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During a time of stress it is so important to have some ideas ready to help alleviate times of boredom and sometimes fear. Carefully ready thru the suggestions below and prepare now by purchasing items you will need. Run off several copies for comic book pages and create several different Mad Libs and crossword puzzles. Gather all the items and store them together so they can be easily found in the dark or easy to grab as you evacuate. All of these will be great in a hotel room or evacuation center. You may even be able to help other families survive their evacuation experience.

  1. Read a book as a family
  2. Have each family member curl up in a sleeping bag and read a book while feasting on chocolates from your General Store.
  3. Tell family stories
  4. Give manicures and pedicures
  5. Play a board game
  6. Play charades with a theme (things to do with summer, mysteries, famous people, all about Christmas…)
  7. Go camping indoors (set up a tent, roast marshmallows in the fireplace, add chocolate and graham crackers, sing campfire songs)
  8. Assemble a puzzle
  9. Have everyone draw a picture with a message, cut them into pieces with angled sides, pass them around and have another family member reassembled them.
  10. Practice yoga
  11. Cut out snowflakes and hang them in the room where you are hunkered down.
  12. Play balloon volleyball
  13. Look at old family photos
  14. Do crossword puzzles ( these are great to use at family reunions as well) See directions below.
  15. Tell jokes
  16. Write down your feeling about your power outage experience
  17. Make a family tree on craft paper
  18. Tell the kids how you decided on their names
  19. Make a paper chain to count down the days until your vacation, end of school, a birthday, 4th of July etc.
  20. Plan a family vacation
  21. Make a treat
  22. Make dinner in a Dutch oven
  23. Write letters
  24. Make foil dinners
  25. Plan a party
  26. Write a bucket list
  27. Write a gratitude lists
  28. Play hangman
  29. Speak only in pirate
  30. Have a lego building contest
  31. Check on the neighbors
  32. Roll socks into a ball and have a sock fight
  33. Play cards
  34. Play the matching games using a deck of cards
  35. Use masking tape or blue painters tape on the floor and play hopscotch
  36. Learn how to tie knots
  37. Play I Spy
  38. See the copy of things to do with glow sticks in your binder and do some!
  39. Play Mad Libs
  40. Play If You Could go Anywhere in the World Where Would You Go?
  41. Play If You Had a Million Dollars What Would You Do?
  42. Stargaze
  43. Read scriptures
  44. Play 20 questions
  45. Create a new hairdo
  46. Create a hot chocolate bar. Get out the hot chocolate mix, marshmallows, left over candy canes, chocolate syrup, caramel syrup, crushed freeze dried raspberries or strawberries and whipped cream. (close fridge fast!)
  47. Find a photo of a family reunion, vacation or other special occasion and have each family member write their memories of that event. Photos help jog our memories.
  48. Spread out a blanket on the floor and eat lunch
  49. Make ice cream floats, you will need to eat all that ice cream before it melts
  50. Play dress up
  51. Count and roll all the change in the house. When the power is back and town in back to normal use it to spurge on fast food or ice cream cones
  52. Make a list of people you need to thank and write a note to thank them
  53. Ask: What would you like to be when you grow up, why, and what do you think people with that occupation do.
  54. Tell the kids what you wanted to be when you were their age
  55. Name the middle names of everyone in the family, mom, dad, grand parents, cousins
  56. Write a letter to a soldier
  57. Ask everyone: If you could only have one meal for the rest of your life what would it be? (This could be a great help when planning your food storage)
  58. Empty one inch of water from 10 water bottles. Place an activated glow stick in each bottle. Tighten cap and place bottles on a hard surface floor. Get a ball four inches or larger and bowl! Another reason to store lots of water bottles! When you are finished use water to water plants, wash dishes, do laundry, or flush.
  59. Blow up balloons and place challenges inside. Take turns popping the balloon and acting out. **Just a reminder that pieces of burst balloons can be a serious choking hazard, so if you have younger kids, make sure they are supervised.**
  60. Turn out the lights, flashlights, candles, etc. and draw pictures.
  61. Write five things you love about each family member.
  62. Using painters tape mark out and play four square.
  63. Color
  64. Ping Pong Ball Catch: Use red Solo or other large cups and a few ping pong balls or small bouncy balls and toss the ball to a partner who will try to catch it in the cup. Start out close together and take a step backwards after each catch.
  65. Hide items and send the kids on a flashlight scavenger hunt.
  66. Create a sidewalk chalk art show.
  67. Create a time capsule. Write down your answers to questions such as: What will you be doing in ten years, how much will cars cost in ten years, what is your favorite (movie, food, friend, tv show, etc). Include some favorite family recipes, photos, newspaper clippings, and hand prints. Make a list of current prices for gas, bread, movie tickets, fast food, average income today, etc. What is your favorite quote, scripture? What will be the newest invention in ten years? What will be the price of gas, bread, movie tickets, fast food, average income in ten years? Determine a special occasioning the future when you will open the capsule.
  68. Create a comic book.
  69. Make a list of things beginning with each letter of the alphabet. (boys names, cities, animals, baby items, etc.) Set a timer and go!
  70. Play hide and seek.
  71. Using crepe paper or yarn make a maze.
  72. Ball toss, or bean bag toss. Place boxes or laundry baskets at various distances away from a starting line on the floor. Label each with points which may be earned.
  73. Make Mexican a PAPEL PICADO banner. Fold a rectangular piece of colored paper fold and cut as you would a snowflake. Use yarn or string and hang the banners across the room.
  74. Get a broom stick and limbo.
  75. Raid your General Store and make trail mix.

You may have noticed there are no crafts mentioned. This was on purpose. Crafts can be messy and require adult supervision which can add more stress to an already stressful situation. If you are a crafting family go for it but have other options available as well.

Now, review the list, gather supplies, run off crosswords, mad libs, etc. and place this list in your binders.

Create your own:

Mad Libs: https://www.projectlabyrinth.com/MadLibs/MadLibGen.php

Write the story of your last family reunion, vacation, Christmas etc. Transfer your story to the website leaving out several words replacing them with the appropriate part of speech.

Crossword puzzle: https://crosswordhobbyist.com/ OR https://www.puzzle-maker.com/CW/

Create questions and answers. Try a theme such as family history, state capitals, things associated with pajama parties, etc.

Comic book template: https://picklebums.com/free-printable-comic-book-templates/ OR

https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Free-Download-Comic-Strip-Template-Pages-for-Creative-Assignments-149469

Copy pirate talk here: https://www.playcrossbones.com/Pirate_Talk.php

Don’t forget to like and check in often at https://www.facebook.com/TotallyReady/

Please share Carolyn’s facebook page today. Ask questions there and see what others are suggesting and doing.