May
Creativity on a Shoestring
With all the necessary belt-tightening going on these days, it’s becoming more important than ever to utilize a little creativity when planning a night out (or in) with kids, significant others, and/or friends.
The good news is…it is possible. The better news is…it can be a whole lot of fun.
Just last weekend my kids and I had a wonderful evening together for just two bucks. That’s right, two bucks…
First, we made a little dinner of favorite finger foods–pizza balls and chicken fingers (ingredients I happened to have in the house much to the delight of my daughters). Then, in the interest of shaking things up a little, we bypassed the dinner table in favor of a picnic blanket in the middle of the family room floor. Next–and here’s where the two bucks comes in–we popped in a rented video we’d been wanting to watch together for quite some time. And finally, halfway through the movie, we topped it all off with some microwave popcorn.
To say we had fun wouldn’t do the evening justice. In fact, our two dollar evening went over so well I got a repeated “thank you” from each of my girls that night…and throughout the rest of the weekend!
So, how about the rest of you? Do you have any ideas for inexpensive (yet creative) ways to entertain the kids? How about a creative, yet low-cost date or girls’ night out idea?
~Elizabeth Lynn
May 4th, 2009 at 12:52 am
We are big American Idol fans. We have watched it together, as a family, for all but the first season. Last year we got a DVR. Now when we watch it, we pause after each contestant and each take a turn being a judge. Our daughter is now 13 and still loves this fun family time.
Another fun thing we do is book reviews. My daughter got me hooked on Twilight and I got her hooked on Laura Bradford’s mysteries and Laurie Halse Anderson. We have constant dscussions and real world connections to the books. We are looking forward to reading Sew Deadly.
May 4th, 2009 at 10:52 am
I think it is never too early to start journaling and sketching, and summer is the perfect time. Instead of giving your children reams of computer paper to draw on, buy them small (6″X9″) unlined sketchbooks and some colored pencils (I like Crayola or Prang) so they can draw or write their thoughts (if they can write yet). Ideas for the journal:
– travel log/hiking log/wildlife and flower sketching
- a place to sketch favorite art pieces if you visit a museum (or animals at a zoo or aquarium)
– a place to draw while they wait for a plane (or the car’s oil to be changed, whatever)
- (age 8 and up) teach them what a haiku is. Let them see how many haikus they can make. rhyming couplets and silly jokes are also great things to store in a journal.
It slows kids down a great deal if they are “collecting” as they experience something; collecting a series of ideas, drawings of favorite art pieces or animals, or even lists of favorite foods, songs, etc.
Encourage them to date the entries (or if they are little, do it for them). When the sketchbooks are full, squirrel them away. They are treasures to look at as parents years from now, but also endlessly entertaining to the authors to re-visit as they get older!
May 5th, 2009 at 8:56 am
We love riding a local bike trail, visiting the park, and going to the free summer series at the movie theater (It’s just about the only time my kids get to go to the theater.)
May 5th, 2009 at 9:14 am
For great entertainment, you can’t beat the St. Louis Zoo. Pack a lunch and throw a couple water bottles in your day pack, and you have an entire afternoon of critters and awesome photo ops for free. When you get home, you can print your photos and pop them in a scrapbook or pin them to your fridge.
Zoos in other parts of the country charge, but compared to a night at the movies or a day at the mall, they’re a good value. For folks in Illinois, if you’ve done the St. Louis Zoo too many times to count, there are nice children’s zoos in Springfield and Decatur.
The U.S. is also blessed with an abundance of state parks and hiking trails. If you’re in downstate Illinois, you can’t beat Giant City State Park. In the metro area, you’re just minutes away from Pere Marquette State Park in Grafton. The trails are beautiful and the lodge alone makes the trip worthwhile.
In Missouri, you have too many trails to mention.
And city folks have quick access to the art museum and historical museum. Both are close to the zoo, both are awesome.
May 9th, 2009 at 7:47 am
Ok, I have to add. The art museum and the history museum. My entertaining kids days are long gone but I love walking through and seeing the new and old exhibits. The history museum is having some sort of quilt show that I really need to see.
This summer, the county fairs will start up. You probably won’t get away with a $2 evening, but you should be able to be relatively money sane.
May 10th, 2009 at 11:21 pm
Great ideas, everyone! If you stumble across any in the future, post ‘em here!