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Giving Your Days Excitement in Quarantine

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Have you started losing track of days yet? We sure have. But without a weekly schedule, these quarantine days can start to feel the same. So, why not delve into some interesting topics to add a bit of variety? Maybe explore a new hobby or learn something new—like the fascinating history of acrylic nails.

Here are a few tips that might help you to brighten up your week and give you a sense of schedule. 

 

Themed Date Nights 

With all these nights at home, they can start to blend. Pick one night of the week to have a special date night with your partner (or roommate). Theme the date to make it even more special. This means attire, music, food and tv/movie after. And for some added fun, you can even incorporate playing card games, perhaps through platforms like UFABET คาสิโนสด, to keep the night lively and engaging.

Need some ideas? 

Italian Night: Dress formal, cook a lasagna, break out some red wine and watch Big Night, The Godfather or The Sopranos. Need a semi-formal two-piece dress? You can check out these 2023 two piece dresses for homecoming here for your best preferences!

Island Fever: Concoct mai tais, pop on the Reggae, cook up some pineapple chicken skewers and watch Castaway or 

80s Night: Classic pepperoni pizza, watch Back to the Future and rock whatever 80s clothing you have in your closet. Don’t forget the 80s jams. 

With kids? Themed days!

Make a day feel different by giving it a theme and working your play, books and activities around it. If you are feeling crafty, you can try to theme food around it too. 

— Animal Day – Pick an animal, (ex: dog) and get out all your stuffed dogs, dog books and make pretend leashes for walks, feed them, wash them! If you prefer to adopt real dogs instead, it may be wise to read topics like WoofConnect home boarding for dogs.

— Make toy bath and washing them in the  tub, water table or inflatable pool. 

— Bring out the Kitchen: kitchen utensils, mixing bowls and even spices can be a lot fun. Use them for imaginary play or to make instruments. What is mundane to adults is new to kids. 

 

Catch up with Friends & Family

Pick a cousin, college friend or niece or nephew that you haven’t checked in with in a while and set up a Facetime date. Now is the perfect opportunity to reconnect and catch up. If you have kids, it’s a great way for grandparents, cousins and aunts & uncles to stay connected in their lives. 

 

Group Games

Fibbage or Quiplash are accessible with a computer or phone and can have up to 8 players. You login with a code so doesn’t matter where you are and everyone can participate in these bluffing/lying games. Make it even better by doing a Facetime or group call at the same time to get reactions. 

 

Change up your Location

Mostly spend your day in the living room or at your desk? Switch it up if you can. Work (or play) in the front yard, on a roof, a patio or balcony. 

With kids? Set up different activities in different rooms. I did this a lot when my daughter was an infant and we were pretty much homebound. Sometimes just moving from the bedroom to the living room was enough to break up the day. 

 

Switch your Transportation

With less places to “be,” enjoy the journey. Bike, skateboard, scooter or walk. Sunlight, fresh air and just getting out of the house will definitely improve your mood and outlook. 

With kids? Make sure to include their transportation too! Pull them in a wagon, take them on a bike ride, break out their scooter or push car. This alone is fun and different for your kids. 

 

Go on a Driving Excursion

Yes, excursions are limited now but just getting in the car and checking out a new neighborhood or new park can give your family a dose of freshness. The drive alone can be the experience! The PCH is one of my favorite scenic drives and there are a lot of fun neighborhoods in LA are fun to cruise. And I know that I am actually enjoying driving now that it is not a necessity. And the biggest plus of all: there’s NO TRAFFIC! 

*If you are going to check out a new park, do your research as some are now closed. 

 

 

Setting a few of these up in advance might help your week to have structure and things to look forward too. We can break up the monotony but we have to try a bit harder now…

12 Indoor Activities to Entertain Toddlers During Coronavirus

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Now that Coronavirus is fully upon on us, we need to rethink a lot of things. I realize that there are a lot of lists out there and recommendations on what to buy, eat, and do to stay safe during this unprecedented time. This is not one of them. 

This list is specifically for parents of small children who are now forced to cancel all outings, social activities and bunker down indoors. Granted, a lot of our friends from snowy places do this more frequently than my network in California, but given the pandemic status, this is a bit more severe. This is a great time to setup a play area for your kids and invest in High-Quality Soft Play Products. This will help promote physical health and having fun to your kids.

You can’t replace school, playdates and playgrounds but you sure can create some exciting new activities that will keep your kids entertained and engaged (or at least distracted). And note, none of these activities involve TV or digital tech (but hey, if we need to resort to that, no judgement, we do too in dire times). 

HOME ACTIVITIES FOR TODDLERS

(roughly aged 1ish-4ish)

  1. Obstacle Course

Depending your child’s age, you can make this as simple or complex as needed. For my girl under 2, we are going to go more simple and make a tunnel using chairs and sheets, followed by squeezing through her tunnel and, climbing up a pillow mountain and ending with dropping a ball in a bucket. 

Bigger kids:  You can add in physical things like crab walking and jumping jacks or drawing a certain picture or writing their name. 

What you need: 

Pillows

Blankets

Boxes 

Tubes

Wooden Spoons 

Paper/Crayons as needed 

 

2. Mini Ball Pit

Ball pit, occupancy for 1. Take a small inflatable pool and fill it with those cheap colorful balls. If you don’t have a pool or don’t want to order one, use your tub! No water, just balls!

What you need:

Small Inflatable Pool like this one

These lightweight colorful balls

 

3. Watercolor Painting

Any type of paints technically work, but do yourself a favor and get watercolors to limit the mess. Yes, water will get on the floor but it’s a much quicker cleanup. I used small mouthwash cups for the water and taught Aurora how to dip into the water first then into the color then paper. This alone can be a lot for the little ones but it’s a fun learning process. I also purchased a variety of brushes to play with the different size of strokes. 

What you Need

Water Color Paints

Mini Cups 

Brushes 

 

4. Bath Tub Painting

*This idea was from Busy Toddler–an amazing resource if you don’t know it!

Take your painting to the next level (and save your cleanup) and let your kids go wild in the bathtub. For us that means diaper only and paint away. They can paint EVERYWHERE, even themselves, and after just wash it down and keep your child in for a bath. Toss the paper and tape. And Done!

Note: We have not done this yet but I’ll update with photos when we do. I know this will be a hit because we did a messy art class like this and it was Aurora’s favorite thing ever.

 

What you need:

These paints

This paper

Painters Tape

Brushes

 

5. Living Room Forts

Aurora is obsessed with couch forts. We’ve acquiesced and have taken almost all the cushions off our couch to make intricate forts with sheets and blankets. If you don’t want to go all out, drape a sheet between two chairs or use any big boxes that you might have leftover. 

What you need: 

Blankets/Sheets

Pillows/Couch cushions

Chairs

Imagination 

 

6. Baking Time

Though maybe messy, this hands on activity is a fun bonding experience and teaches your toddler about food, from measuring to mixing to baking and then eating! I like to do simple things like sugar cookies or banana bread.

For even simpler, do premade crescent rolls and let your toddler make their own shapes and add in fillings like cheese or jam. 

What you need: 

Baking Recipe + ingredients OR premade crescent rolls (like Immaculate Baking Company)

Healthy Sugar Cookie Recipe

Step stool or learning tower (i like this one)

 

7. Twister

Timeless. Ageless. This game is a must because you’ll have fun with it forever. For the little ones, the spinner alone can be fun but you can work on your colors and body coordination by spinning then having your toddler take the lead on which body part to put on which color. You can leave out left and right unless you feel like that is a challenge your child can take on. 

If you join in the fun, I guarantee your child will start laughing! 

What you need: 

Twister! 

 

8. Friends and Neighbors Game

This game teaches empathy and it is easy and fun. Aurora loves emotions right now so she is fascinated when people are sad or hurt and wants them to “feel better” or “go to doctor.” I think that this will have a longer life for us too as she grows but it is great for little littles!

What you Need:

Friends and Neighbors Game

 

9. Hungry Hungry Hippos

I loved this game growing up and it’s loud, exciting and super simple. *Be mindful of the little balls as they are definitely choking hazards for little kids so if you child is under 4, only play with them and make sure that it is not accessible to them when you aren’t right next to them (aka. Store it in a child safe closet)

What you Need: 

Hungry Hungry Hippos Game!

 

10. Haba My First Orchard Game

I researched a lot and this game kept coming up as a top game for little kids that they like to continue to play as they grow. Parents liked it as well for it’s high quality wood pieces made in Germany. They make a few other versions with farmers and honeybees but the orchard seemed to have the most accolades and I liked the way it was played the best. This is a pricier game but the reviews and quality sold me.

What you need: 

My First Orchard 

 

11. Play Dough 

Since it dries out fast and lots of playdoughs have artificial ingredients, I like to make my own. If not, I suggest Eco Toys!
What you need: 

Premade Playdough (love this set)

Or DIY! Check out this play dough recipe

 

12: Dance Party

Pump your favorite jams, grab pretend microphones and have a dance party! Take it to the next level with sunglasses, costumes or turning down the lights and using flashlights!

What you need: 

Music!

 

Hope some of these give you a little relief and levity during this difficult time!

xoxo

Kelley

Your Summer Guide to Santa Monica with Little Kids

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Santa Monica is one of America’s most famous beach towns and as you can imagine, summer brings an influx of traveling families from far and wide.

As a local and a mom, I spend (almost) every single day here in the summer, figuring out a fun, nearby activity for my daughter. Bonus points if we can find an outdoor activity with water to cool her off a bit!

After lots of trial and error, we’ve found our top summer spots for daytime play with toddlers in Santa Monica.

*All these activities are generally for walkers, but we still did many of them when Aurora was crawling only and still had a great time!

 

Pools

The Annenberg Beach House is only open in the summer but they make the most of it with a ton of family friendly activities, many of which are free! Access to the pool itself is $10 and comes with showers and changing room facilities and access to a snack bar and game room. 

Annenberg Beach House Pool

The pool is a clean, refreshing place to cool off. There are abundant lounge chairs with umbrellas but they are often occupied. This place is popular especially during hot summer days, so planning to go during off times (before noon or after 4pm) if you want to avoid a crowded pool or full lounge chairs. Busy or not, it is still one of the best pool experiences in Santa Monica!

Another great thing to note: the Annenberg Beach House has programming throughout the summer with many free kid friendly events! The Santa Monica Public Library does an especially cute “library day at the beach” (see above) which comes with books, crafts and live storytime. Check the Annenberg events schedule here. 

 

Splash Pads

Annenberg Splash Pad

Annenberg Beach House Splash Pad

There are two splash pads worth checking out: the Annenberg Splash Pad and Tongva Park. The former is located down on the beach, with tables, chairs and umbrellas as well as a little lawn area which makes it easy for parents to sit and watch their littles running (and screaming) through the water. The water is very warm and the area is usually not too crowded, but I’ve never seen it empty either. Later in the day, there’s often some shade which is very nice for delicate little skin. Bring a bucket or ball for even more fun and don’t forget a towel. 

Tongva Park Splash Pad

Tongva Park Splash Pad

Tongva Park’s Splash Pad is located inside their playground area. Surrounded by rocks, this splash pad is very aesthetically pleasing but note that you (aka the parent) have to push a button to turn the water on and it turns off when you stop pushing. This makes it more environmentally friendly but a little more work. The water here is pretty chilly so make sure it is a warm day! There is usually no shade here. 

 

Santa Monica Pier

Pacific Park

The Pier is the icon of Santa Monica, and I think the Pacific Park rides are the ultimate summer experience for kids of all ages. I was curious if my 14 month old would have as much fun here as older kids, but I needn’t have worried–she had a blast! 

Inkie’s Air Lift

There are 3 rides in the Pacific Park area for little ones with an adult. We weren’t comfortable letting her go alone yet, so we stuck to those three that we could join: Inkie’s Wave Jumper, Inkie’s Air Lift and Sea Planes. Each ride is $5 for both adults and for kids — which can add up quickly — so we picked the two that looked the best to us: Sea Planes and Inkie’s Air Lift. 

Sea Planes ride at Pacific Pier

The Sea Planes ride was the most relaxed, with cute 4 seater planes slowing lifting up and down as they twirl. Inkie’s Air Lift is the same but are you in hot air balloons, facing your little one and can control the spin as you want. We skipped the Wave Jumper though it looked pretty cute, just because the bounces were a little more aggressive than we wanted for our little one but I’m sure it’s great for older kids. You can see a listing of all the rides here. 

 

Santa Monica Pier Carousel

This historical landmark is 105 years old–built in 1922! The beautifully restored horses really take you back in time and it was a joy to take our daughter on her first carousel experience here. It is only $1 for adults and children under 3 are free, so cost is not an issue. To me, Aurora’s smiles, waving and astonishment at the moving horse was really a worthwhile experience. 

 

Playgrounds

North Beach Playground

Playdate with Ezra at North Beach Playground

This new playground is clean, modern and covered with the soft, spongy flooring that makes it feel very safe for little ones. There are no sand or water features here, but that is okay as you do have a beach access path just across from it. I like the far side for little kids, which has a slide, a teeter-totter, infant swings and some fun swirly rides. This park can get busy, especially on the bigger kid side but overall it feels very safe and clean. The only downside is there is very limited shade. To keep soft flooring in good condition, it would require Wetpour Maintenance. 

 

South Beach Playground

South Beach Playground with friends

How can you not love a playground that is shaped like a ship! This very large playground is set along the beach path, across from the sand and adjacent to some parks. The whole space huge with swings, sand, grass, trees and a variety of play areas. There are some tables on either end and there’s even a little shade. The only downside is you have to follow your child closely because there’s a lot of obstructions so you can lose them pretty easily. Also, I don’t love that majority of the structures are made out of concrete but still, it’s pretty great regardless. If you want to align the playground with a specific theme or school branding, thermoplastic markings from thermoplasticplaygroundmarkings.co.uk can be customized to match your design and branding requirements.

 

Cayton Children’s Museum

Sienna and Aurora in the ball pit

If you need a break from the sunshine, the brand new Cayton Children’s Museum is a super interesting interactive space for all ages and interestes. From a little market and diner area, to a “vet office” to a ball pit and giant water table—there’s so much to do here. There’s even a real helicopter and firetruck inside for kids to explore. 

Girls at the “diner”

I love the mix of areas that promote imagination and pretend, as well as the tactile areas like the sand and water tables. There’s a playspace that changes as well– sometimes there’s large foam shapes for building, another there’s costumes for dress up and I’ve even seen a sing-a-long music group.

For those under 2 years old, there’s a padded, protected space that is a nice, calm retreat for younger kids.

Under 2 Play Area

The only downside to the museum is it can get very busy, so just be sure to keep close to your little one as some older kids and summer camps are usually running around full speed. 

Firewoman!

 

These are just some of our summer favorites in the area. Hope they help your little one have even more fun in this family friendly beach town!