77 Boredom Busters

Because I love the number 7 and we have a lot of ideas, my eldest son and I have came up with 77 Boredom Busters.

1. Listen to Odyssey. (Mom – you can play this in the background while you blog.) It teaches great lessons in life.
2. Play Tic-Tac-Toe using chalk on the sidewalk. Instead of X’s use fish and instead of O’s use hearts.
3. Play odds and evens. Using your hands like rock, paper and scissors – use fingers and add them up.
4. Go on a bike ride and pass out candy to neighbors that are out in their yard.
5. Give your children disposable cameras and let them take whatever picts they want. Get their view on things.
6. Most libraries have Hank the Cowdog series. They have books but it so much fun to listen to the writer read his books to you.
7. Vacation Bible School – My kids learn so many lessons from VBS plus it is a timeout for Mommy.
8. Plan a jammie day. Wear your pajamas all day long with no plans except popcorn and silly movies.
9. Have a park week. Visit every park in your city. One for every day of the week if your city is big enough.
10. Have T-bucks. Or whatever your last name starts with… For every 10 T-bucks earned – kids get a treat. You make the rules. I.e…if you decide to have a surprise clean bedroom check and its clean – they get a T-buck.
11. Have a Sweet Day. Each child gets to pick out what kind of sweet they get for dessert. We only have a Sweet Day once a week.
12. Have a lego party. Have timed tournaments to decide who can build the fastest Lego tower.
13. Let the children plant their own plant and be responsible for it. Cheaper than an animal.
14. Make mud pies. Yes, this is messy, so don’t do it on the white couch.
15. Play in the sprinklers as the grass is getting watered.
16. Make cookies for your shut-in neighbor.
17. My son loves to have wheel-barrel races.
18. Draw cartoons using your family as the characters.
19. Have a play-doo hour. Give incentives for the most creative igloo.
20. My boys love http://www.lego.com/.
21. Read aloud a book and let the kids act it out. Right now we are reading Farmer Boy by Laura Ingalls Wilder. If it gets too long, then we act it out. When they eat popcorn, we do too.
22. Have a charade box. In desperate times, pull it out and make Daddy act like a pig or mongoose.
23. Practice on manners. Answering the phone is fun if it has practiced correctly.
24. Have a coloring contest. Best creative page gets another T-buck.
25. Read out loud in the parent’s bed. My kids love snuggling with everyone in one bed – be patient this brings on lots of silliness.
26. Start a pen pal system. Have your child write a letter or color a page to a neighbor friend.
27. Make your own pizza night. Including a dessert pizza.
28. If you have girls, plan a manicure hour once a week.
29. Play UNO. Give incentives to playing like winner gets stay up 30 minutes past bedtime.
30. Half-price Books Reading Program It is free plus earn free books. Just read 15 minutes a day.
31. Check out your Library’s Reading Program. Ours gives great prizes for reading books.
32. HEB has a great reading program – this might be limited to Texas. You can earn a free T-shirt.
33. Barnes and Nobles also has a summer reading program. Read 8 books get a free book.
34. Make construction paper fish and use a straw for the pole and tape as the hook. Most fish get a prize.
35. Let your children cut coupons. If you are scared to let them use your good ones let them use expired ones. It will help them learn and you don’t have to fret about your good ones.
36. Plan a Gilligan’s Island re-run marathon. Let them make up a plan to get off the island.
37. Have a stare contest! Again, give those T-bucks.
38. Have a 15 minute – get your room clean contest. More T-bucks. You should get a T-buck reading this far…
39. Water balloon fights. Mom and Dad need to be involved to make it super fun!
40. Make a treasure hunt. Winner gets to keep the item i.e. remote control for the next hour.
41. Make a summer calendar. Show the kids what is planned out so they will have something to look forward to.
42. Go swimming. I love that this wears out my children more than anything.
43. Identify the trees in your neighborhood by using a tree identification book. Don’t help – let them learn by asking questions.
44. Play the “what if” game. I.e. What if your friend lost his lunch and you had a big lunch, what would you do? or What if Mommy got lost in Wal-mart, what would you do?
45. Plan a picnic in the living room. My kids love this. No t.v. just a plain picnic with the a/c on.
46. Run relay races why mom reads a book.
47. Go to the area pet store. Award prizes to the ugliest pet, cutest pet and pet that we are never going to have in home award.
48. Give a budget and go goodwill or dollar tree shopping. Each kid gets just a few dollars to spend on whatever they want.
49. Make your own ice-cream in a ziploc bag.
50. Let your children decorate the dinner table anyway they want. Tell them it is their restaurant. However, supervision is a must depending on your china. Give them ideas, from a Barnyard to Star Wars. My mom always serves jell-o in wine style glasses.
51. Have an Italian night! Go all out and maybe put on an Italian Opera.
52. Make a jar of places each person in the family would like to visit. Be extravagant – you never know if you will be able to go. Read these aloud!
53. Make a happy jar! Name some things that you have done or have that make you happy. Everyone has to have 7 entries each week.
54. Serve ginger ale and sherbet in a punch bowl for lunch just for the fun of it. Add tea sandwiches with the crust cut off.
55. Hit the dollar movies. I have never been but I am looking into this summer.
56. Play kick the can. My hubby told me about this one. You fill up a 2 Liter bottle with gravel. Someone who is it – guards the can. Other kids hide behind trees or houses. The object is to kick the can without getting caught.
57. Crash a wedding – hey, I’ve always wanted to do this. If my sister is still reading this – want to join me?
58. Make potholders. Cracker Barrel has a kit that cost around $5.00 to get started.
59. Make an obstacle course for your hot wheels. Go all out!
60. Make a volcano! Baking soda and vinegar work great together.
61. Go bowling! If you are still reading – you should get 3 T-bucks.
62. Lay on your back and stare at the clouds. Try to find Mickey Mouse or your dear Aunt Ruth in them.
63. Freeze Tag! We love this one! Uses lots of energy!
64. Wash the car together. Play music and always turn it into a water fight!
65. SMORES!!!
66. Build a gingerbread house! Make it summer friendly with a pool or sandbox.
67. Have Christmas in July. Set up a small Christmas tree and give gifts of food to a local food pantry.
68. See how many school supplies you already have so you don’t have to buy as much.
69. Lowes has a build and grow clinic. FREE!
70. Home Depot has a Kid Workshop. FREE!
71. Buy a canvas. Put paint in a water gun or spray bottle. Make a masterpiece.
72. Have a bubble gum blowing contest.
73. Go to the local airport and just watch the planes. Count how many you see in 10 minutes.
74. Eat watermelon and have a seed spitting contest.
75. If your kids are older, set up an interview with your pastor. Let your kid be the reporter. Ask questions, like why he became one, how old was he when he heard the calling, and does he want to go anywhere special?
76. Fill a vase with jelly beans. Let the kids guess how many? The winner gets to be queen or king of the day.
77. Give your children the Living Word – BIBLE! Talk about what Jesus has done for them and how much He loves them. Give them thought provoking questions that encourage them to look up the answers in the Bible for themselves. Let them become students of the Word!

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