More things to do at home on isolation with the kids

So things have been posted on FaceBook (FB) and ive saved them so i can share with others. Please do the same (in order to keep each and every mum sane during this time)

Many schools have sent out/home homework packs for children to do, but please remember they are just as scared (if not more so) than us adults are. My thoughts are yes do some of the work everyday BUT it's more important to be there for them, so play some board games, read a book together, get a notebook/diary and log down what you do (it's proof they weren't watching tv or on a pc for the next however many weeks.)

This was shared as a joke on FB and it did make me smile, I hope it does you as well. However, my sons Godmother said that after they have counted the rice they need to write one word on each grain of rice and then make stories. That made me laugh even more than the post did.




Before i start adding activities i will share a few websites that WILL be a godsend to all parents/guardians.

• Pinterest has hundreds (more like thousands) of things you can do, it is free to join and you can save all the things you like in one place, make different sections etc, you can find crafts, meals, school worksheets all sorts on there.
• Twinkl has loads of free worksheets and activities use code PARENTSTWINKLHELPS to get more free ones.
• Scouts UK has shared activities you can do at home (you could even make your own certificates and badges to award).
• This blog  has a list of loads of free worksheets and websites, ive not looked at them all but they may help someone.
• Quirky Momma on FB has shared many things including virtual museums  and places you can "visit" online.
• colouring pages can be found everywhere online if you dont have books at home, and this page on FB has shared loads for free - you just need to print them.
• glasgow science center is doing online science bits
• cre8tive resources has loads of free worksheets 

if you google "free school worksheets" there are pages upon pages that come up.

Now for the activities ive saved.

• Make your own monopoly board - use  local places etc, this would be best done on cardboard and use proper monoply money if you have the main set. There are blank templates online for monopoly boards.

• Make a RAINBOW and put in your window - the idea is for people to create rainbows for others to find when they are on a self-isolating walk, there are many groups popping up on FB linked to it, this one is linked to Whitehaven, Cumbria. I have also seen groups doing similar with hearts.
• my personal pinterest boards have hundreds of items saved type in "yummymummyamy" and you should find it.

• In summer 2014 i made an activity journal/book for my sons, yes it's mainly summer themed BUT i'm happy to share it and hopefully you can make use of it with your children. I didn't make the worksheets they were found all over the internet. 

There are also loads of websites offering free courses for adults to do, alison.com, skills network, futurelearn, and the open university have some

i hope this info helps someone.

Shut in with the children - things to do

SO, in light of the current situation around the UK linked to Coronavirus Covid-19, you have found your self on isolation with the children and you don't know what to do. I  have added some ideas below, not all are mine but some have been copied from posts on Facebook and other sites (I will credit where this is due.) They also don't include them being on technology (bonus). Many can be done with things you have around the house so wont cost anything.

The following items are things i have on a chart from school holiday activities for my children to do.

I hope that the above is readable.

The following lego ideas were taken off a page on Facebook (no idea of the original creator). They do seem a bit hard for some children, but you could alter them to the age of your children.

Also with lego you could make a model and then explain to your children how to make it without them actually seeing your model. EG you need a red piece with 8 raised dots, fix that to the bottom of a green 8piece so you have an "L" shape. this can be a fun activity as you get a wide range of models made.

• Pinterest is a godsend for ideas of things to do and you can find many for different ages.

• Teachers pay teachers website has worksheets if you want to do school type work (there are many free sheets as well as paid ones)

• twinkle has a good selection of worksheets and activities, as does activity village, some are free some are not.

There are many other ideas on my blog, please take a look for some ideas.

Take this time stuck at home to enjoy your children, make it a fun time to take their mind off the worries linked to the virus.

November 21st 2015 - Space saving

There is so much on this blog about space saving in a shared bedroom, some of which I have already done.  My 2 older boys share the smaller of the 2 big rooms (I have the biggest).  They are always moaning that they have no space to do anything (they would have more IF they tidied it!)

Anyway we already have bunk beds in there and use the space under them as storage with plastic boxes - shoes, lego drawing/colouring stuff etc.  The bunk beds are in a corner of the room so not to waste any space.  However, I would prefer a straight ladder rather than the angled stick out one, I think we may have a play at some point and see if we can make its straight and fixed to the bed.

The wardrobe that they had in their was old and not very safe and the drawers were broken.  So we decided to dismantle it and move the clothes into the fixed cupboard in the wall, we did have to buy a new set of drawers to hold the clothes that don't hang like pjs, undies and jumpers.  We also kept the fabric hanging rack so that they had some shelving as well.  This has worked really well and reduced 1 item that needed to be in the room.

Next came the old computer table (still with computer on it) that hasn't been used in over a year by the eldest as he has a mobile phone and uses my laptop if he needs on the net for homework etc.  This has been removed from the room as well, again giving a little bit more space.  The younger ones computer is on his chest of drawers that hold his clothes so the drawers have a duel purpose, they are also tucked up in a corner out of the way.

The eldest son had a small square unit that he had when he had the small room on his own.  It had small plastic trays in the square shelves which he has random things in - deodrants n bits in one, mini figures in another, odds and ends in another and so on.  I wasn't sure where I was going to put this and then noticed that there was a spce at the end of the bed on the wall and it was as though it was made for the unit.  So he has still has his shelves and baskets of odds n ends and they are out of the way.

They both have a 6ft high bookcase, which houses their tv and books.  The younger of the 2 boys also had his games n bits on his bookcase and no room for more books.  So hubby went to argos and bought and upright shelf unit (bathroom storage one) and this is now stood beside the head of the beds with the games and all other toys n stuff off the floor. 

We are now pretty much sorted in their room and they had a big space down one side of the room.  Me and hubby said about getting them a sofa bed as it would help if family/friends come to stay as well as their friends.  Plus it would give them somewhere to sit and play rather than on their beds.  We have bought a 3-in-1 sofa bed thingy - it can be stacked as cubes, opened to make a sofa or laid flat as a bed.  I wouldn't say it will be great for daily use as a bed but for the odd night here and there it will be ok.  This hasn't arrived yet but i'm sure I will do a post about it when it does arrive.

The boys are happier about their space, not so happy that they still have to share (but unless I win the lottery I can't convert the loft or build an extension.)

November 1st 2015 - Mums Vs sleep

Mums are proof you dont need sleep!  Especially when you have not seen your friend or her family for a few months!

5 kids that are excited to see each other and think its fun to stay awake talking until 4am for 3nights, and also full of sugar from sweets from a party leads to a very tired mum who was glad to be home, put the kids to bed and have an early night herself in a comfy bed!

the thing was even though they had been up until stupid o'clock they were still up by 7am wanting breakfast and to start the day!!!

October 29th 2015 - a simple math sum.....

What do you get if you put 3 boys into a car, strap them in and set off on a 5hr journey???  The answer is simple fighting and arguing!

3 kids + a car journey = living nightmare


This is made even worse when the said 5hr journey has delays due to lots of traffic, road works and accidents and takes over 6hrs.    Despite them having dvds to watch, toys and games, books to read, food to eat.  it's not good enough for them and the "he took my toy" and "dont poke me" and "it wasnt me it was him" etc starts.

They cant do the simple thing of sit nicely and do own thing, no they have to fight and argue which winds me up and we are all stuck in this small metal tin on wheels that isnt going anywhere very fast, we're not even near a slip road so we cant get off and find a service station or park for 10mins!  it drives me mad.  sooooo glad i dont do it very often.

August 15th 2015 - Day Camp

August 15th 2015 - Day camp

Today was the day of Badger Day Camp.  I've added the link to the whole board not just 1 pin as this has most of the ideas that helped me to organise and run the day camp.

Although we only had 3 out of 5 children turn up they all had lots of fun and were very tired at the end of a long and packed day of activities.

The above photo collage show our set up and the camping lanterns the kids made. 

We had 1 room set up as a campsite, with tents, Christmas trees, bears, bean bags as seats round the "fake" campfire and a small kitchen area with snacks and drinks.  We had another room for crafts, games and activities.  Some of the activities were done around the campfire.

During the day the Badgers made their own id badges, camp t-shirts, a noughts & crosses game from sticks and stones, they made camping lanterns from tubs, battery tea-lights and tissue paper flames and they made their own stick photo frame which a photo of them at the "camp site" was added to.  They covered many things in short subjects including camp fires and how to get help and where they should go, maps and compasses, things they can  and can't eat in the wild, the importance of hand washing especially outdoors and we used the units UV gel kit - they did really well at it.  They also talked about things you can find in nature - animals, birds, plants etc and did an A-Z of them, after this we went on a short walk to the church gardens where we looked for items that we had talked about and they had a spectrum colour chart and needed to find things in nature for each colour.

After tea the Badgers and some of the adults got into their pj's, brought their blankets and torches and lanterns to the campfire where we had a camping story and sang some campfire songs, they then got into their sleeping bags to await the arrival of parents to collect them.

Each Badger was given a certificate for handwashing, a certificate of attendance and 2 old SJA Badger badges for hobbies and games.  They will all be receiving their Adventure badge and certificate at our next presentation evening.  It was a great day the Badgers were well behaved and all had fun, but it couldn't have happened without the help of the adults from the unit as well.

July 21st 2015 - Planet Play

July 21st 2015 - Planet Play

The weather still isn't great and my friend and her kids are still here, so we needed to do something to amuse them.  So we went to Planet Play, 1of the local soft/indoor play areas.

All kids love going to soft play and being able to run about etc.  My 3 sons and my friends 2 sons are no exception to this.  They loved being able to go off on their own and play in safety, they knew where we were sat and came back when they wanted drinks etc.

Pics showing my 3 boys playing in various parts.  There is a great pic of 4/5 of mine/mates kids all sat behind the netting and they look like caged monkeys!  I won't put on here as not just my kids, but it is good.

Planet Play is really big and has a lot for them to do.  There are a few slides, loads of climbing bits, a ball pit, a sports area with football goal and basketball net.  The play area is over a few different heights that the kids have to climb to reach.  The prices are good as well - £4.95 per child for 2hrs of play.  They serve food and sweet snacks and drinks, although we didn't eat there the food looked nice and wasn't really expensive.

We had a lovely time except for 2 10/11yr old boys who thought they would push the 3yr old over (because he threw a play ball and it hit them), spit in the face of one of the 5yr olds because he stood up for his 3yr old brother and then start on the other 5yr old because he asked to have a go on the giant bouncy balls they were on.  They wern't so big and brave when they met the 10 and 12yr old brothers and an angry mother!  Sadly we wern't able to speak to their mother as they didn't leave the play area.  However, when we left my son was reading "the rules of play" on the wall and 1 said about "no bullying" to which my son said shame that happens, loud enough for the manager to hear and asked what he was on about - so we explained and he said he would go and speak to them.

May 28th 2015 - Would you rather.....

May 28th 2015 - Would you rather.....

My boys are always asking questions when we are in the car, so I thought I would see if I could find them a quiz type thing that I could print off.  I came across this Would you rather..... link on pinterest and it seems ideal.

So I set about copying the questions from the link as well as loads of others I found on the net and added them to a word document/table.  I will print them (when my ink arrives) and laminate them, so that they can be added to a carrabena type clip to keep in the car.

The questions I have are as follows:


Would you rather have an elephants trunk or a giraffes neck?

Would you rather swim in a pool of marshmallows or swim in a pool of skittles?	Would you rather eat carrots or apples all day?	Would you rather have bright blue hair or bright blue feet?
Would you rather have pink and green hair or pink and green skin?	Would you rather live in a place that was always hot or a place that was always cold?	Would you rather live in a desert or in the snowy mountains?
Would you rather wear your shoes on the wrong feet or your pants back to front?	Would you rather have a bucket stuck on your hand or your foot?	Would you rather ride on a camel or a tiger?
Would you rather eat a whole pack of biscuits or a whole cake?	Would you rather go sledging in winter or outdoor swimming in summer?	Would you rather have super hero power of flying or being strong?
Would you rather clear the table or clear your toys?	Would you rather have chocolate or sweets?	Would you rather go to the zoo or an aquarium?
Would you rather play a trumpet or a flute?	Would you rather drive a convertable car or a motorbike?	Would you rather have a pet goat or a pet chicken?
Would you rather eat cabbage or brussel sprouts?	Would you rather have a pet cat or a pet dog?	Would you rather eat cookies or donuts?
Would you rather be a teacher or a doctor?	Would you rather be a fire fighter or a policeman?	Would you rather have a toy robot or a toy space ship?
Would you rather stay up late or get up early?	Would you rather go for a long walk or a long bike ride?	Would you rather sleep in a tent or under the stars?
Would you rather have all white clothes or all black clothes?	Would you rather go up and the stairs or up and down a hill?	Would you rather have ice cream or cake?
Would you rather go to school by bus or car?	Would you rather have a dog or a dinosaur?	Would you rather play football or basketball?
Would you rather paint pictures using brushes or your hands?	Would you rather have a chocolate flake or sauce on your ice cream?	Would you rather go to the park with swings or water park with slides?
Would you rather keep an otter or an octopus in the bath?	Would you rather be a plumber or an electrician?	Would you rather be a deep sea diver or an astronaught?
Would you rather whisper for ever or shout only once?	Would you rather have long hair or be bald?	Would you rather be a doctor or a vet?
Would you rather mix all your food in a bowl or have to use a spoon for everything including drinks?	Would you rather live in an igloo or a teepee?	Would you rather sleep on the floor with a cover or an 20 mattresses with no cover?
Would you rather be a princess or a fairy?	Would you rather play football or rugby?	Would you rather be clean and unhappy or dirty and happy?
Would you rather walk backwards for ever on your hands for a day?	Would you rather have a lizard or a snake?	Would you rather be a pig or cow?
Would you rather go on a train or an aeroplane?	Would you rather be inside or outside all day?	Would you rather live in a top floor flat with nice views or the ground floor flat with your own garden?
Would you rather wash the dishes or clean the bath?	Would you rather live in the busy town or the quite countryside?	Would you rather have a tv or a computer?
Would you rather go skiing or snowboarding?	Would you rather cartwheel or walk on your hands to get about?	Would you rather have antlers or a fluffy tail?
Would you rather have short straight hair or long curly hair?	Would you rather be tall or short?	Would you rather wear ballet shoes that are too small or clown shoes that are too big?
Would you rather have a clown wig or clown nose?	Would you rather live in the past or now?	Would you rather eat pizza or hot dogs forever?
Would you rather stay in a hotel or a caravan?	Would you rather be a dancer or a gymnast?	Would you rather write with a stubby wax crayon or a permanent marker pen?
Would you rather eat burgers for breakfast or cereral for tea?	Would you rather eat all food hot or all food cold?	Would you rather go everywhere by skateboard or scooter?
Would you rather have brothers or sisters?	Would you rather drink milk or water?	Would you rather have a cold bath or no sleep?
Would you rather have a big garden with no tree or a small garden with a tree?

Would you rather have stripes or spots?

 Would you rather wear a bobble hat or gloves?

 Would you rather swim with jellyfish or starfish?

 Would you rather live in a beach house or on top of a mountain?

 Would you rather shovel snow or rake leaves?

 Would you rather no electricity or no water at home?

 Would you rather have a peg leg or an eye patch?

 Would you rather drive a race car or be a pilot?

 Would you rather eat from a napkin or the floor?

 Would you rather pull up weeds or cut the grass?

Would you rather wear a snowsuit in the sun or a swimsuit in the snow?

 Would you rather be stuck in a room with 30 screaming babies or 1 hungry crocodile?

 Would you rather be a famous pop singer or a famous actor?

 Would you rather have no teeth or no hair?

 Would you rather be a unicorn or a leprechaun?

 Would you rather find out your mum & dad are aliens or witches?

 Would you rather be a pencil or an elastic band?

 Would you rather celebrate halloween or christmas?

 Would you rather celebrate your birthday or christmas?

 Would you rather have mcdonalds or chinese as a takeway?

 Would you rather go fishing or sailing?

 Would you rather be a lion or a tiger?

 Would you rather kiss a frog or hug a hedgehog?

Would you rather be a snail or a slug?

 Would you rather have 2 houses or 2 cars?

Would you rather be a pirate or a ninja?

 Would you rather build a snowman or build a sandcastle?

 Would you rather make a snow angel or have a snowball fight?

 Would you rather drink hot chocolate or chocolate milkshake?

 Would you rather be a princess or a mermaid?

 Would you rather go on a 1week holiday to a foreign country or a 2week holiday in your own country?

Would you rather have no pudding or no sweets for a year?

 Would you rather be able to control the weather or talk to animals?

 Would you rather live in narnia or hogwarts?

 Would you rather have 1 eye or 2 noses?

 Would you rather be father christmas or the easter bunny?

 Would you rather sing jingle bells everytime you walk into a room for a week or dress as an elf for a week?

 Would you rather live in a rubbish bin or a pond?

 Would you rather ride a flying carpet or a flying car?

 Would you rather raise a cow for milk or chickens for eggs?

 Would you rather have hands for feet or feet for hands?

 Would you rather have a ladies name or ladies hair style?

 Would you rather have a mans name or a mans hair style?

 Would you rather eat a tin of cat food or 3 lemons?

 Would you rather have a pet dragon or be a dragon?

 Would you rather drive a beautiful, sleek sports car that was unreliable OR an ugly, dented, rust-covered beater that never broke down?

 Would you rather be batman or spiderman?

 Would you rather read a book or watch a dvd?

 Would you rather grow your own food or make your own clothes?

 Would you rather be a tree or live in one?

 Would you rather ice skate or roller balde?

 Would you rather be a caged animal or free in the wild?

 Would you rather shot fire or shoot ice at people?

 Would you rather be a big giant or a tiny person?

 Would you rather fight 10 duck sized horses or 1 horse sized duck?

 Would you rather answer all questions with "ha ha that's funny" or "sorry your an idiot"?

 Would you rather be the oldest or the youngest brother/sister?

 Would you rather be a piece of fruit or a vegetable?

 Would you rather be a cat or a dog for day?

 Would you rather fall into a watery puddle or a muddy puddle?

April 12th 2015 - A wet Sunday

April 12th 2015 - A wet Sunday

Where has the sun gone???  We've had a lovely week and have been outside for most of it, just started to get used to the idea of spring/summer being on the way, I even thought about getting the shorts n stuff out of the box and it rained last night and hasn't stopped today! 

So what better to do on a wet day than play Monopoly Junior with the kids.  We were going to  play my Disney Monopoly but think its too hard for lil man, who has only just got the idea of the junior version.

We have also done some jigsaw puzzles and i'm sure we will end up playing some more games this afternoon.

April 3rd 2015 - Making Army/camo cupcakes

April 3rd 2015 - Making Army/camo cupcakes

As part of his homework over the holidays my eldest son had to make some cupcakes and take photos of him doing it, well having 3 boys they "all have to do the same" or I end up with a big argument, so we all made cupcakes.

We made Army/camo cupcakes, we have made them before and they work really well.  Sadly I didnt have fresh ingredients but packet mixes.  My youngest son made the green mix, middle son made the chocolate mix and eldest made the white mix.

As you can see all 3 colours are made in seperate bowls.   From here you add a spoonful of each colour to the cake cases and then give them abit of a swirl with a cocktail stick - you dont have to mix them - if you don't you end up with 3 blocks of colour instead of them mixed more like camo effect.

 

They then go in the oven for 15-20mins or until cooked.  When they come out they look like this:

We have just got to ice them with 3 colour icing as well.  Will add a pic once they done.


 The inside of the cakes are sort of marbled and 3 tone - each cake is different, this is the 1 I had:

 The icing on them is green, white and brown but not as I had hoped - I wanted the colours mixed but didn't know how to do it so I did them each in own pipeing bag in a row.

March 29th 2015 - Boys Bedroom (or total tip?!?)

March 29th 2015 - Boys Bedroom (or total tip?!?)

This is the million dollar question!  Is it a bedroom or a total tip???  I am led to beleive that it is MEANT to be a bedroom BUT it looks like the local council tip/waste dump!  I told the boys (9 & 12) to tidy it this morning, they came down with armfuls of washing (supposedly dirty, yet some was folded) and then a while later came back down and said they had done it, I believed them (more fool me!) and I said they could play on the Wii (mine!).

When I next went upstairs I decided to stick my head in their room to check if it was tidy and they had picked everything up off the floor, and yes I could now see the floor which I couldn't before (and no it wasn't piled on the bed like pinterest pic. lol) BUT I could also see a nice pile of "stuff" sticking out from under the bed.  There was clothes both clean and dirty screwed up with toys and games and books thrown in for good measure, not to mention the random lego bricks on the floor!  So I did what most mothers would do drag all of it out from under the bed and dump it in a heap in the middle of the floor and told them to get off my Wii and get upstairs to sort it out - they had 20minutes!

This was part of the pile I pulled from under the bed:

They seem to get distracted very easily whilst tidying up - they find things that were deemed "lost" and start playing or they get into a fight over "whose mess it is anyway" or "that's mine!" and start shouting at each other as "the others not helping".  This causes me to get even more worked up as they are not tidying up their room as I have asked them to!

However, after the battle today I have made a decision there room is now going to be a "no-go zone".  I am not going in it unless it's tidy or there is an emergency!  There is going to be some rules though, and they have been told them -
1. No food or drink or plates/cups will be allowed upstairs. 
2. Clothes WILL be brought downstairs for washing daily. 
3. Clean washing WILL be put away in the wardrobe and drawers. 
4. Room needs to be tidy if they want friends round

Apart from these they can do what they like - if this means they tread on lego and hurt their feet on the "plastic carpet of bits" their problem.  If they have lost game pieces under the bed or on the floor then they cant play their games.  If their books get ripped then it's their problem I am not replacing them.  If they wish to have a pile of paper work, drawings and magazines on the floor they can.  This may sound harsh but they have got to learn and I am fed up of arguments and battles over the state of their room. 

I appreciate that they need "their space" and want to have all of their figures set out in "battles" but they need to realize that if they want their friends to come round then their room needs to be half tidy!  Neither of the boys are great fans of spiders and bugs and really freak out when they find them in their room, yet they don't seem to believe me when I say that bugs like mess!

March 26th 2015 - Re-painting the hallway & stairs

March 26th 2015 - Re-painting the hallway & stairs

Thanks to my lovely kids and their dirty hands up and down the stair walls I need to re-paint them, as where I tried to clean the walls with wet wipes it has removed the paint as well!  GGggggrrrrr!!!!

So we have bought kitchen and bathroom paint that can be washed/is waterproof, so that I *should* be able to remove dirty marks off it.  We have gone for almost the same colour - Water, similar to the pale in the middle.  Once its dry I will take a pic of the painted wall still got all the top to do but as my knee isn't too good today i'm not over doing it.  I will try and get it painted over the Easter holidays.

 

Pic shows the old and new colours, although makes the carpet look grey it is actually a deep green with the pale duck egg type colour spots.  They go really well together.  As I posted above, I need to do the top of the walls and the rest of the stair walls.

January 2nd 2015 - Do you wana build a snowman???

January 2nd 2015 - Day 2 of 365 challenge

Do you wana build a snowman???  Sadly we have no real snow to do one, but I found this dice and drawing game and printed it out.  Me and the boys had fun for about 45mins playing it.  The pic shows a couple of our snowmen pictures.  I think I may laminate the game and put in a folder to start a games folder of easy things they can do in the car.