Entertaining Kids During the Coronavirus Lockdown

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What a strange Easter situation we have ahead of us this weekend. Usually people are hitting the road or the airport to make the most of the 4 day break. Are you a bit worried about entertaining kids? Don’t! We’ve got loads of ideas to keep the whole family busy and even some tips for “Mum and Dad” time.

It might be a really looong break for Easter this year. But you know what? It could be your best one yet – uninterrupted time with family. Here are our best ideas to keep you and your kids busy this weekend and for the weeks to come…

Easter Activities

  • Easter egg hunt. No reason this can’t go ahead in the yard or around the house. Just make Easter Egg Hunt and Easter Face Paintsure you have bought your supplies before the shops get too busy in the lead up to Easter.
  • Virtual dinners with family. So it’s going to be very strange not being able to have an Easter celebration with family. The only alternative is get online instead and chat while you share a meal together.
  • Easter colouring and craft
  • Make some bunny ears or paint your kids faces to look like bunnies.
  • Easter cooking & baking
  • Hard boil some eggs, then dye them or decorate them.
  • Religious live streaming

Entertaining Kids Indoors

  • Quizzes with family or friends using Zoom
  • Exercise classes with Zoom
  • Board games – love this old chestnut! Let the kids choose which game to play. Some favourites are Scrabble, Monopoly, Cluedo, Pictionary, Family Feud, Connect 4, Sequence Playing board games during the Corona Virus Lockdownthe list goes on.
  • Pull out a puzzle and leave it out. Puzzles are normally something that gets done in the holidays. The Coronavirus Lockdown is a great time to do a puzzle. Just leave it out on a table, buy a ply wood board from Bunnings so that you can lift it on and off the table for dinner or use a piece of stiff felt that you can roll away. The kids can potter away at this over a few days. You can swap puzzles with friends and family if you run out!
  • Family movie with popcorn or Easter choccies. Take turns to choose the movie to keep everyone happy.
  • Entertaining kids is easy if you have a large box of craft available. Gather some supplies: cardboard, milk bottle lids, old magazines, paint, stickers, old wrapping paper, glitter…the list is endless.
  • Playing Lego, Duplo, building blocks, Dolls, dress ups – take the time to get back to basics and play with your kids Play Lego with your kids
  • Watch the live stream from Taronga Zoo. That’s right folks! Taronga Zoo are broadcasting live web cams of all your favourite animals. Try TarongaTV for daily updates and learn what goes on behind the scenes.

Entertaining Kids Outdoors

  • Pretend you are camping in your own backyard. Set up the tent, the camp chairs and play cards or games outside. If weather and fire warnings allow, you could roast marshmallows, make smores, make damper or cook on the BBQ.
  • Make a batch of play dough and get busy!
  • Get all those dusty activities out of storage and start playing. In our garage we have table tennis, darts, backyard tennis, cricket, quoits and we even found a hammock…
  • Eat dinner outside. I’ve moved extra furniture to my front verandah so that we can enjoy the street view. There’s not a lot of action, but last night we enjoyed dinner on our laps while watching the sunset! Variety is the spice of life!
  • Tune in to Jollettes Gymnastics for some outdoor YouTube gym sessions here.  The Jollettes team will be creating a series of videos to keep all your little gymnasts entertained during these days at home. The videos will include themed activity days and the skills learned during the colour reward program!
  • Have a family photo session. Get dressed up or put on your favourite outfit and take some great parent/child photos that you will keep forever. Check out our blog on getting Mums to Exist in Photos

Ideas for Adults

So after you’ve been entertaining kids all day, you’ll need some adult time at night! For starters you could read our blog, Maintaining Your Relationship After Baby for tips on nurturing your relationship as a couple after you become parents.

Here are some further ideas to keep parents busy…

  • Adult movie time – watching a movie on Apple TV or a good Netflix series – we’ve just watched The English Game on Netflix.  Tiger King, Ozark and All American are trending on Netflix at the moment.
  • Pilates and yoga online courses and videos.  Try FitRight Physio for online classes, specifically designed for pregnant mums, new mums or ladies of any age wanting a pelvic friendly workout.  Classes are LIVE and run by experienced physiotherapists.
  • Get into a good book or try a Zoom Book club once you and your friends have all read a book. Some recommended reads are We Were the Lucky Ones by Georgia Hunter or The Tatooist of Auschwitz by Heather Morris.
  • Zoom meeting, Skype, Facetime or House Party with friends – just to check in and say hi!
  • Make a photo album online. If you’re like me and have all your photos of your babies, growing kids or holidays on various devices, hard drives, Dropbox, Google Photos, iCloud etc etc now is the time to get organised! You’ll be surprised how quickly you can whip up an album on line and you’ll have something to show for this Coronavirus Lockdown! Keeping Baby Safe at home

This list is definitely not exhaustive. We’d love to hear your ideas so that we can add them to this list. Get in touch via Instagram or Facebook.

Eat well, exercise well and sleep well. Don’t forget all your baby sleepwear is available online at www.bubbaroo.com.au/shop

Stay safe and well everyone!

 

Nicole Cassey

written by

Nicole Cassey

Nicole Cassey, Mum to Jacob and Emily, founder and general dog’s body at Bubbaroo. Nicole was inspired to create Bubbaroo and Australia’s first swaddle after the personal experience she had with her first child, Jacob.

Nicole explains "It is such a steep learning curve becoming a parent. Getting to know the baby you created and finding your groove as a parent. You sometimes feel like you need to become a detective to try to interpret your baby's cues, personality, cries and behaviour. This is my passion to help parents on their journey, especially new parents as they transition to parenthood."

Nicole has a passion for sharing knowledge and community, regularly organising and presenting at various expectant parent and sleep workshops. Nicole ensures she is up to date with the latest evidence-based safe sleep and health research. Bubbaroo collaborates with experts in their field that share similar values and philosophies and have a passion for helping and supporting parents and expectant parents.

Nicole’s attention to detail with the creation of her premium quality baby, toddler and child sleepwear is exceptional. Nicole has been committed to ensure that Bubbaroo is not just a mass market brand producing products, Nicole’s focus is on helping your baby sleep safely in products that stand the test of time.

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