Looking for Daily Activities...

You could do coloring pages, there are so many here..
http://www.coloring.ws/coloring.html
Color veggies, connect the dot ones for the oldest. Talk about how there healthy, and then eat some for lunch/dinner.

Make play dough
http://www.teachnet.com/lesson/art/playdough061699.html
have the kids help, count, and stir, then create.

make pretzels
http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/109221
I bring the kid table into the kitchen.

Moon mud - very messy but cool stuff
mix corn starch and water, it's a solid, dribble it from your fingers it's a liquid. Very messy, put an old shower curtain down. Plan on baths and floor washing.

Hidden pictures are fun
http://www.highlightskids.com/

Get an M.C. Escher book from the library talk about the pictures, and what they could be. Ask them to tell you a story about what there doing (wright it down)

make a book
http://familycrafts.about.com/od/homemadebooks/
Have the kids color pictures and then tell you what to wright

Glue yarn to paper, talk about a spiders web

glue art sticks together, look at a picture of a bridge, talk about one you might have driven over.

:) A. H

1 mom found this helpful

Also www.oaklandcountymoms.com has some activities in your area. My son's a 14 months so he's pretty happy just getting into tupperware or hanging out at the library, but I love all the other ideas!

Some indoor activities you can do with your children are playing dress up, planting vegetable or flower seeds, finger painting, making crafts and/or exercising
The next time you are at the library look for children's gardening, craft and exercise books.

Look into your school district for a SKIP program. They are free and do lots of fun stuff for children your ages. They even do some field trips.

Hello,

I was searching for things to do to and ran across a couple of websites.

This one is from Oakland county schools and they offer free classes in local towns ages ranging from 0-5 and they are free! You have to do a bit of searching for the class list but they are called "workshops." I signed my 15 month old for the Waterford class, while my 3 year old is in preschool.

http://www.oakland.k12.mi.us/greatparents/

The next site is a list of things to do in the Metro-area. Ranging from the zoo, muesums and music classes. It is nice because they have numbers that are directly for the kid related activities. The list is 2007, but I have found that they are still active.

http://www.oakland.k12.mi.us/greatparents/FunGuide07.pdf

Good luck and please let me know if you find anything exciting to do! Have a great day!

~J.

Play games with the children like Candy Land. It will teach colors and taking turns. Play restaurant at lunch with them. Let them entertain themselves with some imagination play. Bake with them that is always fun. Even the one year old could help with that. Play hide and seek in the house. Hide with the one year old.

Hope these help. I loved being home with my kids too.
Have fun!
D. O

My 3-year-old is really into puzzles and will concentrate on one for quite awhile. She even likes more difficult ones (54 or 100 pieces) - I will ask her to help me find the edge or corner pieces or pieces of the animal (or whatever the subject) is, while I put most of it together.

We also have a blast making collages. We cut or rip out pictures from magazines and junk mail and make designs or pictures on scrap paper with gluesticks.

Funny! I have three kids too, 5,3, and 20 months! Anyway, things we do at home to occupy the time is Play-doh, which really bothers some people (messy), but I think it is worth the time they get out of it. Also my kids really like to paint. They each have their own tablet and set of watercolors. Sometimes we cut things out of construction paper and decorate it..like snowflakes or Easter stuff around easter time or hearts ar valentines day. It really is all about keeping them busy, isn't it? Another outing, I am not sure if you are close to Great Lakes Crossing, but the play area there is a great way for them to blow off some steam!

HI, I don't know where you live but I recently discovered a neat place that's great for your 2 and 4yr old (you and the little one can supervise)... it's called Plaster Playhouse (located in Shelby Twp about 23/Shoenherr) and it's ceramic studio where the kids can decorate pottery, etc. It can be pricy but its a fun outting when the weather is bad.

Also, put your local library on your weekly list! Some host kids movies, have play rooms, story times, etc...

I'm anxious to hear others responses because I'm looking for more alternatives too. -C.

My son and I go to Kindermusik. They have many different classes and they are for newborns on up to 7 years. I love it! It is Kindermusik of Holland. I think they have a member perk here on mama source. Kindermusik is a great class and they send you home with a new home activity each week. I have gotten so many ideas about things to do around my house to play and teach my son. It really is worth checking out!

When my kids were younger we used to make a monthly trip to Arts and Scraps. Very cool store, low cost supplies and lots of neat craft ideas. Check out www.artsandscraps.org.

Checkout http://www.gigglebeans.net/
Great fun, very clean and not too expensive!

I used to get books from the library with kiddie craft ideas and do arts & crafts with my little ones. Now there's the internet. Finger painting using real finger paints or shaving cream with drops of food coloring. I did this with the baby in the highchair right before bath time. I could clean up the dishes while she messed with that. Let the older ones "help" you with cleaning tasks. It takes longer but is so good for them. Reading library books then going back for new ones - this was one of our favorite things to do, and free!

Playing with blocks and other simple toys that allow them to use their imaginations are really good - toy dishes, a dollhouse etc. Cutting things from catalogs & using a glue stick to make rooms or paper dolls/clothes or various scenarios on paper or in a shoe box. Look for things that don't cost money. Take a spring walk to look at things beginning to bud. Have fun! G. B.

Hi!
I have an 18 month old and alomst three year old. I found some awesome activities this winter and the kids have both enjoyed them...hope they help you. I put the baby in her high chair and give her a few little bowls and a handful of those puffy balls and just let her put them in the bowls and then she dumps them out and plays with them while my three year old and I make "animals" on construction paper with other puffy balls and foam pieces. My three year old loves to glue them down and make all sorts of shapes and colors. This could be done with all of your ages groups.

Another cool thing I just saw that would work...take a container, like an oatmeal container and have your kids put glue all over it. Then wrap string around around and around it. Basically decorate it with the string. THen make instruments out of the containers. Your one year old could have a blast just playing on the floor with a ball of yarn...at least mine does...she's like a cat when I give her a ball of yarn. : )

Last one we have done is a snack time treat. I've done this with both of them and they get messy, but it seems to be fun for them. I take a paper plate and spread peanutbutter on it and give them a handful of grahram crackers, animal crackers, bananas, raisins, etc. They build a little village with all the fun stuff. If your kids can't eat PB, maybe use a different, nut free spread...but the kids really have fun with it.

Good luck, can't wait to see wat others suggest. By the way...the libraries in the area have awesome children's areas.
L.

Hi,

Have you ever taken the kids to Playworld? It's near Chicago Dr and I-196 in Grandville. www.playworldmi.com. It's great for the kids to get some of that energy out. You may be a little overwhelmed there with 3 kids to keep an eye on, so if you can go on the weekend or in the evening with your husband it may be easier on you. They don't charge adults or babies under 12 months, it's $3.95 for 12 - 24 months and $5.95 for 2 on up. My kids (3 yrs and 1 yr) had a BLAST. The little ones seem to like the room with the Little Tykes playhouses and cars, and the older kids (your 4 yr old) may enjoy the climbers and ball pits and giant inflatables. They keep the ball pits clean - they even have a "ball washer." I'm kind of a germaphobe, and Playworld isn't too bad. Of course I still avoid the bathrooms, but what can you do?? :) I had a difficult time keeping tabs on both kids because it's pretty big and can get chaotic if there are a lot of kids, but they stamp you at the door and don't let anyone else leave with your kid. I'd check it out if you haven't already, but like I said, you may need to bring reinforcement with three kids :)

Don't feel like you need to fill every day with activities, though. Kids need some time to play on their own and explore their own imagination...and you deserve a little "break" too (if we can even call it that!).

Good luck and have fun.

A.

When my kids were that age, they LOVED going to the Kensington Farm where you can see all the animal babies and pet them. I think you need a day permit to get into Kensington. My oldest daughter (now 24) went there over the weekend with her boyfriend LOL. soo, it's enjoyable for any age group. Even today when it's sunny out but still cool, it's fun to get outside after being cooped up all winter! (Kensington Metropark in Milford)

Hi Jeremy-C. T,

Maybe you could play games such as musical chairs, play dress-up, face paint, make an indoor fort with a bedsheet over a table, play age appropriate board games, finger paint, there is a new finger paint on the market that isn't suppose to stain I believe Crayola makes it. Then there's always craft activities. The dollar stores have tons of stickers, etc., and have an indoor picnic. My kids love that even at 7 & 9. I hope this helps. Good luck!

Perhaps this is too simplistic... but for whatever it's worth, I've certainly spent my share of time indoors in the last year so I hope something here helps. We have a large ball that we play with indoors when they get ancy. The kids love sitting on it and balancing while I hold their hands for stability. It's also great exercise and builds their core muscles. They never hesitate to laugh and giggle almost constantly (I have an almost 4 year old and a 2 year old). I also have a video in which we do Pilates together. Sometimes I end up doing more of the pilates than they do but they are catching on and starting to do the moves with me and really enjoy it. I get right on the floor with them and engage in pretend play- whatever they have in mind, whether we're having "tea" or a whole dinner party or pretending to be horses or kitty's or monsters. Of course, I read with them. I color with them and usually we're talking as they color, they're stopping to show me what they're drawing and I'm making comments about what I really like about their picture. We play games- silly word games, rhyming games, rolling on the floor silly games. I turn on music and watch them dance- they LOVE putting on a show for mommy. I try to let them help me cook and I encourage them to help me with simple household chores... these things that have to be done anyway, when we do them together, it's like a fun game for them at this age and it helps prepare them for taking on responsibility in the future. It's amazing how helpful a 2 and 3 year old can be. I also have work books for my 3 year old that are for pre-schoolers that she LOVES working through. I think anytime we engage with our whole heart and mind with them, they will feel good about spending time with us because we are really listening to them.

since i'm a big fan of anything involving food, I would say try 'cooking' with them. Make mini pizzas and let them do the toppings and the cheese, or make cookies, give each kids a job, like cracking the eggs, measuring the flour, ect. Its really fun and they can eat it when they're done.

One of the best resources for fun things to do with toddlers and preschoolers that I have ever run across is the old 'Mother's Almanac' -- it sold squillions of copies, so they're easy to find in second hand bookstores and libraries. There are all kinds of activities, crafts, projects and ideas for having fun with children in that book. The Father's Almanac isn't quite so good, but has a fair amount of overlap (in activities)...

Hi there, Have you ever heard of Oriental Trading? Their a great company and have wonderful crafts and projects to do with your kids OR on their own. My girls are 9 and 11 and have been doing things from this company for about 5 years. Actually we just ordered a TON of crafts for their birthday partys next month to keep the kids busy and then they take them home as prizes. I know you can check them out on the web (Oriental Trading.com) or here is there toll free # (800-228-2269) you can request a FREE catalog. Hope that helps!

M.

P.s.
I'm looking at my catalog now and it says if you order by April 10 of $65 or more and use key code WAO916681 you get FREE shipping! Good luck and happy shopping!

P.S.S
lol I just reread the above and thought I might add...I am in NO WAY affiliated with them! lol Just trying to help!!!

Something I did with my kids at a very young age when spring was coming, was to get them outside for short trips while learning the importance of community service. I would take them to elderly peoples homes and have them pick up pine cones and other debre that could be tripped over. I would give them a coin for each thing they picked up. Then we would go to the dollar store. It always tired them out, which ment quiet time for me when we got back home. I hope this helps you some. I know it's not an indoor activity but it sure worked for us.

Jeremy-C.,
Hello. I found this resources through my daughter's head start.www.familyeducation.com. It has alot on it. Hope it helps.

I also look forward to seeing the responses to this. I have three kids 4,3 &1. I have discovered that the dollars stores, the Dollar Tree in paticular, have great activities for only a dollar! I started my older two with puzzles, I have flashcards for all of them, coloring books, story books and so on.

If you go to perpetualpreschool.com, you'll have LOTS of creative ideas to do wtih preschool aged kids that would be fun, hands on and educational. Hope that helps!