Help! Need ideas for boring half term

[Alwaysleaveittoolate]

Most half terms I visit my 82yo mum, with my 9yo and 5yo DS. We coincide with my sister who lives nearby and brings her 6 and 8 yo DS each day, and we have a chaotic and fun few days where the boys play and we just make sure they're fed and safe etc.

Sister's just called, her eldest has thrown up today a few times so that plan's scuppered for the next 3 days, at which point we go home. So 3 days loom. We're skint so can't spend money, we have a tablet and switch and grandma has youtube on the tv. All things which are easy to limit when their cousins are here.

What can I do to keep them happily occupied which doesn't entail me turning into an entertainer, or them into screen zombies. Full disclosure - I love my boys endlessly but I actually don't really love playing!! I can handle the idea of a little football kick about, trip to the playground, hide and seek..but what else is there?!

Got any board games or jigsaw puzzles? While mine aren't big fans of jigsaws we have been known to do a race - several very easy ones and it's who can do the most in fifteen minutes. I appreciate that only kills 15 minutes though!

Teach them some card games? Pairs or wist?

Long walk with a target - who can see the most birds/types of birds. We used to do a rainbow hunt - working together to spot one red thing, then one Orange thing....

Definitely football and park. Will there be other kids of a similar age there? Being outside always kills time well! Take food and coffee for you in thermos.

Where are you? Anything good in the local area? Museum you can walk to? Town with a library? Cathedrals are also mostly free. Somewhere with a duckpond? If absolutely desperate to to somewhere with lots of people e.g. train station and do people sporting bingo (someone with buggy, man with laptop, lady with hat....). that ine is really inly good if paired with going somewhere though.

Definitely a trip to the local library.

Does your mum have any stuff in for baking? Lots of people round us have windfall apples out on their garden walls so you could do an apple cake or crumble with v little extra spending (doesn’t work if you’re in a town centre, I assume).

Could you try some basic orienteering/map reading stuff with the older one? Not too easy so your younger one can tag along, but get them to plan a simple route and work out what they will see on the way.

Listen to an audio book together - free online if you have a library membership.

Ooh mum's got a load of toddler puzzles we never use and was goingto donate this week, I can definitely drag a jigsaw race out a few times!!

Oh I loved orienteering when I was at school, totally giving that a go!

Thanks both for your lovely helpful suggestions. Local library is a brill idea, didnt even cross my mind. Lots of great ideas thank you!!

https://www.nationaltrust.org.uk/visit/50-things

List of suggestions here.

Build dens out of sofa cushions, tables and chairs and sheets etc.

Go searching for sweet chestnuts. Bring them home and roast them.

Thank you everyone!! So far so good...only one youtube related argument thus far lol

Just doing things a bit differently. Like make a den under the dining room/kitchen table and then have a picnic lunch in there. Or get the boys to make lunch for everyone - put some basic bits out like bread and cheese and ham and cucumber or whatever and let them come and take your 'lunch order' for sandwiches and have a go making it for you.

If your mum has newspapers or magazines hanging around, making collages can be a fun craft activity. You could turn it to a spooky theme and have them turn the women in Take a Break or whatever into witches and devils!

Pokemon Go hunt (a walk with a bit of screen interaction for motivation). Geocaching (same!)