To wonder what on Earth I’m going to do with two small DC indoors all day during Storm Ciara?

[Rainallnight]

DC are 1.5 and 3.5. We never stay in all day. I’m dreading it.

tv for a whole day? which healthy kid would do that??????

I have never met a single kid who wouldn't love that. I am quite astonished at the six question marks and the bafflement they signal.

Really? I don't know any kid who could patiently watch tv all day unless they are sick. When mine were that small, they wouldn't have lasted 30 minutes.

Even when I had the flu and various pleasantness like that, I did put the tv on all day of course, but they still spent most of the day playing and wandering around. Then watching tv for 10 minutes, then leaving again...

Not being able to go outside is a punishment for all the family, kids or parents.

I agree Pineapple.
When mine were younger we'd maybe go out two or three times a week in the afternoon.
The other days they'd spend the morning playing with their toys while I got on with housework. In the afternoon I might do something more structured or I'd just sit with them while they played.

mathanxiety

I can completely understand if you live somewhere with such weather that it must be more difficult. I suppose children get used to their own routines, just as adults do. My DS loves TV (so do I!) but as soon as I ask him what he wants to do it's 'out out'. Most mornings he has his wellies on by about 8am (usually on the wrong feet) and shouts 'run round, run round' until I can get myself together to go out!

I cannot imagine not going out with a child.

We’re out in all weathers, children need to burn energy, at lest twice a day.

Or maybe your dh was once one of those children who "had to get out every day" weary?

Is my DC the only one that still gets plenty of exercise even if we stay in? She doesn't sit still! She constantly cartwheels, does handstands, bounces around! I've never worried about her not getting enough exercise. She loves to spend a day playing with her toys at home - she makes a right mess, though but I don't like to stop her as she is so engaged and creative (read: pens, pencils, scissors, glue, bits of cut paper and cardboard everywhere!).

I’ve read the whole thread and it’s interesting that parents who don’t like being stuck in say their children ‘need’ to get out.

As my kids ask to go outside even when I don't - if I am busy cooking for example, I am pretty confident they go outside for themselves!
Maybe because they have been used to it since they were born, I would have gone absolutely crazy locked inside for an entire day, nap time was the perfect opportunity to go for a walk.

Wearywithteens

You may be onto something there. I found standing or sitting around in playgrounds the most mind and also often butt-numbing activity possible, and YY to the ever-present pitas of someone's dog getting hyper, or cut knees, wasps, mosquitoes, etc. My DCs developed great focus and attention spans stuck inside with the tv and the toys, furniture, crayons and books .

I didn't have the money to take them anywhere that charged admission. We went to the library once every two weeks or so, requiring a trip in the car, money for the meter, and enough gear for a polar expedition in the cold weather, plus something to put our haul of books into to lug back to the car. It was at the library that DS gave his little sister a kiss and lost an unsuspected piece of chewing gum in her hair. I suspect he had found it stuck under a chair.

UndertheCedartree - Yes, that was my DCs. They bounced on beds, somersaulted on the couch, the older ones set up the old cot mattress with DD4 sitting on it, then jumped onto it and sent her flying. They built forts and villages from couch and armchair cushions and sheets and blankets. Not every day. They were interested in quieter, fine motor pursuits too.

Whether children will play well together sometimes depends on the age gap.

Being at home is nice, nobody needs to be out every day.

Being at home is nice, nobody needs to be out every day.

And in other news, everybody is different! I know, shocking isn't it ...?

Being at home is nice, nobody needs to be out every day.

But it's not either/or is it!? We often spend the vast majority of the day indoors, that's still a nice quiet day even if it does involve a short trip to the park or walk around the block. I would argue that these days children definitely should be out every day, especially given some of the poor children I see sometimes who are already at a dangerous weight at a young age. (Not saying that about any pp children but exercise is a good habit to get into!) It's also very difficult to get enough indoor bouncing about and exercise in a small house!
Anyway, it's all personal. I don't stay in all day and neither can my DS. After we did manage to get out yesterday mid afternoon for a quick run around he was much much happier for the rest of the day!

They were interested in quieter, fine motor pursuits too.

It's perfectly possible to engage in both energetic play and enjoy fine motor pursuits in the same day!

Exactly MrMumble2 we are in a tiny flat that doesn't have a lot of space. I grew up in a four bed semi detached house and had lots of space for running around, playing. A PP said about their toddler cycling inside, DS would be able to go 1.5m.

We went out in a break in the rain and had a lot of fun puddle jumping, and buying milk. It's just 2yo DS and I so I do find it a bit intense to entertain him indoors all day.

Many people seem rather set in their ways here. Staying in is fun, going out is fun, DS likes both. He runs everywhere at home, so he's getting exercise, but that isn't the same as fresh air running in the park. If your DC can't stay in then you need to help them learn how to focus on tasks better. If it's that your DC want you to play with them inside, well they're only little once with an occasional storm day, don't be the one to regret that the time went by so fast. If your DC don't like going out (are there DC like that?) then get them interested in quiet walks at least.

The recommendations for children is at least 1 hours exercise per day. that is a minimum. if you are living in a mansion - great, you can cycle inside, run and exercise. otherwise, please have a think of why fitness levels are so disastrous in the uk population and why so many adults are overweight. kids still burn the energy, adults raised to be passive need to be very lucky with their metabolism to do!
Yesterday was obviously extreme, but for the other 364 days - please get out! good habits are engrained early, and humans need exercise to stay healthy.

@myself2020 you don’t need to live in a mansion to facilitate indoor active play. We live in a 3 bed, small semi with two rooms downstairs. You can do some really good chase games with a 2 year old that get everyone’s heart rate up. And the scuttlebug. And the tiresome but strangely popular game of ‘baby’ eg crawling about the floor.

It’s not all or nothing, and whilst I am in the camp of need to leave the house otherwise go slightly mad, you can be active inside without loads of room.

@mathanxiety - we have forts too and cushion bridges to get over the lava!

@myself2020 - we live in a 2 bed terrace and my DD still manages constant cartwheels etc at home! But of course an adult couldn't get away with it!

'would argue that these days children definitely should be out every day, especially given some of the poor children I see sometimes who are already at a dangerous weight at a young age. (Not saying that about any pp children but exercise is a good habit to get into'

Absolutely. You get the child you make. Let your child lie in front of the tv all day and you'll get a teenager and an adult who lies in front of the TV all day. If you want your child to grow into an active teen and adult then you have to facilitate that and get them into the habit of it.

The lava, Yes! And the shark infested waters of Lake Michigan

"They were interested in quieter, fine motor pursuits too."
It's perfectly possible to engage in both energetic play and enjoy fine motor pursuits in the same day!

As I suggested in my post, they were able to divide up their days between energetic play and fine motor pursuits, and accomplish all of that without venturing outside. Energetic play doesn't require going out. And my DCs' idea of energetic play involved a good deal of make believe to inform the activity - not always easy to sustain when out in the playground with dozens of others waiting for a go on the swings. It's hard to fill in the unavoidable lulls created by others. The garden swingset was a far better hangout for that reason.

For the most part though, my DCs actively preferred fine motor activities. They liked reading, we had some computer games like Monkey Island and Oregon Trail, and early Sims versions that engrossed them, as well as drawing, painting, and jewelry making. Sometimes when we got to the park they stood around bemused.

When they got older they loved their skates and bikes as well as the less physical activities, and they also loved TV.

I disagree that children who are not physically active have their destinies carved in stone. There is a lot more nuance to it than that, lots more factors influencing the outcome.

I suspect that a lot of the criticism of sahps for cultivating couch potatoes is actually a roundabout way of requiring sahps (the majority of whom are women) to justify their existence.

Energetic play doesn't require going out.

It does for the majority of people in Britain, who live in small homes. It does for people on lower incomes who live in flats or tiny terraces, both because of lack of room and because too much running around and making noise indoors is unfair on neighbours. I'm really pleased that you managed to get so much physical activity inside. I'm a SAHM myself so no judgement there. I still argue that encouraging children to be outdoors is important. Going outside isn't just going to play on the swings (and going into the garden is still going outside, it still counts) it's also walking around, looking at plants and flowers. We name plants, name birds, look for planes and also just walk to the shops and count money. There's plenty of imaginative play possible in even a small park even if you don't go to the playground.
It really isn't an either or. Your children aren't better for enjoying fine motor pursuits, an energetic sporty child isn't better for enjoying running around but it still stands that it's important for all children to try to go outside most days.

We live in a 3 bed, small semi with two rooms downstairs. You can do some really good chase games with a 2 year old that get everyone’s heart rate up.

poor neighbours!

And who allows their kids to jump on furniture?

Now I understand the reasoning of neighbours posters are complaining about!