10 Boredom Busters To Prime Right Now

Disclosure :: there are affiliate links embedded below, but we as local New Orleans moms have ordered, played with and enjoyed every last one of these suggestions. If these ideas are working for us, we figure that they may work for your home, too!

10 Boredom Busters To Prime Right Now

1. Bubbles. While regular bubbles are a ton of fun, we highly recommend taking the bubble game up a notch. Whether you select bubble guns or bubble wands, your kids are likely to stay occupied longer than the traditional kind. My own kids have had a blast seeing who can make the biggest bubble; this simple game entertains them for a good hour!

2. Gardening. This is actually the perfect time of year to let kids experiment with planting seeds. My daughters in particular enjoyed this “paint and plant” set, and watering it each day gives them a sense of ownership, too. I saw another friend suggested this grow your own herbs kit, which seems like fun for children of all ages and has the added benefit of enhancing your meals.

3. Crazy Forts. These are fun indoors or outdoors, and it lets kids build and get creative. Their imagination is the limit. My kids like building forts and then eating popcorn while watching a movie inside. These can be used outdoors as well, if you prefer!

4. Tie Dye. Oh, the things we thought we’d never allow in our home suddenly become fair game during stressful times. Order yourself a set of 5 Hanes plain white shirts (or any basic white clothing will do – think pillow cases or socks or whatever) and this Tulip tie dye kit (yes, we have tested it ourselves!) It’s been suggested to both wash the items ahead of time (before tie dying), as well as soak the clothing in white vinegar (after tie dying) to preserve the brightness of the color, but that’s totally optional.

5. Water, water, water. Hoses and sprinklers are fun, but if the kids are truly losing their minds and need something new, order the Bunch-o-Balloons water balloons (they really do fill up that fast) and Otter Pops and reward them with a “party.” I save these for Friday afternoon or weekends so that it feels like a special treat. Now is a great time to grab an inflatable pool, which without water can morph into a GIANT sensory play option. {Hint :: we love water beads for sensory fun.} For younger kiddos, we adore the totally mess-free Water WOW books, as well as the Water Doodle Mat (great for toddlers). Speaking of mess-free, we also love these LED writing boards that allow kids to scribble without crayons! Older kids can use these boards to practice letters and words, if you’re ambitious.

6. Get ahead on Mother’s Day and birthday gifts. A friend shared that she was using this time to let her kids make Mother’s Day gifts, which I thought was smart since we do have plenty of time for extras right now. She selected a paint your own stepping stone, which eventually can go in her mom’s garden. Alternatively, you can snag a few blank 8×10 canvases for your kiddos to turn into art.

7. Take it old school. Who remembers Mad Libs? Turns out those are totally still a thing AND that kids have a blast with them! Same with charades. Of course, UNO is a classic that has some academic (numbers!) merit in our mind (or you could be the “cool” mom and get UNO Emoji). Or, what better time to learn to fly a kite? (We are low key obsessed with this octopus kite!)

8. Board games! Now depending on the age of your kids this activity may require your participation, but they’re a fun way to engage with kids. We are obsessed with the entire line of Peaceable Kingdom games because they are cooperative (I.e. no one loses – you play together). Kids of all ages enjoy the game Trouble, and Catan Junior is loads of fun as well. Another crowd pleaser is award-winning Zingo, which is ideal for emerging readers and popular with any kid who has played.

9. Need for speed. Paint your own racers is a crowd pleaser because it’s creative, absorbs a good amount of time and then you can spend hours racing the creations indoors or outdoors! Now, this next suggestion is more of a splurge, but Santa brought them 5 years ago and they are STILL going strong at our house. Plasma cars are fun for toddlers, preschoolers and even some that simply remain young at heart! We have also had tremendous luck with these airplane “flyers” that really do work fairly well.

10. Turn boxes into art! After letting the Amazon Prime boxes sit outside for as long as your home feels comfortable, challenge your kids to turn the boxes into whatever they can dream up. My own kids have stayed busy for hours before drawing, painting, cutting and just being allowed to create on blank boxes. Kwik Stix solid tempura paint is one of our “must haves” for any creative time – if you don’t own some, add it to your collection!

Still want MORE ideas? Check out suggestions that keep kids busy at restaurants (but could work at home, too), as well as Christmas gifts from last season that have stood the test of time!

Ashley Angelico
Ashley is the Co-Owner of New Orleans Mom, Red Stick Mom and Lafayette Mom, now the largest network of parenting websites in South Louisiana. Proud graduates of the University of Virginia, she and her husband Blaise spent time in Tampa and Scottsdale prior to settling down back home in New Orleans, something they both said "would never happen." An avid runner, she'll try any workout at least once and is always up for sweating with friends. When she’s not shuttling her 3 very active kids to school, gymnastics or baseball, you can find her cheering for the Saints, trying new restaurants or spending time with family and friends. She's also not afraid to return mediocre books to the library before finishing them because life is too short for bad books. A native New Orleanian, Ashley loves exploring and discovering the beauty of South Louisiana through her growing children's eyes.

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