For millions of families living along the East Coast of the United States, Hurricane Irene is certainly putting a damper on end-of-the-summer plans. Rather than frolicking on the beaches of the Jersey Shore or strolling along the picturesque trails that make up Martha’s Vineyard, parents are desperately trying to preserve their sanity while being holed up with their kids in everything from houses on higher ground to emergency shelters near Ground Zero.
If your family has been affected by the major summer storm, then consider it an opportunity to strengthen the parent-child bond. Laugh, sing, tell stories, dance… and when you get sick of doing that, then consider the following indoor boredom busters:
Board games: If the electricity goes out and you can no longer access your favorite video games, then turn to good old fashioned board games, such as Monopoly, Life, Sorry and Scrabble.
Cook: Nothing brings a family together like food. Head to the kitchen and dig up a favorite family recipe that you can make together.
Crafts: Round-up all of the partner-less socks you have sitting around the house and decorate them with glitter glue, buttons, markers or yarn. Then, feature your sock creations in a puppet show.
Camp: Pitch a tent in your living room. Roll out the sleeping bags and tell ghost stories around a ring of flashlights. Make s’mores in the microwave.
Obstacle course: Set-up an obstacle course in the basement using blankets, chairs and pillows.
Indoor sandbox: Spread out a large sheet or blanket, and then fill a large plastic bin with play sand. Give your kids cups and sand toys. When they are done playing you can gather up the sheet filled with stray sand and dump it back into the bin.
Indoor bowling: Line up some empty water bottles and bowl them over with a mini basketball.
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