Our nieces and nephews are coming to stay with us for a week at the end of August. We only have one car so we'll be home for the most part until DH gets home from work
Any ideas to keep two 9 year olds (b & g) and one 7 year old boy entertained at home? We do have a big backyard and a pool but I'm not a great swimmer so I'm not comfortable letting them swim often without DH home.
Not much besides a park within walking distance unfortunately!
admin / wonderful grape / 20724 posts
@regberadaisy: Do you have any board games? Maybe you could ask their parents what games they like to play...
pomegranate / 3003 posts
Do you know how to knit or crochet? Surprisingly, my third graders *loved* learning this past school year - boy and girls, alike!
Perhaps you could set up other water activities, if it's warm outside, and the pool is off limits. If you want to splurge, buy a slip n' slide, or make one with garbage bags or a clean tarp. Water balloon tosses, water gun fights, sprinklers - all fun.
Make homemade ice cream or bake some lemon bars, and squeeze lemonade - they could even sell it to neighbors in front of your house, if you're willing.
nectarine / 2667 posts
Search Pinterest - there will be a MILLION ideas. Here are few off the top of my head:
Make play dough
Bake treats or salt-can ice cream
Color outside with sidewalk chalk
Make a giant bubble blower (with wooden dowels and string)
Creat an obstacle course of household things (like jump over a stool and crawl underneath a "web" of string attached to the walls)
Go on an outdoor scavenger hunt for nature items
Picnic at the park
Water play like @deerylou: mentioned
GOLD / wonderful pomegranate / 28905 posts
@mrbee: not really! They're bored of them in like 20 minutes or accusations of cheating start running wild! Haha
@deerylou: omg a lemonade stand sounds awesome! I'm not sure how many "customers" they would get!
@mewtill: I'll check out Pinterest! I like the picnic idea! 
GOLD / wonderful apricot / 22276 posts
I would ask them to bring a few things from home to fill in the gaps when you run out of ideas. Walks, park, sprinkler, bake, arts and crafts, build a fort, games, is there a library close? Umm...
GOLD / wonderful pomegranate / 28905 posts
@Bao: no library within walking distance. But I could ask DH to take us one evening so that each day they can have a 20 minute quite time. Or they probably have books from their summer reading list for school.
If I ask them to bring something from home it will be their iPads!
GOLD / wonderful apricot / 22276 posts
@regberadaisy: they have iPads?! Lol I don't even have one 
honeydew / 7811 posts
@regberadaisy: I have my 11 year old stepdaughter and 7 year old stepson with us for a month. I'm trying to keep them from watching tv all day, or tearing our apartment to pieces out of boredom. We do not have a yard or pool.
So far two things went over really well - making frozen banana popsicles (cut a banana into quarters, stick popsicle sticks in, freeze for thirty minutes, dip in melted chocolate with a little oil added to thin it out, then decorate with sprinkles, then put in fridge or freezer so chocolate can harden) and decorating onesies for LO with plain white onesies and puffy/fabric paint. Of course those two activities total only took half a day!
Pick some books out from the library ahead of time, use for "quiet time" when you need a break, or get a chapter book and read it together (a little each day). Get a puzzle and challenge them to complete it before they leave. My mom challenged the kids to finish a 550 piece puzzle, she will get them a "reward" if they do it. My MIL is going to do peanut butter bird feeders with them. Slap some peanut butter on a pinecone then roll in birdseed. Hang with string. Easy peasy.
I'll let you know if I think of anything else!
honeydew / 7811 posts
Since you do have outside play space I'd stock up on a few simple outside toys - a hula hoop, a jump rope, bubbles, chalk (if you have sidewalk or driveway), a ball or two they can throw or kick around.
Are they interested in your LO at all? I am finding simple crafts they can do for the baby. Like I found directions for a pretty simple DIY ribbon mobile we might do. I also have extra popsicle sticks, and I've seen online instructions for popsicle stick puzzles (using a printed photo) that we might try too.
We also put them to work with chores and helping with the cooking! We tell them they have to contribute to the household (make beds, put away their own laundry, clean the kitchen, clean their bathroom), and they actually seemed to really enjoy helping us out in the kitchen (we all made brownies and a fruit salad together for a cookout).
grapefruit / 4823 posts
maybe something from a craft store to keep them occupied, at least the girl? my brothers used to like to do crafts...but that was 20+ years ago and times have a changed lol
maybe DH can drop all of you guys(but it sounds like more than a car full...more like 2 car fulls) at the zoo, or somewhere else that you can spend the whole day(amusement park?) before he goes to work and someone else can pick you all up afterwards?(MIL/FIL)
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