Looking After Kids? Never Fear, An Activity Guide is Here

Not everyone in the world is comprised of a skeleton of maternal bones. For some of us, our nieces and nephews and framily of kids of our friends are more than enough. Popping in as a favorite adult that's not a parent is one of the best feelings aside from the genuine affection and big hearted love you have for these little darlings. However, when they are in your official care because your sibling or friend has an appointment or it’s date night, you are now in charge of them, and need to entertain or at least direct entertainment as well as keep them out of danger.

If you find yourself in charge of the happiness and well being of a couple of little people in your home or theirs, depending on their age you are probably looking for some activities to do together. Very little human beings are easy to care for because they eat, sleep, pee/poop, and play and require very little activity planning...but where's the fun in that? Never fear, as they grow older, you'll be branching out more in your activities. There are lots of great activities you can get into that will be fun for the kids and as a bonus fun for you. 

Seek Adventure

There are a whole host of adventure parks across the country. These range from water parks to theme parks. If the children that you are looking after adore being active and can swim, a water park is ideal. They can spend an hour or two going down slides, enjoying the rapids, and having a swim in the wave machine. Taking kids I love is literally the only way I'd set foot in a water park. If it's not outdoor weather, you can partake in one of the hugely popular bouncey places. Enjoy the fun of the trampoline park and watch the little people bounce away to their heart’s content. Being active, having fun, and bouncing off of the walls (literally) is tiring in a good way and makes for happy evenings.

If the kids are old enough and you're all feeling daring, you could opt for a theme park. Most theme parks have ride areas specifically aimed at kids. Harry Potter World and Disney have amazing rides and can be the ultimate day out. Here in PA you've got Dorney and Hershey Parks and in NJ there are all the shore town amusements as well as Six Flags. Busch Gardens in Virginia...what's near you? Get your wallet out and go. 

Stay Local

There's no need to travel for fun if you don't feel like it or don't have the cash for it - there are lots of free activities all around. You could head to the local park or playground or take a walk or bike ride through the neighborhood together. Your local town might have a free museum or it will at least have some attractions where the kids go free. Consider what the children are interested in and try to mold activities around their likes and passions. If they adore all things science, head to the local space center or observatory. Philly friends, check out the Franklin Institute or Please Touch Museum. If they'll sit for it, take them to see the kids movie that's out in theaters. If they like books, check out what's going on in the kid's section of the local library. 

Local activities are great because you don’t have to worry about planning a long journey. You never have to worry about the incessant Are we there yet and you can visit some local places that you might not go to much, broadening your own horizons. 

Stay Home

Some kids prefer a more sedate and chilled pace of life. If they're little homebodies or you're looking after them at night, the chances are that you’ll be staying indoors. Turn up armed with some pipe cleaners, paints, crayons, paper, boxes and felt, and allow them to craft away. Maybe you can collaborate on building a robot or painting a portrait or copying a design from a book. Kids adore novelty, so any craft activity new to them just by virtue of doing it with you should be a lot of fun. If you're not crafty and they're not either, you could bake a cake together, build a fortress with blankets and pillows, read books, play school, pretend you have a restaurant or are going to the store....all those awesome imagination required things that let kids stretch their brains. 

What are some activities you like to do when you're babysitting the awesome little people in your life? Are you on duty this weekend?