Keeping the kids entertained over Christmas

[DDF3]

Do you spend a lot of time with the kids over christmas, or are they more interested in playing their playstations? A game of monopoly and cluedo should be able to keep them entertained for hours!

I've saved some kids activities from the Co-op website, its got wordsearches and other fun colouring activities in, so I'm hoping that will keep them entertained at least while they wait between dinner courses!

For anyone interested: christmas.coopcompetition.co.uk/activities-for-the-kids/

Trouble is I doubt it will keep them entertained for to long, when they have grown up in the age of playstations and ipods.

Lots of adults around, here, to spread the load a bit, but usually we play with the childrens choices from their presents ...right up until a rather late lunchtime. After lunch, we play cards or something like Trivial Pursuit (or heaven help me, the dreaded charades) as 'teams' so the children are all included. TV is allowed on for the early evening film ..which buys us a but of quiet time, and the children some winding down time, before bed.

Long walk on Boxing morning usually sees them fairly well settled for the rest of the day, though nabbing any willing adult to join in whatever the current game is par for the course.

We find they play with their toys or just generally race about on Christmas morning and in the afternoon we tend to do party games like charades. This year one of DS1's presents is Risk and so I expect he'll want to play that.

In the run up to Christmas I make an effort to do Christmassy things with them like make strings of paper chains, making homemade cards for family and pinning cloves into oranges to make pomanders.

A walk.
Another walk. The park for a walk.
Swimming on 23rd, cinema maybe.
Downfall is the fave game at the moment.