Going stir crazy stuck home with sick LO

[*Ali*]

Cadan who is 3.5yo has tonsillitis and is pretty feverish and immobile. Yesterday we watched movies and ate ice cream all day and then sat in the paddling pool to cool off for 10 minutes. Oh and we played I Spy for 5 minutes before he got bored.

Today he still isn't well enough to be up and about much but we are all (Colby 23mo is here too) going stir crazy stuck home in a heat wave.

I hope to get a board game out later while Colby naps but does anyone have any other ideas for things to do together indoors in hot weather that don't really involve moving around or TV?

Thanks.

[koe2moe]

Do they like playdoh?  Painting with water on whatever outside, like fence, wall, terrass tiles?  Painting?  Cut up a carrot or potato to make stamps?  (i hate mess, so i can only think of stuff not messy at all )

[michaeljacknnugg]

I was going to say craft stuff too. Sticker books?

[*Ali*]

Thanks. We did get the water table out on the deck but he couldn't stand up for long and came in for a rest.
I actually think all your ideas would end up very messy indeed Koe! yeah he does like play doh but it always ends up everywhere so I have put it away. I will get it out again this afternoon. Good idea.
Funny he isn't actually into sticker books. He just wants to stick the stickers all over himself and then throw them in the bin after 5 mins
I find it so hard to do crafts with the two of them as one is always getting glue or paint everywhere while I'm dealing with the other.

[creations]

Is he feeling too poorly for imaginative play? I'm thinking sitting down but playing with little cars and characters, making up conversations and stuff?  DS likes it when I put on different accents - although I find it pretty hard work to keep going as long as he'd like.

Chalk board and chalks?  Not quite as messy as paints, I let DS use a chalk board even on our rug as any dust vacs up easily, he doesn't draw much though so here its a 2 min activity.

A big tub and jumbo pack of pasta, few measuring jugs and cups - like a water table but indoors if it's too hot out, and he can sit on the floor at a tray rather than having to stand at the water table?  He might like to sort different shapes of pasta if he's into sorting?    Or move them around with diggers and tip trucks if he likes those.  Or send Colby to the other side of the room for each piece of pasta and bring it back to Cadan for Cadan to sort into 2 or 3 different tubs/bowls (or post them through a hole in a box if he is too poorly to want to do sorting) that way Colby gets exercise and Cadan can sit still and do the brain work?

Dot to dot?  DS just got into these on and off, he needs help to draw the line as he doesn't have good control of his pen but he likes to look for the numbers and see the picture.  You can draw some out yourself if you don't have a dot to dot book. Or I bet you could print some off in a flash (and Colby can draw rather than dot to dot)

Wax crayons and colouring pages are not too messy.

[*Ali*]

Oh yes we have an easel with a blackboard on one side. I'm sure I could position a chair in front.
Gtg Colby up now...
Thanks.

[creations]

Maybe some rhyming games?  Might only be 5 mins like I spy but it's still 5 mins of distraction and no one has to move.

[C&B&E]

Ice play? I did it with mine today and they loved it. A few plastic containers, fill them with water and a bit of food colouring if you want. Thenadd a few little plastic toys to each one - see creatures work well. Then pop them in the freezer overnight.  Put them all in a big plastic box and give them some stuff to either break up or melt the ice to free the animals (toy hammer, pippettes and warm water etc).  i also did it with some magnetic letters today.

[*Becky*]

I feel your pain Ali...H has c pox and is housebound!
We have had movie day and I bought him a new roald dahl book so plenty of that...new lego sticker book helping a bit but not madly into stickers. Lots of time in the sand pit in the shade. x

[koe2moe]

Thanks. We did get the water table out on the deck but he couldn't stand up for long and came in for a rest.
I actually think all your ideas would end up very messy indeed Koe! yeah he does like play doh but it always ends up everywhere so I have put it away. I will get it out again this afternoon. Good idea.
Funny he isn't actually into sticker books. He just wants to stick the stickers all over himself and then throw them in the bin after 5 mins
I find it so hard to do crafts with the two of them as one is always getting glue or paint everywhere while I'm dealing with the other.

Do you have my kid there x 2??  DS never plays with stickers!  When yours is so ill, outside play just wont work.  With playdoh, at least he can be nudging and kneading a piece in his hand while laying down  

Lots of get well vibes!!

[*Becky*]

I find it so hard to do crafts with the two of them as one is always getting glue or paint everywhere while I'm dealing with the other.

i feel the same...

[koe2moe]

I can't even get one to do craft!! Ds just wants to squirt glue everywhere!! 

[michaeljacknnugg]

I know it's a bit late but have you tried making rubbings with crayons and a textured surface? No mess and can be done with two!

[koe2moe]

I know it's a bit late but have you tried making rubbings with crayons and a textured surface? No mess and can be done with two!

I'm going to try that but there will be mess!!   

Ali, hope you all had a better day! 

[creations]

Does Cadan like maps?
DS is so into maps just now, we have a map of a nature reserve place which he wants to look at every day and just talk about the route we took walking around etc. He also has a picture of a pirate map he loves to look at and wonder where the treasure is hidden.  Then the other day I drew a map of our road for him with landmarks and he totally loved that and chatted and pointed for ages.  The next day we began making our own map. Just 4 pieces of white A4 paper taped together at the back and brainstorming favourite places in our town, like the beach, park, Nana's house, it's a bit more 'free' this one and things do not need to be in the right place or to scale, he just scribbles colours and tells me 'that's the play park, that's the slide' etc and I write it on so I can remember what it all is when we look back at it. We just used felt pens as DS doesn't make mess with them - it's hard to get him interested in drawing long enough.  For DS it gave purpose to drawing which motivated him because otherwise he doesn't really draw much.
Or maybe you could get some photo books out and talk about pics of days out and holidays?