Desperate Times Call for Desperate Action

I've been staying at home with the kids for 6 1/2 years now. During those years there have been many days of frigid cold, burning winds, pouring rain, blistering heat and days when there just seemed to be noone left one earth but us. These were desperate times that called for desperate action. Over the years I have invented some interesting activities to keep the children happily occupied...activities which Dan, my loving but unimaginative husband, has considered completely insane...activities that sometimes drove him off the deep end when he came home, exhausted from a hard day at work, to discover the aftermath of our day.

This week the boys are on holiday from school. It will be a long week with no particular agenda on the calendar. And then there is the long summer break looming just ahead. So, my mind is turning - what to do...what to do...

The topic of the day:

Things that I have done in Desperate Times:

Kiddie Pool: One day, well into the business of winter, I brought the little blue, plastic kiddie pool into the house. I laid towels all around and filled it up with warm water. I turned on a space heater and let the kids "swim". Somehow this was very different than filling the bathrub up with water. This kept them busy and happy for the greater portion of a day. They've asked me to do it again, but I havent' been that desperate yet.

Rock Box: One day as I was trying to clear some built-up clutter I discovered a shallow rubbermaid container under my bed. I dumped everything in it and went out to the driveway where I filled it up with little rocks. The Rock Box has provided hours and hours of entertainment to the boys over the years. I think this was a brilliant idea - Dan hates it and curses at it whenever it comes out of hiding.

Sand Box: On another day, when the kids seemed to tire of the rock box, I retrieved another shallow tote and filled it with sand. I let the kids add glitter and other shinky objects. This kept them happy for a very long time. Of course, sand got on the floor - but nothing a little vacuuming couldn't fix. Dan was enraged when he came home and found sand all over the playroom. I thought it was another brilliant idea.

Homemade Squirt Guns: One hot and humid summer day we were short on squirt guns so I went into the house and emptied a bottle of relish that was in an easy squirt container. Of course, the kids (mine and neighbors) thought this was delightful and they all abandoned their squirt guns and wanted their own bottles so, of course, being the compliant playmaster I went into the house and emptied out as many easy squirt condiment containers as I could find that were not too full and that we had not used in a while.

Digging Holes: One day when playing in the sandbox had lost its appeal, I gave the kids shovels, real shovels and let them dig a real hole in the yard. Needless to say, Dan was NOT PLEASED!! I told him we were going to plant a tree.

Plant a Tree: One summer day, just after Colin was born, I went into the woods, dug up a big, thin tree (tall as the house). I dragged it into the front yard and planted it. Alex, Brandon, Colin, Jeffrey (the boy across the street who we call our surrogate son) and I sat on the lawn and waited for Dan to come so we could see his reaction upon seeing a big tree on the front lawn. When he got home, he got out of his car and with a twinkle in his eye gave me that "you're so crazy" look (I think this is one of the things he likes about me - that I'm a little bit crazy). We all pointed at Colin and said, "He did it!" Later the tree died, most of it, so I cut it down to the base where there were new shoots popping up. The "tree" still lives on our front lawn and even though it doesn't look that good and it would be a good spot for a lamp post, I can't bring myself to get rid of it.

Drive Around: Summers here can get blistering hot and the humidity is insane. The humidity can make an 80 degree day feel 120. Sometimes when the heat gets to us we jump in the minivan, crank up the air conditioner and I let the boys take turns driving around the neighborhood on my lap. We can only do this on the days when there seems to be noone left on earth but us because we have uptight neighbors.

Quicksand: My siblings and I invented this game when we were kids. Since the floor in our childhood home had beige carpeting, the floor was quicksand - we also had red carpeting and then it was hot lava (if you have black flooring, it can be moulten tar, green flooring can be acid chemicals...whatever color you can invent an appropriate substance). IN my home now we have hard wood floors, so it is quicksand. The game is that you have to move around the room without touching the floor. You have to try to use just the furniture or ledges on walls but if you are desperate you can throw a pillow down. But you can only use 2 pillows at a time. Fun!

Indoor Sledding: Find a large piece of cardboard or posterboard and use it as a sled (or you can use a real sled but they tend to be too slippery and you slid off the or go too fast) to slide down the stairs. Be sure to put cushions at the bottom.

Chipping Ice: The ice maker always seems to accumulate large chunks of ice. So, sometimes I let the boys chip the ice. Good tools that are not too dangerous are meat tenderizer hammer, grapefruit spoon, Sciccors. Be prepared to rush to the emergency room. I've never had to do this...yet.

Scavenger Hunt: Hide change all over the house. When they find all the money you can go to the Dollar Store and let them buy a toy.

Dungeons and Dragons Obstacle Course: We build obstacle courses including things that swing back and forth (like a pretend blade swinging), things that you have to dive over, crawl under and squeeze through. We time the trials. One time we actually pulled down the ceiling with one of our contraptions.

Peel Potatos: Believe it or not, the kids enjoy this and it takes them a long time to peel one potato - and then you don't have to peel them for dinner.

Painting: Sometimes I let them paint themselves. But it can be very messy and then you have to give them baths. Sometimes I make them lie down and blind fold them and they have to stay perfectly still while I paint them. Little kids are very ticklish so it is hard to stay still - especially for Brand who is the tickliest little kid ever - I can't even wash him and put lotion on him without him melting into ticklish convulsions.

Play Drag Queen: The boys won't play this with me anymore. But we used to put on all my old party clothes and costume jewelery adn do drag queen make-up. It was fun. Dan says if anyone turns queer it's all my fault. But I don't think anyone "turns queer", I think you either are or you're not and if they are then I would want them to feel accepted as they are.

Deconstruction: Give them some old appliance to take apart.

Hammering: Give them a block of wood and a hammer and let them hammer away. They even like to have colored strings to tie around the nails. They call the finished object an "Evil Web Catcher".

Sew: The boys enjoy using the sewing machine. I think they enjoy anything mechanical.

Typing: On an old fashioned typewriter.

Tin Foil: An oldie but goodie - always fun to play tin men - but sucks when you need tin foil and discover that you have none.

Guessing Game: Another oldie but goodie: Close your eyes and guess what it is.

That is what I could recall in 30 Minutes on the Machine.