I’m BORED! As a parent, those two words you’ve probably heard so many times at this point. And for many parents, they consider hearing those words as part of the duty of raising a child.
The problem though is what happens afterwards. Many parents decide instead of spending time with their children, they tell them to watch TV or play video games. It’s understandable, but constant reliance on technology results in a distant relationship between parent and child.
I believe we can all be more creative than that.
To start, I barred that phrase from my house. Whenever someone said they were bored, I gave them two options:
First, there is always work that can be done. Secondly, find some fun things to do at home.
There are always creative and fun things to do with family. You just need to put some thought and imagination into your day. Whether it’s raining, snowing, or sunny, there are tonnes of options to consider.
The list of enjoyable things you can do is inexhaustible when you look at it. For now though, here are 30 fun activities to do at home. Some of the family activities at home are best done at appropriate times of the year too. Enjoy!1. Have a Costume Night
Generally, the only time we can get away with putting on costumes is on Halloween. But just because costumes are fitting during that time doesn’t mean you can only wear costumes for that one night. After all, thinking of a costume design, designing it and wearing it is a lot of fun!
With that in mind, having a costume party can be thrilling to have.
Host an evening where everyone has to dress up in a costume. (Some costume ideas here!) Eat your dinner that evening all dressed up too. Afterwards, play games and just have a party. You can even make it a “themed” costume party by choosing a time-era or stick with movie characters. Shape it to meet your interests and needs.
2. Throw an Indoor Picnic
One of the most fun indoor activities at home is having a picnic at home.
Set out a picnic blanket and basket of food and eat your dinner (or lunch) as though you were having a picnic. Just having variety in your family life brings you closer together as a family unit. Events like this are often the catalyst for a fun-filled evening or afternoon.
3. Have a Christmas Party (*In the Summer)
There is Christmas in July so it’s still very fitting. Set up some Christmas decorations and have a Christmas celebration during the summer. This can also be one of the fun things to do at home with family and friends!
There are several avenues you can go about this event.
One way is to use this time to give back. Buy some items with the intention of donating them to an organization that accepts donations for families in need. From there, you can use this time during the summer to wrap them up and donate them once December rolls back around. During the wrapping, you can use this opportunity to be thinking of the joy your purchase will bring to a little girl or boy.
Overall, this serves to make your family mindful of others. Everyone in the family will be excited when Christmas comes and they can donate the gifts that you wrapped in the summer.
Another angle is to consider the hundreds of Christmas movies available. Whether you’re with someone or by yourself, it still is one of those fun things to do by yourself (or with others) at home that can make you smile. Find some of the Christmas movies you like online, and set up a simple playlist for a Christmas movie marathon. From there, you just need to get a nice warm cup of hot chocolate and sit back and enjoy.
4. Host an International Dinner Night
This is one of the activities I do with my family a lot. The idea is simple. Pick out a country you would like to learn more about and are interested in and do some research on it. Find cuisine that is unique to that country, and maybe find some music from a band in that country too. For example, you could choose Mexico. You could then serve tacos, enchiladas, and Arroz con Pollo and set the mood with some Mexican music. The idea is to create an environment where it feels like you’re dining in that country you’re interested in.With that in mind, anything to make it feel more like you’re there will help. The family can look for clothing that is worn in the country and wear it to dinner. Going off the Mexican idea, family members could wear sombreros or if you’re lucky you could find huipils or charros.
To ensure everyone is doing their own research, each family member would be responsible to bring one fact about the country to share at dinner time too. You can also look into what sort of decorations are being used to make your house atmospheric for the area too.
Overall, this is bound to bring some fun things at home.
5. Film a “Newscast”
The technology that exists today is awesome and allows people to do a number of fun ideas at home. Case and point, smartphones come equipped to make videos and that can be used to film a “newscast”.
Set up and make a newscast of events that are going on locally or events that are taking place in your family circle. The idea is to keep it simple and memorable for everyone.
Once everyone is prepared to share what they know on a certain topic, begin filming. Even though these events are things you may already be aware of, this particular activity is fun and will also help everyone learn to speak in public.
Doing this at home is an unusual way to interact as a family, but it allows everyone’s voice to be heard and to have open communication. It’s a quirky way to being closer as a family unit.
6. Have an Indoor/Outdoor Scavenger HuntEveryone loves hunting for hidden things and thus another one of those fun ideas for home is born. Type up a list of things that need to be found and give everyone a list. The things can be inside your home or even outdoors around the yard. Put a time limit on how long they have to locate the articles.
Be creative with this as well. You can put some things in the form of clues, so everyone has to figure out what the object is. This is on top of hiding the objects as well. To provide some incentive – and competition – have a small prize for the winner.
