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Rainy Day Games and Fun
By Brenda Hyde
When rainy days sneak up on us I'm sure most parents
arel looking for those special activities to keep our little
ones occupied when they can't run outside. When I
was a kid we loved to play dress-up, and my kids love
this too, when I encourage it. Let's face it, with the
distractions of video games and television you have
to push the old fashioned activities a little bit more
than our parents did. One easy and inexpensive thing
to start doing is assembling dress-up theme tubs.
You can store them in the closet or basement
where they can be hauled out on rainy days. Many
of the items you'll find around the house, and the
rest are easily, and cheaply found at thrift stores.
Here are some ideas:
Tea Party Dress-Up: Mismatched teacups, saucers
and at least one tea pot. Several hats, scarves,
dressy shoes or sandals, knee-high nylons, fancy
dresses (used flower girl and wedding attire is
fun to include.), tablecloth, napkins, plates to use
for cookies and treats plus books with tea party
themes.
Artists For a Day: Use this with your rainy day art
tub! Big men's shirts and berets for each kid,
plus used art books and classical music CDs.
Get them in the mood to paint like Monet!
Superhero Tub: For capes, take skirts and slit
them up the center then sew fairly long pieces
of fabric about 2 inches wide to the waste band
to use as a tie. You want them to tie it in a bow,
so it will untie if pulled on. Kids love to pretend
with gloves, so throw in all those mismatched
winter gloves. Anything can be accessories-
old hats, scarves, boots, vests, big t-shirts,
belts and socks.
Teacher for a Day: (my favorite when I was
a kid!). Suit coats, skirts, eyeglass frames,
shoes, lunch boxes, old school books, paper,
pencils, a "pointer" (a wooden dowel is good-
no sharp points!), stickers etc. Anything to
pretend it's a classroom.
Some general fun dress-up items to watch for:
shawls, funny slippers, suspenders, costume
jewelry, fake flowers, ties, watches, and big hats.
These tubs are also great for Grandma to keep
around when the grandkids visit! Once you start
looking for fun things to include you'll have a treasure
chest full of things to entertain the kids all day long!
Brenda Hyde is a Mom of three, a freelance writer and editor
of Old Fashioned Living. For more family ideas and recipes subscribe
to one of our free newsletters; descriptions here.
Sheila "I am a Christian Woman, a stay home homemaker and a Mom.
My interests: I love to knit, crochet, sew, embrodiery, and quilt. I play the piano, read music, I write Chrisitan poems and writings. I collect teddy bears, angels, hearts and butterflies."
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