How to alleviate the boredom of being skint

RelievedSheff

In this weather just get out in the garden. Get the kids involved in the gardening, play games, get them wildlife spotting, have a picnic in the garden, etc.

Tropically

Oh gosh I don't know, I am really struggling.

Unicorn_cottage

Tropically wrote: »

Oh gosh I don't know, I am really struggling.

Tropically! Nooooo! What's a crack-a-lacking?

TripleH

Baking / cooking is good. Not 'fun' things like buns or cakes but sensible things like bread, stews, quiches for example. If you teach them to cook from scratch and be economical, it develops good habits without them realising.

Also after a while set them a challenge to make a 2 or 3 course family meal but with a set/limited budget. Useful life skills to learn and can be extended to be a little bit of fun and competitive (well i found it fun growing up).

When i went to Uni, people in halls were surprised i, an 18yr old reasonably sporty male could cook meals from scratch without a cook book and on a budget.

But I'm sad and proud of it.

dan958

TripleH wrote: »

Baking / cooking is good. Not 'fun' things like buns or cakes but sensible things like bread, stews, quiches for example. If you teach them to cook from scratch and be economical, it develops good habits without them realising.

Also after a while set them a challenge to make a 2 or 3 course family meal but with a set/limited budget. Useful life skills to learn and can be extended to be a little bit of fun and competitive (well i found it fun growing up).

When i went to Uni, people in halls were surprised i, an 18yr old reasonably sporty male could cook meals from scratch without a cook book and on a budget.

But I'm sad and proud of it.

Yep. My mum brought me up teaching me how to cook, and I'm extremely grateful for that. I remember when my girlfriend at the time went to uni, because her mum always did the cooking, she didn't even know how to boil pasta.

RecentPost

4 pack of Galahads from Aldi only 2.19

walletmoths

Had a bit of a brainwave in the library... We've all decided to learn something over the summer holidays - something fun, so we've got a Spanish phrasebook and CD. The kids have loved it

Also, we borrowed a kids cookbook, and I've set the kids a task of reading-up on what ingredients are needed, making a shopping list, buying them (but also looking for the best bargains), and then we'll cook that meal together tonight. They're well exicted!

And... last night, I found some great piano-lesson tutorial videos for kids. Luckily we have a dusty old keyboard that they can use, and from the very first lesson, my daughter is hooked. (It's called The Hoffman Academy if anyone fancies a go.)

Thanks for all your comments. We're on fire with ideas...

aimeemum

My boys are 9, 7 and 5 and I'm all too familiar with the gift-shop guilt-trip. I appease them by setting a budget each before we go and they take that money with them. Them handing over the money is a lot more painful than if Mum puts it on the plastic and they tend to save the money for future days out than spend it all in one go. We went out for the day on Sunday and I gave them all £5 and took £10 for ice-creams or drinks....we all came back with change!

To alleviate boredom I like to have a routine which stays the same every day unless we're planning something special. Up by 8, breakfast and dressed, housework and jobs (including the kids), then snacks, then free play while I catch up with something boring like checking banks/ironing, then lunch, then we do something fun or constructive - park, walk, paddling pool, baking, art, garden work or a trip out. This stops you needing to buy lunch if you're out and if the kids don't play along, we don't do the fun thing....which doesn't happen often but they know I mean it!

As for free/cheap activities, my go-tos are:

Paddling pool in the garden. If you don't have a pool, make-shift a sprinkler out of a drinks bottle (pierce it with a screwdriver) and some gaffer tape

Make something good to eat - cakes, biscuits, pies, even fruit salads are fun to make as a family, especially if you include the trip to the supermarket. Set a budget for ingredients and make it a challenge to get as much as you can for the price. My 9yo is very good at spotting yellow stickers! lol

Playdates - invite friends over the play and get some cheap lunch/dinner things in. You never know people may reciprocate

Cinema - our local ones do ticket for £2.50/£3 per person if you go to the kids showings. You can take your own snacks (I get mine to pick some of the 3 for £1 sweets at the supermarket and a 3 pack of milkshakes ) and as you're in early it's never very busy either. Air conditioned too which at the moment is brilliant!

Definitely gardening - get the kid motivated by saying they can have ice-lollies after they've finished, or a coin for them to spend next time they're out. I make sure I have a 'prize' at the end of every week (a planned trip out, a £2 coin each, an ice cream from the van, etc) for them in the holidays so it's something to hold out like a carrot!

Not an activity per-say but having a good clear out of stuff you don't use and then doing a car-boot or a load of FB sales posts could earn you all some pocket money towards a day out or even (if you have a lot of stuff) a weekend in a caravan if you find a good deal!

We're members of English heritage. It costs me £8-something a month as a family of 5 and we get in free to all their properties. While it's not a 'saving' as such, we've had 3 days out so far this summer that we would have struggled to save up for (£54 to get into Stonehenge being the main one!) but we can do them ad-hoc. Free parking is an added bonus too Depending on what you have locally, EH or National Trust may be a good investment and get you all into the outdoors!

8ofspades

Research and make cheap picnic packed lunches together, then go for a walk. Keep the lunches healthy and have something treat-like to look forward to when you get home (ice cream?) We have a book of walks in our area that we work through but there's lots of websites for local walks. You can get library books on birds trees etc. To spot or I'm sure there are free printouts. We also play a lot of board games I think making the simple things about special or different can really help rather than it being all about what you can't afford - an easy mindset to have when you're having to be so strict. Watching a movie can be a completely different experience for kids if you set up dens and make popcorn etc. and all get together!

FabFifty

What about volunteering as a family at local events - running / cycling / music or similar (some even offer freebies to volunteers). Join Parkrun / Kids Run Free (you don't have to run, just walk). Join a local litter pick, sports grounds tidy-up or similar. Look at local sports clubs for free taster days. Always pack more than enough food & drink - be honest with your children and tell them you haven't got enough money for extra food/snacks. Buy a pack of ice creams from a local supermarket rather than an ice cream van.