10 Fun Indoor Activities For Rainy Days

We have had a lot of rain recently and that means getting creative to keep the kids busy in other ways than playing outside. My kids have an incredible amount of energy, as most do, and need to stay moving. I just want to bottle up all that energy and take a shot of it every once in a while. Ha! At their ages, 3 and 1, their attention span isn’t long so we need a pretty steady change of pace. If you are in need of some rainy day activities to stay busy and active, look no further! Here are some ideas:

Cooking/Baking

We like to cook/bake for real and pretend. Sometimes we actually bake cookies or something simple and other times we pretend to make “banana stew” in the play kitchen. In case you were wondering, banana stew is mostly made with carrots.  

Creating

Creating comes in many different forms. Some ideas are crafts, painting, coloring, stickers, etc. I come from a long line of artists and creators and I have learned to have a pretty good stash of art and craft supplies at the house. It is almost as important as a fully stocked pantry! Priorities, am I right? Having some basic supplies on hand makes it quick and easy to throw a craft together or make some art.   

Playing with Toys

Most of our toys are organized in cube storage. I don’t mind having a play area visible but I can’t handle having all the toys in view. I immediately want to hide it all! Storing toys in cubes allows us to have a more controlled playtime and less mess when we’re not playing. We go cube to cube and pull out toys and play until we can’t play anymore. They can switch cubes but I usually have them clean up the one they were using first. This keeps it organized, teaches them to clean up after themselves and it’s also something, at this age, they think is fun!

Basement Playtime

We have an unfinished basement that we use for many things. There is a workshop for my husband and I have my treadmill and some weights in an area. But the majority of it has become a sweet indoor play space for the kids! My husband built a climbing wall for the kids that we keep there and I have collected little things over time that I use to make an obstacle course. Even if you don’t have an open space like this, you can do an obstacle course anywhere!

Dance Party

My kids love music and sometimes we just turn on some jams and dance! My husband started the dance party tradition, which should come as no surprise to anyone who knows me. Any rhythm or moves the kids have definitely did not come from me! When I cook dinner, he usually takes the kids outside or down in the basement or workshop to hang out to give me a break. He loves music and always plays it for them. Now my daughter even knows how to turn on Alexa and her favorite thing to say is, “Alexa, play Billy Strings from Laura’s Pandora!” It’s quite impressive. 

Read

For our books, I also use cube storage. In both the kids’ rooms they each have a bookshelf where we keep their books. I keep the holiday or themed ones inside of cubes and the every day books on the shelves in between. Some day we go section by section and just read books! We’ll read them, talk about them, pretend we’re in them, etc. Sometimes we’ll put on some themed clothing, like Halloween pajamas, and read all the Halloween books. We have lots of books, but both my kids love them so much. 

Dress Up

It is always fun to play dress up whether we’re Elsa from Frozen or the pups from Paw Patrol! Or anything else in between. My daughter has really gotten into dress up recently so she’ll put on every piece of play jewelry she owns, grab her magic wand and slide on her huckles (high heels) to become “the prettiest princess in the land!”

Go Somewhere

When there is lousy weather you can always go somewhere. My obvious favorite is Target but since the closest is an hour away now it isn’t always practical. Just know that going somewhere just to browse and have a change of scenery with two toddlers can be extremely dangerous for your wallet…don’t say I didn’t warn you!

Sensory Bins

My husband is pretty handy and made us a sensory bin type table out of some scrap wood he had. We’ve used them with water, kinetic sand, bubbles, etc. and we’ve used it out in the yard, in the basement and on the screened porch. It’s versatile and can be put anywhere because it’s very lightweight and more importantly, the kids love it. 

 

Board Games

I grew up in a family who always played board games or cards and loved it. We might all be just a bit competitive, too, but I hope my kids end up liking them as much as I do! At this stage, it’s difficult finding something both of the kids can do but right now, Hungry, Hungry Hippo is our favorite. When I get one on one time with my oldest who’s nearly 4, we play more advanced games.  

Screen Time

Some good old fashion tv or screen time doesn’t hurt every now and again. I try to mix it in with some other activities because my kids tend to get a bit cranky after binging for an extended period of time. But everyone is different! We will watch tv shows, a movie or even put music on the tv. My daughter likes to do things on my iPad like puzzles, coloring or watch a show of her own. Screen time is also a super minimal preparation option for when mom needs a break too!

These ten ideas are great indoor activities. I will say though, sometimes the best thing to do when it rains is to still go outside! Obviously, you wouldn’t want to do this if there was thunder or lightning but, the kids love it. They splash in muddy puddles like Peppa Pig, look for bugs, play with the water table or walk around with their umbrellas just because. It can get extremely messy so, for this option, I have to be prepared for everyone to get dirty, but my kids LOVE getting messy! 

Depending on how long the activity keeps their attention, sometimes we do one of these activities and sometimes we do several of them. If you find yourself getting stuck inside on more rainy days than not, hopefully this gives you some ideas on what to do to keep the kids engaged. Or, if you are like me, to help you not go insane being cooped up all day!