Activities for children

Anybody know of activities for mom and 5-year-old?  Cheap and fun and you don't have to go very far to do them?

A few things, I'm old and have flat feet and a bad back.  I'm too old to have a pre-schooler!

my favorite outside thing for the kids... an easel, paper and watercolors... you can be doing anything outside nearby, and the kids are happy forever!

sidewalk chalk... use it on the driveway or patio... it hoses off if you don't want to save the masterpiece!

play-doh... i used to let mine play with it on the tile floor. when they were finished, i let the little "leftovers" dry for 30 minutes,and then just swept them up. my six year-old still plays with play-doh everyday... now she uses a tray on the table, makes for even easier clean-up.

wash the car... anything with a hose!

buy a planter box, dirt and seeds... let himdo all the work, even the care after the seeds are in the dirt. herbs are easy to grow, he'll get great satisfaction out of watching them... tomatoes, too.

hula hoop

i don't know about places to go... park, pool, pottery painting? you'd be amazed at how great kids stuff turns out... let him paint his own dinner plate and a cup to match!

bikes is fun.  My kids really enjoy that.  Sometimes, I walk while they ride.  They I get more excercise.  Otherwise, if I ride along with them, it's just for fun becuase they ride slower and it doesn't really give me any exercise.  We really enjoy the time together, though.

Swimming is fun too.   You can get a lot of excericse by taking your little one with you to the deep end and treading water for a few minutes.  I don't know where you live, but most YMCAs have a pool with family swim times.

Go to a park and throw a frisbee or fly a kite.....Wow, I just gave myself some ideas.  I think I'll take my kids to the park this week.

Have fun.

okay, my keyboard is doing strange things.  Lots of typos in that last post, sorry.

This is frustrating.  I've actually tried all those things.  Except the pottery painting, and I just saw this week an ad for doing that in a nearby city, and I thought that would be really cool.

Arts activities we do, because that's right up my alley.  He's been doing play dough, painting and drawing since he was a toddler, but these I usually do sitting down.  He's really a good artist though!

He does like the pool.  So, that's good for an hour or 2.  We have season passes to the city pool.  It's open everyday.  He's learned to swim this summer, but he loves to put goggles on and go underwater.  But, he got an ear infection, and he has ear problems, so I've backed off of that.

He doesn't like to walk or ride a bike.  He says he's tired.  We've been sitting around most of his life.  I'm about to kick myself for doing this to him.  I have had to whip him up and down the street to get him to ride his bike for 30 minutes day this summer. So, here we are walking up and down the street. I am whipping him.  He's crying.  He's miserable.  Am I really teaching him to enjoy an active lifestyle?  Please help me!

I got him a little trampouline (indoor 30"), and I thought he would jump and I would do aerobics.  I have to keep telling him, "Keep jumping."   He's tired, he says.

I paid $150 for a giant water slide (blow-up), and he's already bored with it.

We have tomatoes growing. Did that.  He waters for me everyday.

We do wash the car once a week.

He does sidewalk chalk, but 5 minutes later, he says he's hot and wants to play video games.

He hates the park because there is no one to play with.

Baseball season is over.

He's going to play football in August.

We were taking tae kwon do, but he hated it, and I hurt my foot and back.

God, he's driving me insane!!!  And if you don't know anything about me reading this, I have to make myself do these things too.  I would rather be in the house doing something in a chair.

He likes to climb mountains, and we have a nice big mountain about 30 miles away.  It's been to hot to go recently.

We're going to a friend's house to swim today.

I wish I could find something he LOVES.  I know that if he loved doing something, he would do it for hours.

As you can see, I've tried a lot of things.  I've scoured the internet for things to do with children.  I've even found a website with childhood games like red rover, hopscotch, capture the flag.  I have to play with him though because he's an only child, and he doesn't have any other kids to play with. 

We were doing these things everyday, and I just got worn out. 

This may be a dumb question, but where's dad in all this?

I pay my kid to go bikeriding with me. Five might be too young to do this, but maybe not. I call my son my "personal trainer." For every 50 miles we ride, he gets $30. His bike has a bike computer; mine doesn't, so he keeps tabs on our distance. We have a log sheet with the client name, trainer name, and columns to log the date, mileage, initials (both of us), and whether payment has been received.

For a five-year-old, I think I'd do it by time -- a penny a minute, for example, and pay him in pennies or nickels, so he gets a bunch of them. Yeah, it's weird to pay a kid for something like this, but if *I'm* the one who really needs the exercise, why not?

Another thing you might look at, and I cannot beLIEVE HK didn't already suggest this, is a dance pad for your video system. Dance Dance Revolution or mcGROOVZ danceCRAZE (depending on your video system) are good ways to get some indoor cardio exercise. I'm terrible at it, so that's a bonus for my kid; he ALWAYS beats me!

My son once referred to me (the original couch potato) as his "athletic parent." I almost fell over, and am still greatly amused by this! But from his perspective, it's true: I take him to the pool, bike riding, hiking, ice skating, etc.

Here's one pool activity for when your kid is ready to go back; I started doing this to get my kid to go underwater. We call the game "Bigfoot." While in the pool, I bring up one of my feet, wiggle it, taunt my child mercilessly with my "Bigfoot. I've got a biiiiiiigfoot!" And then I put my foot down. His goal: grab the foot or ankle. He has to go underwater to do this, numerous times, of course. Eventually, I'd let him catch it, and then when he brought his catch to the surface, he gets to up-end me. Then we'd switch, with me trying to catch his foot.

Heck, we still play this game, although now, I don't let him catch my foot --- I run away!!! He still gets me!!

layna, I meant to add this... is there a possibility your son is iron-deficient? If he is tired, he might really be tired! Is he getting a children's vitamin with iron? I was anemic as a child (and still have trouble), and yeah, anemia can make one poop out way earlier than one should!

Layna, my oldest son had to get tubes in his ears, and we had to buy him some plugs to wear in them. It was quite a few years ago, but I believe we bought them at a Rite Aid Pharmacy. All you had to do was mold them to fit in the ear. Then he could enjoy the pool again. I also take my 7 and 4 year old boys for a walk, but we do it on a riverwalk and we bring bread to feed the ducks. That always gets them excited. You could try by parking maybe a few blocks away and then slowly increasing the distance if he likes something like that. You could even do this with the park. Maybe just park a few blocks away and then slowly increase the distance. My boys and I walk 2-3 miles a day. They love it. We walk at their pace just talking about everything and anything.  We also do the bike thing, but my 4 year old has training wheels so I walk while he rides. Does he like soccer or t-ball? You could buy a few things to play with him like that. Kids always love things like that. I also agree with the anemic test. My oldest was anemic for a long time. We just had to give him vitamins with iron. I also got anemic with both my pregnancies so I know it can really make you tired.

hey, i was just thinking, do you have a big brother program in your area? you may want to look into that, it is generally no/low cost i believe, and it could give you a break, and your son a male mentor of sorts... just a thought.

how about a hoppity hop? a scooter?

Good ideas all.

He's got a hoppity hop.  Hates it!  A scooter too, and I just got it fixed.  It was broken, and he kinda' likes it for a minute.

I've got a bike with training wheels, and a pedal car.  (I didn't get him the battery-powered car because I wanted him to get more exercise).  Usually he pedals the car or the bike, and I walk beside him.

I like the idea of paying him.  He's got a piggy bank, and he LOVES money.  Once I needed some change, and he threw a fit when I tried to get it out of his bank.

I tried the big brother.  There is not one in our area, but there is one in another city, but I would have to take him there.  However, he's only 5, and they only do in-school mentoring at 5.  I would have to wait until he's 6, next year, then drive him about 30 miles, which I am planning to do.

I will try the ear plugs and bigfoot.  Sounds like a good game, and not too stressful on my old bones.

Like I said earlier, I'm a single parent, hk.

I had him tested when he was a baby, and he had a normal level of iron, but they told me he was borderline anemic.  However, he was normal.  It's just that they assumed we had a typical American diet, and we are pesce-lacto-ovo-vegetarian, so he doesn't get all the iron a beef eater would.   But, you know, maybe I'm wrong, and I will get him tested.

I do know he has asthma.  And this may be a big part of this.  However, I think the majority of it is being sedentary for 5 years of his life.  I'm trying to change this, but it's just really hard.  He's fighting me the whole way.

Let me edit this to say that when he's playing something with other kids that he really wants to do, he doesn't get tired for one second!

He's smart, and he knows how to push mommy's buttons.

layna, just make sure you are paying him to get YOU to do physical activity (no matter how easy it might be -- walking, biking, whatever); you aren't paying him to be active himself.

Bigfoot is not stressful on bones at all because it's played in water. Of course you can make up your own variation to suit you; I made it up solely to encourage my kid to go underwater.

If he hasn't had his iron level tested since he was a baby, it's definitely time.

Are there any small, active, friendly dogs in the neighborhood whose owners might like to have a small child wear out their small, active, friendly dog with games like tag and fetch and frisbee? And are there any ice skating or gymnastics classes in your area you could sign him up for? Or tap dancing? And maybe a family-friendly bike club would be good for both of you, as that would give him an opportunity to meet some other kids for possible playdates.

And collecting. Is there anything he likes to collect, or would like to though he might not know it yet? Rocks, leaves, pictures of weird bugs (taken perhaps with his own little digital camera)? Going for a walk to go on a walk -- well, maybe that doesn't strike him as very interesting, but going for a walk to FIND COOL BUGS!!! might. Or tadpoles or birds or rocks or any of a million other things.... maybe that's the way to do it. (Or even, if one thing doesn't grab him, look for a different thing each time, or red things one walk, and yellow things the next, be they birds, bugs, rocks, flowers, or leaves.)

And then when you are back from the walk, he can draw these things, maybe, and make a portfolio of his nature drawings. I used to pitch my very-much-an-indoor-child out the patio door with the command for him to find 10 cool rocks in the backyard, or to go look for bugs, or whatever. We have field guides to everything but arachnids, I swear! Even a set for the trunk of the car, just in case we see something while we are out somewhere.

The other day I thought about calling the humane society.  They sometimes need dog walkers!  But, I forgot about it. Thank you for reminding me.  I think that is the coolest idea.  I had a friend who did that.  She walked them everyday, and then she walked them in the parade for the local humane society.  He loves dogs, but we can't have one at my house because of ....ok, well, I hate pets.  (I was gonna say allergies, rental issues, something really good, but the truth is I hate having dogs around!).  I like cats, but he is allergic, and they don't have to be walked.  I did have a dog, but *I* had to take care of it.  I think that's always the way.

I know you're not gonna believe this, but . . . I can't ride a bicycle.  (eek!  *hides under rock*).  Yes, folks, it's that bad here.  I'm a serious nerd.

I can't roller skate either.

We have been doing chemistry this summer.  We walked to collect rocks, then we painted them.  Then we made salt crystals.  There is a local crystal mine, and we will be going there end of July. 

So, you had the same kind of kid as mine, huh?  I've never seen a kid in my life besides mine, who would rather stay inside and watch tv rather than go for a walk with mom, or look for rocks, or paint pictures, or draw on the sidewalks.  I'm a fun mom!  I work my butt off!  As you can see, I've tried everything!  Most kids I know are like, "Mom's doing it!  Wow!  Let's go!" Mine is like, "Uuuh.. nah... I wanna watch Cows on the Range."

Before he was born I didn't own a tv.  Now I have 3 tv's, a dvd player, a vcr, and a portable dvd player, oh and a game cube. 

Has it come to this?  That I must smash them all?

Turn the tvs off!!!!!!!!!  Kids feed off of what we do.  My kids are 3 and almost 5.  we have relay races,collect rocks and anything else to be outside!  I guess my kids are the opposite. what about skating??  have a watergun or water ballon fight with him. Does he have friends nearby?  Set up some playdates.  Take his cars and trucks outside and let him push them around in the yard.  Sprinkler??  kids love running thru sprinklers. Does he like to play board games?  Start him out by taking a favorite game outside and sit in the yard and play.  Take things that he normally does inside- outside.  That gets you away from the tv and out in the fresh air.  does he like to swing?  Slide?  Do a scavenger hunt with him.  my daughter loves to take her crayons and paper outside to draw pictures of what she sees.  Sometimes you have to MAKE a kid run- spray him with the water hose! LOL   Would he exercise with you?  we bought our kids each a set of 1 pound weights because they kept grabbing ours and they love them!  maybe you could tell him he is your exercise coach and he can show you exercises to do.  They may be silly but it will get him and you both moving. My daughter makes me spin around while doing jumping jacks!  My 3 year old son just makes me jump up and down.  What is his favorite cartoon?  see what they do on the show and tell him to act like them.

I may have said some of the same things as everyone else, I just skimmed thru. 

good luck

Yeah, I'd ditch the TVs, too, or at least make it so he has to *earn* time to watch. It sounds almost as if you are doing too much to try to entertain him. Turn off the TV, give him construction materials or art supplies or whatever, set a timer for 20 minutes, and tell him you will inspect (and perhaps photograph) whatever it is he has made in that time. (Start a portfolio! You can gradually lengthen the time, but his being 5 years old, I wouldn't expect him to entertain himself for more than 30-40 minutes. But he definitely should learn how to entertain himself if he cannot do that already.

My kid is seriously into computers. He'd rather do something on a computer than anything else. He's at nerd camp now, but not working or playing on computers at all, and oh, that was something he really didn't like about going to nerd camp! ("Six weeks without computers?!?!?!") He gets a lot of computer time at home, but when it's time for biking or going to the pool, it's time for biking or going to the pool, no matter how much he protests!

Kitchen chemistry/physics is always good, and cooking together is a fun way to do it! Where does water go when it boils, why does heat make an egg go from gooey to solid, and why do flour and water make paste? (To make the cake stick to my hips, of course! :-D )

If you have an ice-skating rink near you, you might want to sign up for lessons, both you and he! (Ice is sooooo much more forgiving than pavement, so I'd go for ice-skating before roller-skating were I to be learning how at this point.) And I know it's harder for an adult to learn how to ride a bike -- the motivation is usually not as strong and, being taller, it's a longer way down to the ground -- but if you can learn how to do that, you will have something you can do with your child forever. And it's a gift for you, too! Biking is seriously a lot of fun. And it's true: once you learn how to ride a bike, you never forget!

On top of that, it's important for health reasons to improve and maintain our sense of balance. Strengthening your sense of balance -- by doing activities that require it, such as ice-skating and bicycling -- will reduce your chances of falling when you are old and brittle! Falling can be catastrophic as one ages; breaking a hip can lead to a downward spiral in one's health.

My kid is never going to be a soccer, basketball, or football player. He doesn't have the kind of gross motor coordination needed for such sports and certainly doesn't have the interest in them. And that's okay with me. Most people in their 50s and 60s don't play these kinds of sports, and I'd rather give him skills for physical activities that he can pursue his whole life. I see a lot of elderly folks on bicycles, and grandparents at the skating rinks, and gray hairs while hiking and swimming. These are sports for life, and that's what I want him to have.

We did dodgeball and freeze tag with the water hose today.

He has no friends around here because we just moved here.

He can not entertain himself for very long at all.  Plus, he's very hyperactive.  very.  very. very.  He's wearing me out! 

These are really great suggestions.  We do the kitchen chemistry all the time.  As I said, nerd stuff is easy for me.  It's those, as you said, gross motor movements I could really live without!

I thought about getting myself a bike with 3 wheels or an adult bike with training wheels. 

I like the idea of taking things outside that are normally indoor activities, slappy.  I will try that.  It's been so windy lately.  I hope it doesn't get all blown away. 

I'm going to the pool later.

he should be old enough to join cubscouts in the fall.  check to see if there is a day camp with 4-H or something that would occupy him during the day...this would give you some free time.

do you work?  Wasnt sure, I see you are a single mom and you said you were older.  It sounds like you are staying busy with  him!!

what about swim lessons? does he play well by himself or does he demand your full attention?

I can't leave him with strangers because there are too many child molestors out there.

I'm off all summer, but I have a 2nd job that I do online from home.

He does not play well by himself.  He demands my full attention.  When I'm typing messages, adding food in my log, he's here.  He's leaning on me, or sitting on me, or crying for me to come.

But, he's very concerned he says with my "calories" and if something has "fiber" in it!  haha!  He even knows what "vegetarian" means.

First of all, wow! You have your hands FULL! Everyone, especially the Moms have really given you awesome suggestions on what to do with your little guy!


Im 21, its been a while since I played out in the yard but there's gotta be something this little guy is gonna like! We didnt have much money when I was little so my mom just improvised with things. I LOOOVED playing in the dirt and making "donuts" out of them. She would give me old Bread Bags and I could pretend they were surgical gloves and that I was doing some kind of big dig, or scientific experiment. You said he was a great artist, sounds like he has a vivid imagination! Maybe try making your own kites where he can spend hours decorating them. Another really fun item was my homemade "skip it" using big beads and old coffee tins. It worked just as well as those expensive ones and it was like, 12 bucks if that!

I noticed someone already posted about him being so tired all the time and your doctor saying he was borderline. I looked up some foods for you that are good sources of iron. Maybe your little guy is a master in the kitchen? and you can prepare really easy/non cook/ veggie meals. I loved baking when I was little. I have a lot of fond memories with my Mom in the kitchen.

I have to say, congratulations on raising him this way :) It gives me hope for when I have children to have happy, beautiful, healthy babies! You are an inspiration!



FOOD AMOUNT IRON (mg)

Soybeans, cooked 1 cup 8.8
Blackstrap molasses 2 Tbsp 7.0
Lentils, cooked 1 cup 6.6
Tofu 4 oz 0.7-6.6
Quinoa, cooked 1 cup 6.3
Kidney beans, cooked 1 cup 5.2
Chickpeas, cooked 1 cup 4.7
Lima beans, cooked 1 cup 4.5
Pinto beans, cooked 1 cup 4.5
Veggie burger,
commercial 1 patty 1.1-4.5
Black-eyed peas, cooked 1 cup 4.3
Swiss chard, cooked 1 cup 4.0
Tempeh 1 cup 3.8
Black beans, cooked 1 cup 3.6
Bagel, enriched 3 oz 3.2
Turnip greens, cooked 1 cup 3.2
Prune juice 8 oz 3.0
Spinach, cooked 1 cup 2.9
Beet greens, cooked 1 cup 2.7
Tahini 2 Tbsp 2.6
Raisins 1/2 cup 2.2
Cashews 1/4 cup 2.0
Figs, dried 5 medium 2.0
Seitan 4 oz 2.0
Bok choy, cooked 1 cup 1.8
Bulgur, cooked 1 cup 1.7
Apricots, dried 10 halves 1.6
Potato 1 large 1.4
Soy yogurt 6 oz 1.4
Tomato juice 8 oz 1.4
Veggie hot dog 1 hot dog 1.4
Almonds 1/4 cup 1.3
Peas, cooked 1 cup 1.3
Green beans, cooked 1 cup 1.2
Kale, cooked 1 cup 1.2
Sesame seeds 2 Tbsp 1.2
Sunflower seeds 1/4 cup 1.2
Broccoli, cooked 1 cup 1.1
Brussels sprouts,cooked 1 cup 1.1
Millet, cooked 1 cup 1.0
Prunes 5 medium 1.0
Watermelon 1/8 medium 1.0



Again I can't speak from experience because I am not a Mother, so hopefully my recap of "fun childhood days" helped you any, good luck! He'll find his little passion. It sounds like you have a bright wonderful little guy, he's just gotta shuffle through till he finds something :)

You wrote:
". . . congratulations on raising him this way :) It gives me hope for when I have children to have happy, beautiful, healthy babies! You are an inspiration!"

I wish I really thought I was doing this!  I am in a constant state of terror that I'm teacing him to be a big, fat couch potato, screwing him up for life, and giving him eating disorders, maladjustments, or personality disorders.  I fantasize that he will be masochistic if I spank him.  He will be obese if I let him watch tv.  He will have low self-esteem if I don't encourage him.   The list goes on and on. 

But, you know, after reading that, it really makes me feel better.  He is the happiest little kid.  He is beautiful (of course), and he's healthy.  He's never sick.  He has allergies/asthma, but he's never sick from it.  we hardly ever use the inhaler, and a little benadryl and Tide Free keeps that under control.  He loves people. Every person.  Talks to everybody.  He does this to the point that I'm under the table sometimes.  He tried to talk to Mexican people the other day, who knew no English.  My son thinks he can speak Spanish from watching his tv on spanish and Dora.  He's going "ubbageewahnobebedoga" to these people, and they're dying laughing.  I tell him, "Say 'buenas dias."  "No," he says, "I know how to speak Spanish.  That's not Spanish."