Struggling to know what to do day to day over Christmas period with one and three year old

[lcm1993]

Too cold to be outside for too long I, soft plays are germ riddened. Surely it’s not only me that struggles to keep a 1 and 3 year old entertained this time of year ?

Any advice appreciated how to make the days go quicker - around the Hampshire area.

Family are next to useless, also not really a fan of sticking them in front of a tablet or tv all day.

We aren’t Hampshire, but the local libraries are open near us and are a great way to kill an hour or two.
Always have colouring out, often other crafts or a treasure hunt (just looking for pictures around the library) and our nearest one has got loads of toys in now including a play kitchen, baby puzzles etc.

Lots of National Trust places in Hampshire are worth a look so if you don't have membership it is worth considering. So long as the children are wrapped up warm you can definitely go outside and explore one of those for a few hours. Most have historic houses you can go inside, plus a cafe too so you'll not be outside all the time. Winchester City Mill is inside I believe and that's NT.

Outside walk to shops. Buy magazine, walk home. Baking. I used to like doing those free/cheap things. If you can afford it local farm park, they usually have a mixture of outside and inside things so you play out for a bit and then warm up. Used to love things like that in winter. Expensive though.

We are in London and are doing the attractions here - they've often been quiet in the mornings. We've been to the National Gallery, Natural History museum, Aquarium and zoo. The parks and soft play are fine too.

Can you do something daft inside like make a tent/den under the kitchen table?

Currently under one as we speak but that kept them entertained for 30 mins 😂

Season ticket for Paultons Park??

I’d probably plan the life out of it, but that’s what I do with everything to keep sane!

First of all I think that having reasonable expectations for what can be done…30 minutes for an indoor activity would be the absolute limit for a 1 and 3 year old I would have thought. With that in mind I would have a rough schedule in my mind, working around any nap times and wouldn’t expect anything to last for a long time.

A short walk/trip to the park is probably achievable morning and afternoon even in this weather if you wrap up well..half an hour each time would do it. Drink and snack when you get in, maybe whilst they watch something short on tv so you have a few mins downtime. Then have a selection of things to choose from indoors (ask the 3 year to choose 3 things from a list of 5 or 6). So maybe the duplo on the lounge floor, some colouring on the table and puzzles in the corner and they choose what they want to do from those. When they get bored, point them to one of the other activities. Always have some books available. Children focus better when they’re not overwhelmed with lots of choice. After lunch swap round the activities for different ones and be sure to spend some time outside again. Schedule in quiet times to give yourself some headspace, so when the 1 year old is napping the 3 year old can have a quiet rest with an audio book or similar.

Hopefully giving the day some structure might help you to get through it! Good luck!