HOMEBOUND

We’ve had a couple of hot and humid summer days. I am staying inside for the most part and remember trying to entertain my young children on similar days when it was too hot to stay outside for long.

There were many activities:

COOKING (no stove here) –

Preparing fruit and cutting up veggies (with a plastic knife and seeing who could come up with the most unusual plate display)

Making fruit juice combinations or smoothies (all they had to do was dump in fruit and other ingredients and push a button). Then drinking them as is or freezing them into ice cubes or pops.

Making egg and tuna salad (helping to cut up the eggs or stirring in the tuna and adding cut up celery, onions and mayo).

ARTS AND CRAFTS –

Drawing and painting

Making playdough

Decorating paper cups and plates

Creating costumes out of large paper bags

WATER SPORTS –

Getting into the bathtub to cool off

Floating boats and other toys in bathtub races

PLAYDATES –

A lifesaver when they got bored with me and one another’s company.

READING –

Letting the kids chose their favorites

Writing and illustrating their own.

While we were all happy to get out to the park and the playground when the weather improved, we enjoyed the activities and the unexpected time we spent together.

Try a few of my tricks and share any you’ve come up with.

Kathy Ann Brodsky, LCSW is a New York and New Jersey licensed social worker, adoptive mom and advocate for ethical adoption practice. Through her private practice and agency affiliations, she has prepared  thousands of adoption  homestudies, counseled  expectant, birth, pre/post adoptive parents and  adopted  persons, as  well  as trained  professionals  to  work  with  adoptive  families. She  was Director of the  Ametz  Adoption  Program of  JCCA and a member of the Advisory Board for POV’s Adoption  Series and the Adoption Advisory Board  of  Path2Parenthood, She is currently on the  Adoption   Professional   Advisory  Council  of  HelpUSAdopt , a member of the Advisory Board of the Family Equality Council and  active  in  the  Adoptive Parents Committee in  New  York.  Her  blogs  and  written contributions can be seen throughout the Internet, including  her  BLOG  and  as  Head  Writer  for  ADOPTION.NET   She  was  named  an  “Angel in Adoption” by the Congressional Coalition on Adoption in 2001. You can reach her directly