Summer Boredom Busters, Part 2

If you missed the first installment of Summer Boredom Busters, you can read it here.

Here are some more inexpensive ideas to keep your kids (and mine!) from saying the dreaded "Mom-I'm BORED! There's nothing to do!"

1. Make a pincone birdfeeder--spread peanut butter into the crevices of a pinecone and cover with birdseed. Hang with twine to a branch near a window and watch all the birds come for the feast.

2. Play DOTS. This was my Grandmother's favorite game, and we spent hours playing it. Simple, yet fun. Printout and instructions here.

3. Make a Mini Puppet Theater and put on a show. Instructions here.

4. Make your own stationery, decorate it with stamps or stickers, and write a letter to Grandma (or cousins).

5. Make Origami figures. You can purchase packs of pre-cut Origami paper at craft stores, or you can use plain paper cut into perfect squares--the larger, the easier. Check out some easy figures/instructions here.

6. I Spy. ("I spy, with my little eye, something ______") A classic, but it is still fun.

7. Make Peanut Butter Bars. These are quick, easy, and yummy! Best part--no oven/baking involved!

8. Make a Scavenger Hunt. Use both common household items (pencil, paper clip, penny, envelope...) as well as outdoor items (acorn, Y-shaped stick, something red...). Give each kid a paper sack or plastic grocery bag and a list of the items and let them race to collect the items. (For younger kids, draw the items on their list rather than write them). Winner gets first choice of popsicle.

9. Make a homemade Beanbag Toss. Fill old (CLEAN!!) socks with dried beans or rice, and knot the ends. Find household items of varying diameters to use as targets (Hula Hoop, muffin tin, shoebox...) and assign each one a point value. Let each child have 5 throws per turn, then add up his/her score.

10. Play “The Minister’s Cat” (Best for age 8 to adults). How to play:

The first player describes the minister's cat with any adjective that starts with the letter "A". Example: "The minister's cat is an adorable cat." The next player must also use the letter "A" - such as"The minister's cat is an angry cat.", and so on all the way around the circle. When it comes back to the first player the letter "B' is used - example: "The minister's cat is a bashful cat." Anyone who can't come up with an adjective within 5 seconds or repeats one that was already used is out of the game.

Have Fun!