Free (or cheap) INDOOR things to do with toddlers?

spiddy100

Hello everyone :hello:

In this cold wet weather I'm getting desperate for some things to do outside the home with my two boys which don't cost the earth. There is our local toddler group obviously which is free Once every fortnight or so we go to the library and read the books, sometimes take some home too. Other than that, the only thing I know of is to mooch around the shops, but they don't like it much and nor does my pocket!

We get outside when we can, wellies and waterproofs on, but sometimes the weather's just too cold or wet. Does anyone have any other suggestions of places children enjoy which are indoors and inexpensive? We like being at home but if we're at home all day, even if we keep busy, we are all going stir crazy by bedtime.

Sorry if this has been posted before, I did search and coudln't come up with anything.

Thanks
Spiddy100

briona

spiddy100 wrote:

Hello everyone :hello:

In this cold wet weather I'm getting desperate for some things to do with my two boys which don't cost the earth. There is our local toddler group obviously which is free Once every fortnight or so we go to the library and read the books, sometimes take some home too. Other than that, the only thing I know of is to mooch around the shops, but they don't like it much and nor does my pocket!

Does anyone have any other suggestions of places children enjoy which are indoors and inexpensive?

Sorry if this has been posted before, I did search and coudln't come up with anything.

Thanks
Spiddy100

Hi Spiddy

I don't actually have kids myself but my mum was hugely creative when trying to entertain my four sibs and I! And as she didn't drive and we lived a million miles anywhere, all of the activities were done within the home.

An obvious one is baking. We loved it – and it meant mum could get something constructive done [like making bread for the next day] and we got to "help" and sample the results.

Also, she used to make us some basic card games. All that was required were some blank postcards and some felt tip pens. She'd cut the postcards into three pieces [to make cards]. Then she'd draw basic but bright pictures [cats, dogs, houses etc] onto each of the cards making sure that she had a pair of each picture. And we'd spend hours playing basic card games like 'snap' or 'memory'. If you can't face drawing the images, cut pics out of the Argos catalogue or something – you can pick them up for free! – and stick them to the cards with Pritt Stick. To make the cards last longer, you can cover them in clear contact/sticky back plastic...

Scrap books are always fun too. Pick up cheap ones from any stationers or buy some sugar paper and make your own. Every drawing/picture the kids do can be stuck in. As well as cards they receive from grandparents etc, party invites, leaves – it's cheap and fun!

Or try some of the kids' internet sites – with fun, games, activites and colouring pages. Don't know how old your kids are but most of their fave TV shows will have a website with activities on... Try these for starts:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/cbeebies/
http://pbskids.org/
http://www.seussville.com/
http://disney.go.com/kids/today/index.html

Hope some of this helps.

Briona

Carmina_Piranha_3

does your library run 'baby bounce and rhyme' sessions? i think most libraries do, it's half an hour per week of singing nursery rhymes and action songs - it's free but only runs in term time. we were talking about it at toddler group today, everyone else seems to go to their local libraries, i go to the town centre one as it's my nearest. seems like these sessions run at loads of libraries around here, i'm pretty sure it's a government thing and runs around the country - somebody correct me if i'm wrong. once you've learned the songs you can do the same ones at home - hop little bunnies uses up a bit of energy

Lavender13

How's about:

A walk, looking at nature. I use to go for a walk with my children and we would spot birds,flowers, trees blowing in the wind etc.My son use to love it (my husband thought I was nuts!)
Are they old enough to help you cook tea or make sandwiches?
Have you any surplus wallpaper? If so turn it to the back and use as drawing paper. Maybe draw around your little ones and let them fill them in.
Have you any plastic measuring jugs? Little ones usually love measuring.
Dressing up with old clothes,pretend to be characters.

Carmina_Piranha_3

how far are you from a wacky warehouse type pub? they usually run toddler sessions in the daytimne where you can play for a few hours and a drink and biscuit is included, and sometimes a coffee for mum. the one i've seen advertised in brewers fayre costs £2 for one child and £1 extra for extra children. it would work out expensive if you needed transport though, i remember getting a series of buses to take my eldest to our local one (a half hour away by car so not taxi distance), i had to buy a day ticket and the buses back only ran once an hour so if you missed one then you'd end up with a hungry tot and have to buy lunch or a drink. it would also be expensive if they have a taste for fruit shoots from the bar though, so take your own drinks or buy a jug of squash when you're in there and aim to go in between meals so you don't have to buy food there.

Idiophreak

how about local museums/churches etc to wander around?

Are there any of the cool hands-on science museums nearby?
(although I doubt the latter are even remotely free...)

Carmina_Piranha_3

if you need to go to town is there an ealry learning centre? ours has a couple of tables and toys set up for kids to try out. they could spend half an hour playing with the brio train set

how old are your boys? rooster is 17 months old and cannot stay indoors - he needs to go out twice a day, he's like a dog :rotfl: even a short walk in the rain pleases him but on days like today he freezes if he's out for more than ten minutes. but that's long enough to have a run and jump in some puddles, then back home to et warm and dry and play with lots of toys in the bath. easy to say that when you only have one child to keep safe from traffic though.

your health visitor might have a list of toddler groups too - we go to one every morning (3 toddler groups, one singing and one at the leisure centre which is either ball pit and bouncy castle or swimming depending on if i've shaved my legs ) how far away is your swimming pool? if you're staying in the baby pool they might let you looka fter 2 kids on your own and if they are under 5 they will be free. it costs me £2.80 to go swimming and if the weather isn't too bad i can walk there and back. the ball pit session costs £2.70. both can last for hours if you can cope, and i take my own snacks and drinks.

Penny_Watcher

My Gran had great free things to do with us when we were little. Favourite was making "Stepping Stones" around the house.

She collected bits of card (cut the backs and fronts of packets, big birthday cards, other bits of flat cardboard packaging etc.) We had a pile of about 20 that came out every time we visited. What you had to do was lay a trial of cards and use them as stepping stones. You weren't allowed to fall off into the 'water' or you were out. More advanced version was to have two children and 5/6 cards - one laying them down and one following behind walking backwards picking them up as the they'd been stepped on and passing them to the front to be used again.

An old sheet and a couple of dining chairs makes an excellent indoor tent.

We enjoyed carrot and potato printing too. Messy but not too expensive.

Have you tried making your own playdough? I think there's a link on Old Style. Hang on.................

Homemade Playdough

There you go. You can put a few drops of vanilla essence in it too to make it smell nice, but it might encourage your boys to have a nibble :eek:

My kids are long past the toddler stage now, but I remember getting a bit stir crazy during the winter months.

Anyway, have fun

spiddy100

Thanks everyone

Sorry, I should have clarified, I've got two boys aged 2.5 and 11 months. We go outside whenever possible although it's hard at the moment as DS2 is too big to be strapped in the buggy for long periods, but I can't take him out crawling along the floor when it's wet and muddy (he can walk but only just)! He also feels the cold and has been poorly recently so I can't keep him outside for long enough to wear DS1 out!!

We do lots at home too (have just cooked chocolate orange muffins with DS1 - drooool) but need to get out of the house at least once a day for everyone's sanity! Thanks for the ideas of stuff to do at home though, they're really useful too

I'm way too nervous to take them both out swimming on my own, especially as DS1 refuses to wear armbands :rolleyes: I like the idea of the toy shops - can think of a few which have some toys laid out to 'try', though I guess they would get to know your face if you went every week to play and never bought anything! I'll check out our libraries too (hadn't thought of looking beyond the local one) and see if there are any museums suitable for little ones - TBH even if they just ran or crawled round a bit it would be a change from being at home!

spiddy100

PS Will edit my first post to make it a bit clearer

Idiophreak

Also, when I was a nipper some furniture shops used to have ballpools and that kinda thing in - my parents would chuck me in there to exhaust myself, then find the comfiest sofa they sold and have a nice sit down