Rainy days at home With preschooler, toddler and baby.

[littleraysofsunshine]

How do you do this?

Haha with great difficulty. CBeebies is your friend now. Whack that on in the background for a start. Ideally yu want to get that baby to sleep but if there is no chance you may have to set up something like Lego or a pretend picnic with lots of Tupperware. Something that the older ones won't get annoyed if baby or toddler starts wrecking it.

If all else fails put on Frozen.

I hate rainy days, my toddler is climbing the walls by late afternoon. We try and go for a walk(good raincovers!) to get him out at least a little bit, or indoor activities like soft play, playgroup, swimming.etc. my mum will visit as well. Staying in for rain is not often worth it to me. For the sake of tantrums and bad behaviour, I am happy to let him get a little wet

If you do have to stay in:
Playdoh
Baking
Crafts
Baths-let them play with toys.
Reading
Toys
Helping to clean-my toddler loves this!
Sometimes cbebbies if I want 10 mins

I try to keep certain activities to only rainy days so it's more exciting for him. So we often only do playdoh and baking on days where we are stuck inside.

It's as if playing is a chore??? They're not interested other than if I'm doing it with them.

They use to imagine, role play etc.

Now they're just grabbing everything they shouldn't (hot things) or just asking asking asking for things. Hovering.

Not sure where my contents kids have gone

Water proofs. Wellies. Spare clothes in a bag plus towels. Go find puddles. Jump in them yourself until you forget you are a grown-up. The children will join in.

My kids would follow me round the house asking for constant snacks. It would drive me insane. All the toys in the world wouldn't help and they would loose interest in games that is play with them. Have you got a child friendly cafe near you or a soft play? They saved my life many a time.

Water proofs. Wellies. Spare clothes in a bag plus towels. Go find puddles. Jump in them yourself until you forget you are a grown-up. The children will join in.

Put your coats on and go out any way! Visit the library, build a den indoors. Go swimming, playdough, bake.

I've got plenty of resources and we do go out in the rain too. Just the days when I have so much to do. Along with the home ed plans and working from home.

You can't play with your kids all day. 10 minutes of play doh and I'm bored silly. Sometimes kids have to just crack on whilst you do the housework. I have days when I largely ignore them until I've got the house straight, they soon worked out how to entertain themselves with their many toys. Being a mum to 3 young children under 5 is exhausting and constantly playing and keeping them occupied all day long is a struggle.

Can the bigger one help with putting clothes away, loading washing machine/tumble dryer etc...and make tidying into a game?

Lots of indoor activites to do, nurture store is brilliant, as is the artful parent.

Personally we love going out in the rain (we are often the only ones in parks going full pelt down the slides!!!) but from what you are saying it sounds as though they are craving connecting with you...could they bring an activity to where you are doing housework?

I set mine up so I can work and supervise

So they might bake.

I let eldest read recipes and tell younger what to get and they mix up what and when. I sit at the table hiding behind laptop. Then I just do oven bit at end. Something like biscuits they can pass an hour or more doing but the time they make dough then cut or make the shapes they want (it's like edible play dough)

Outside. I tend to let them go straight out after breakfast for hour or so walk in parks in rain if we need to be in most the day, as then they are calm enough when home to do stuff

Set them up with train set/ Lego etc for 10 mins with them then leave them 30 mins and repeat.

Drawing or watercolours keeps occupied for ages. Baby can play on rug nearby or go in sling

If home schooling make each week a project. So say this week is knights and castles. Then boxs, pens and tape and scissors and let them make own castles. Drawings castle based ( can let them copy from books), ideally trip to castle or museum or similar at the beginning of week so they have ideas to go from. Biscuit dough they can mould into edible castles or Knights. Set up Lego as castle. Read books in between on same theme. Get them writing stories based on theme etc. adjust according to age.

Baby does whatever baby does in between so lays on rug/ in sling/ plays/ gets crayons as older

We find a ball pit is handy, filled with balloons as well as balls works well. Only for a day or so then they're bored, but it's one of the few things they can both enjoy without wanting much parental input.