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Right about now those of us on the East Coast are frantically looking for activities to keep our kids occupied while Hurricane Sandy makes her way into our neck of the woods. Schools have been cancelled throughout Massachusetts and much of the East Coast while we wait for the winds to pick up and the predicted widespread power outages to hit.
Being prepared with food, water and other necessities are a must, but finding activities to entertain bored children is crucial. Just a year ago we were dealing with another storm that brought power outages for days and it was challenging to find activities to keep everyone happy.
This year we are determined to be better prepared.
Here are a few activities to keep your kids busy if the power goes out.
Make collages from old magazines
Grab a big stack of magazines and let your kids flip through each one. Ask them to find pictures and words to cut out. Once they have a good sized stack of pieces they can lay them out and glue them onto a piece of paper.
Play Phase 10
The Phase 10 Card Game [2]
Finger knit
You don’t need much equipment to finger knit [3] -just your fingers and some yarn. All three of my boys love to finger knit. HERE [4]‘s a great tutorial to get you started with your finger knitting adventure.
Build a fort
When the power goes out there’s no better time to make a fort. Grab some towels, sheets, pillows and a few flashlights and books and you are ready for fort building. Fort building has been a staple in our house since the kids were very young. You might even want to try sleeping in the fort.
We have a closet filled with board games and sometimes weeks will go by without playing them. When the power goes out head to that closet in your own home and pull out your favorite game. Our board game of choice right now is Brain Quest [5]
Make shadow animals on the wall with your fingers and a flashlight
When the lights go out grab a flashlight and start making animal shadows on the wall. You can make a rabbit, dog, bird or swan [6]. What other animals can you make?
Light a fire in the fireplace
There’s nothing like snuggling up in front of the fireplace when the power goes out. If you don’t have a fireplace grab some blankets and camp out together. Last year during the storm we slept for a night or two in front of the warm fire. Ghost stories are a must!
Talk
Sounds so simple doesn’t it? Our crazy lives don’t always allow for uninterrupted talking. When the lights go out and TV’s and computers go off spend some time just talking with your kids. Tell stories, share and really listen to each other. What a unique opportunity!
Decorate the house
Make holiday decorations to hang around the house. Hurricane Sandy is coming right before Halloween. Take advantage of the opportunity to make some homemade decorations to celebrate.
Make a scavenger hunt
Scavenger hunts are a great, fun, and easy way to keep kids entertained. Start making clues and remember this rule of thumb: kids’ patience will last through about twice as many clues as they are years old.
To all of my friends and family on the East Coast stay safe!
How are you weathering the storm? Any other activity ideas to stay sane?
P.S. If you liked this post you might enjoy our Groovy Green Livin Newsletter [7]. Receive new posts and special opportunities delivered right to your inbox! Sign up HERE [7].
Clearwater Public Library System Photos via photopin [8] cc [9]