win.” – Megan
25) “We threw a first birthday party for our puppy!” – Jennifer
26) “We ‘took’ my daughter to Paris for her 9th birthday!” – Amanda
27) “We are supposed to be in the Caribbean right now, so we had a virtual Tiki party. We even wore bathing suits.”- Amy
Even though things are rough right now, it’s great to see so many families doing fun stuff together. I bet our kids carry some of these creative lockdown memories with them for the rest of their lives.
27 Fun Things Families Have Done to Shake Things Up
Now that we’ve got a few weeks of “sheltering at home” under our belts, we’ve had some time to settle into a routine. Or lose our minds, depending on the day. There’s the boring stuff which happens every day, like cleaning, working, schooling, etc; but there’s also been a few fun ways that we have come up with to entertain ourselves. Like making ridiculous TikTok together (follow me on @mommyshorts over there!), parachuting eggs from our second floor balcony and playing our version of The Price is Right.
Yep, we made a little game show set-up in the kitchen and then I had Mazzy and Harlow compete to guess the correct prices of household items— like a vase, my sunglasses and the dining room table. Oh my god, they honestly have no idea what things cost and we laughed so hard. Mazzy thought a cantaloupe was $10 and Harlow thought our dining room table was $120. The worst/best moment was when Harlow guessed a strawberry squishie was $6 but she lost because it was $5.99 and the rule is— closest answer without going over! Fun times.
I asked everyone in the Remarkably Average Parents Facebook group to tell me something fun (or super weird) that your family has done to keep things interesting at home. Here are a few of my favorite responses.
27 Fun Things Your Family Has Done to Keep Things Interesting at Home
1) “I told my kids that we were going to see a movie, that we’d have to go in the car but they didn’t have to get dressed because it would be just our family. I had them prepare their baggie of candy like we normally would sneak into the theater. We got in the car and drove to the theater but I “forgot” my candy and had to turn around. I made them all get out of the car and handed them a ‘movie ticket’ I made that said ‘1:00 showing of Onward, Seat #4.’ My husband welcomed them to the ‘theater’ and tore their tickets. He had labeled the couch with seat numbers so there were no fights about who was sitting where. He had made popcorn so the house smelled like a theater. All the blinds and curtains were closed so it was dark. We had a great time at the movies!” – Tami
2) “We had a parade for my son’s 4th birthday. My dad even made a banner for his Jeep.” – Cassi
3) “We put up one of our tents to be used for camping indoors and also as a place to go when you just need a break. Everyone in my house has already used it.” – Amatise
4) “We had a fancy dinner. We even used the wedding china, and everyone had to get dressed up.”- Heather
5) “I’m trying to let the kids have more fun than normal, and I’m saying yes to things I normally don’t, like running through the sprinkler even though it’s not summer yet, digging in the mud, drawing on our faces. The kids are enjoying it.”- Janell
6) “I was super proud of myself for shopping for matching Easter outfits early this year. It’s the first Easter with three kids and I was determined to coordinate. Well, obviously we’re not going anywhere anymore, so yesterday we dressed in our best, took some pictures, and then played outside. It was so much fun. My son was ridiculously excited to wear a bow tie to match his little brother.” – Kristen
7) “I’m letting my 13-year-old paint a mural on the back of her bedroom door.” – Kelly
8) “We decided to have Thanksgiving in April. Why not? We used the china and silver, and it was so much fun cooking as a family. The kids did a lot of the cooking!” – Catherine
9) “We went to the ‘beach.’ The girls were thrilled, we ate a picnic on the towels and built a Lego sand castle!” – Melani
10) “My daughter and I dressed up for ‘Formal Friday’ after getting tired of living in our pajamas. It was really fun – my daughter is wearing my prom dress from 1996!” – Brandi
11) “We are having costume parties over here!” – Caitlin
12) “My mom made a list of items for the kids to find around the house, like something smelly, something soft, something red, etc. Then she led the scavenger hunt over facetime so that the kids had to run around the house and report back with the items. Kept them busy and it made for some pretty good babysitting!” – Ilana
13) “I ordered a costume from Amazon, and we walked around the neighborhood waving at our friends from afar.” – Erika
14) “We’ve been taking turns ranking each other in order of who our favorite family member is for the day, a la Dance Moms. Yes, the dog is included. And please excuse my 16-year-old for giving the finger.” – Veronica
15) “We adopted a puppy! What better time to train a pup then when we’re all home. Adding love to our home right now was the best decision ever.” – Karen
16) “We converted most of the play room into a fort.” – Kris
17) “I’m teaching my daughter how to make eggs. And incidentally she has now learned a new word – egg!” – Danielle
18) “The beaches are closed, so we used our homemade ‘pools’ in the backyard!” – Heather
19) “We took out decorations from their last birthday party and used them to make a carnival in our basement. We had a bounce house, tickets, games, prizes and cotton candy.” – Courtney
20) “We have woods in our backyard that we haven’t explored in the three years we have lived here. We finally explored them, and it was so much fun!” – Amanda
21) “We’ve taken up hitting golf balls into the pool.” – Sasha
22) “We put up a six-person tent in our formal room, complete with a full-sized air mattress. I have no intention of taking it down before this is all over. The kids are 7 and 10 and they sleep and play in there together.” – Jamie
23) “We ordered caterpillars, which I’ve always wanted to do with my kids but never actually done! They are thriving and the kids are learning.” – Cassi
24) “We turned the driveway into a giant game of Chutes and Ladders. To be honest I pulled my butt muscle making this. Thankfully the kids have played it more than once, so I suppose it’s a win.” – Megan
25) “We threw a first birthday party for our puppy!” – Jennifer
26) “We ‘took’ my daughter to Paris for her 9th birthday!” – Amanda
27) “We are supposed to be in the Caribbean right now, so we had a virtual Tiki party. We even wore bathing suits.”- Amy
Even though things are rough right now, it’s great to see so many families doing fun stuff together. I bet our kids carry some of these creative lockdown memories with them for the rest of their lives.