3.24.2011

cabin fever

I knew it would happen at some point.

Old man winter is still gracing his thrown. We keep waiting for the lovely Ms. Spring to host her inaugural ball, but apparently she's still on holiday. Maybe when the current 3 feet of snow melts, she'll swing by.

In the meantime, our family room is growing smaller by the nano second. We still try and get outside often, but Reese just loves to run down the mountainside and then have me carry her   a  l  l     t  h e    w a y   back up. Which, you know, is like, SO fun.

Her second favorite outdoor pastime is playing hide and go seek in the rows of sleds. Side note: 90% of the time, when Reese is dressed in her outdoor garb, people always assume she's a boy. What? Exclamation! Ummm, hi. What boy do you know wears a hat with a flower and flaming pink gloves? Pshhhh..... I know the suit and boots are a little boyish, but heck. If I'm going to buy expensive, high quality gear, it better be usable for boys and girls. End rant.

My darling Reese:


I'm quickly running out of fun indoor ideas.  Since there isn't any town within a reasonable distance, it's just me and Reese at our home every day.  No where else to go.  Our current indoor time is spent doing the following:

Books
Puzzles
Coloring
Baking
Playing in rice with measuring cups, spoons, etc...
Making home made play dough (which oddly enough really weirds Reese out)
Mixing water with food coloring
Movies (ahhh! don't judge...)
And learning ABC's via starfall.com



My angel of a mom-in-law sent me home with wooden beads to thread and some fun stackable stuff. But still. I need anything and everything I can get to entertain a very energetic little peanut. In other words, I'd love it if you shelled out some of your fabulous ideas.

I feel like I totally got jipped in the whole 'Creative Mothering' skill set. Sadly, thinking of unique, fun things to do just doesn't come naturally to me. My poor child{ren}.

So please, help a po' motha' out. Or just come up and visit.

9 comments:

Kristi said...

I can't imagine being stuck inside all the time like that! I feel so bored and running out of ideas, and I'm not even stuck in 3 feet of snow with no stores anywhere near. :)

Some things my little boy and I like to do... build tents/caves out of blankets, he loves to do stamps on paper, or watercolor. Good luck!

Jeff and Tat said...

I have a few friends that have let their kids do pudding art in their high chairs.. (huge mess to clean in the end) but it looks way fun.

Erin Webster said...

I second some of those ideas- Some Cohen boredom busters at our house lately: finger paint, sticking stickers on paper, color sorting balls or little toys etc. into different bowls, taking out the crib mattress and jumping on it(am I bad mom?), and dancing to music. Good luck! Also, check out DisneyJunior.com (not super educational, but fun to explore with the kids!)
I want to come visit again soon!

Sarah Flint said...

Jen!!! I don't have any ideas, but I LOVE the pony tail!!!!! She's darling. I haven't seen you in WAY TOO LONG. We'll try to change that pretty soon. :)

Katie and Greg said...

hah! I love her now gear. People can really be so clueless sometimes. Alas, at least she looks totally darling. And I'm so glad you're loving Starfall. Blessed be the day that was invented. Our other favorite is to pull up iPhoto, click a bunch of files, hit slideshow with music and Eliza is all set in the chair with me for like, ever! Hmm, other than that we have some nice walks to the mailbox. ;)

Katie and Greg said...

Oh yes, and Lou also loves to pull up a stool to the kitchen sink while I turn on the water on just a bit. I give her a cup, measuring spoon, tupperware, etc and she will stand there for a half hour just filling it up and dumping it out. Often my floor becomes a bit of a lake, but hey - it could always use a good wipedown. :)

mama nels said...

Jen - I think your ideas are great and you are an AMAZING mother!! These may seem a bit old fashion, but hot potato with your ipod and a bean bag is fun, especially if Deke can join in (just a little easier turning the music on and off!)finger painting on paper in the high chair, red light, green light; teach her to color with the markers I gave her for Christmas; make a color wheel together that spins and teach her the basic colors and the best one of all - let's get you a web cam, amp up the power to your computer and Vicki and I can take turns reading her story books!

Hale-O There said...

I think I'll just copy all the ideas for future reference! I'm sure you're an awesome mom. I love the profile picture of Reese, she is growing up so beautifully.

Hale-O There said...

Jen I'm sure you are a fabulous mom and I love all the ideas in your post and comments! Can't wait for the sun to shine;)