For all the moms of stir crazy toddlers

One of my said stir crazy toddlers ❤️

It’s that time of year again- January in Indiana! That blessed time of year where all of the fun winter holidays are over, the weather sucks and your house gets just a little bit smaller every day. Every year around this time I seriously question my decision to stay home with my kids. I dream of dropping them off with someone else every day and whisking off to work my dream job, usually getting a Frappuccino on the way (one I won’t have to share!) and driving a shiny yellow mustang that has no Cheerios wedged in the seats. And I’m 50 lbs lighter.

And then my kids start dive bombing off of the couch onto each other and I’m brought back to the reality of my life- a stay at home mom with 3 adorable, rambunctious boys. **sigh** I may not have a Frappuccino, but I do have a cup of cold coffee around here somewhere!

While I like to joke about going to work, I really do consider myself lucky to be able to be home with my kids. But during this time of year, it’s really hard not to feel trapped. And most days, we can get out of the house and go to an indoor playground or run to the store and get a breath of fresh air. But then there are days that where that’s just not possible and that’s when mommy starts to go a little koo-koo. It was on one of these days that I composed a list of indoor activity to do with toddlers. There are LOTS of these types of lists online, but most of them are either a) for older kids or b) for unicorn toddlers who don’t eat glue or listen the first time they’re told to do something. So if you’re like me and your kids are sweet but psycho, here’s some ideas for winter/bad weather activities. 

10 indoor activities for toddlers 

1. Seasonal coloring pages. 

There are several sites where you can download free coloring pages to fit whatever season you’re in- and they’re so cute! Here’s a few of my faves: 

https://www.crayola.com/featured/free-coloring-pages/

https://www.happinessishomemade.net/

http://www.supercoloring.com/

2. Bring the outdoors inside. 

A few weeks ago, we had a crap ton of snow on the ground, for several days. After about day #3, the kids had had enough of playing outside and I had had enough of spending 40 minutes getting them dressed so they could could play in the snow for 5 and then cry to come inside. So one day, I went out and scooped up 2 bowls of snow and brought it inside. I laid a sheet down on the hardwood floor and let them make a mess. And it entertained them for an hour! A whole hour, guys! You can do this with whatever weather you’re in. It’s raining? Put out a bucket in front of the window and watch to see how long it will take to fill up. It’s a blustery fall day? Grab a bunch of leaves and do some leaf rubbing. Too hot outside? Bring in some dirt, put it in the bathtub and let them play. 

3. Sensory play- flour in the bathtub, kinetic sand, homemade slime, etc. 

Ok, hear me out- I know what you’re thinking. Your cute little psychopaths will either eat the sensory play or make a huge mess out of it. And they might. But toddlers definitely need to develop fine motor skills and sensory play is so important for that! So lay down an old sheet, strip them down to their diapers and feed them their favorite food beforehand so they aren’t hungry. You might be surprised how long they stay entertained!

4. Let them help you bake or cook something simple. 

Now when I say simple, I mean like making “Ants on a Log” type of simple. Nothing fancy. And nothing you’re planning on serving to anyone outside the family- cuz you know, toddlers. 

5. Let them clean! 

My oldest LOOOOOVES to spray our cleaner and my second oldest loves to use a rag to wipe it up. And hey, they have no idea it’s actually a chore yet, so take advantage of it while you can! 

My fave child/pet/earth friendly cleaning product that actually cleans: 

https://www.youngliving.com/en_US/products/thieves-household-cleaner

6. Take a bubble bath or use a bath bomb. 

My kids freaking love baths and it’s a good thing too, because they’re always dirty. Or sticky. Or both. I just ordered some bath bombs for us to try and I’ll let you know how they work out for us! 

If you want a non-toxic, plant based bath bomb thing, these are more like bath fizzes and they’re sooooo nice. https://www.youngliving.com/en_US/products/lavender-calming-bath-bombs

7. Create an indoor obstacle course. 

Use blankets, pillows, chairs and boxes to create a crazy obstacle course for the kids- at the very least, they’ll burn off some energy tearing it all down ;) 

8. Cosmic kids yoga. 

This is one of our favorite YouTube channels! There’s everything from stories to yoga disco. 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RSRKT5q7ZBQ

9. Play hide and seek with a toy. 

We have this silly little rubber elf from my parents. Her name is Snowflake and she likes to hide around our house! The boys love this game and while they’re not very good at hiding the elf, they love to find her. 

10. Play the Silly Game. 

The Silly Game was created when I worked at After School Care at GCA. It’s like Simon Says without saying “Simon says”. I write down all sorts of different actions on slips of paper and I hide them around my living room. The kids find them and then we sit in a circle and take turns doing each thing. A few examples: 

Do 10 jumping jacks. 

Pretend you’re a kitty cat. 

Give everyone a high five. 

Do some donkey kicks. 

Be the first person to clean up 10 toys. 

It’s super fun and the kids get a big kick out of it :) 

So there’s my list. Maybe tomorrow I’ll post all of my favorite free activities to do with kids in the winter, because gyms can be expensive! 

Good luck with your tiny psychos! May this list wear them out so you can put them to bed early tonight ❤️

P. S. To get any of the Young Living products mentioned, you can use my referral code, which is here: 1522195