Nickelodeon has seen a 20% surge in TV ratings since Monday, due to all of the families who are practicing social distancing or self-quarantine.
Have you chosen the social distancing or self-quarantine route?
My 16-year old has not been my biggest fan for the past few days because I’m enforcing social distancing. She doesn’t “get it”, which is fine because I remember feeling INVINCIBLE at her age. She probably won’t “get it” until she’s a mother herself (🙄𝙊𝙈𝙂! 𝙄 𝙨𝙤𝙪𝙣𝙙 𝙡𝙞𝙠𝙚 𝙢𝙮 𝙢𝙤𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙧 🙄).
I find it extremely frustrating to see/hear so many adults who keep uttering the same ignorant, AND false statements (such as conspiracy theories) that have been floating around for the past month since it started to become a real threat to the U.S.
I find it absolutely 😡INFURIATING 🤬 to see that other parents are allowing their children to carry on as if this is just some extended Spring Break and/or allow them to travel out of the county. And I find it truly baffling to see how many healthcare “professionals” are treating this like a hurricane party or block party. I would find it super helpful if other parents took this seriously and stood up to their children as I have.
Emily’s common argument is, “Its only so & so,” or “Its not like so & so and I have the Coronavirus!” Parents grow a set!! I don’t give AF how many times she begs, pleads, cries, throws a teenage fit or tries to guilt me the answer will remain the same: “NO!! YOU MAY NOT GO VISIT YOUR FRIENDS!”
“Quarantine for 9 year olds aka Quarantine for Dummies” ……..
Imagine the whole world got dumped into a giant swimming pool. Most of us can swim, some of us have floats and life jackets, there are lifeguards and there are rescue rings, but there are a few of us who really cannot swim…..
The problem is that there are too many fuckin’ people in the pool for the lifeguards to see who is struggling to stay above, the people who can’t swim.
Most of us can just walk to the edge, get the fuck out of the pool, sit the fuck down, put on some more sunscreen, eat a damn ham sammich, and let the lifeguards tend to rescuing the people that need help.
It’s not that everyone is going to drown, it’s that we have clear the pool so the lifeguards can see the people in need. (𝘱𝘢𝘳𝘢𝘱𝘩𝘳𝘢𝘴𝘦𝘥 𝘧𝘳𝘰𝘮 𝘋𝘢𝘷𝘪𝘥 𝘚𝘩𝘦𝘦𝘩𝘢𝘯)
Also, people are using the term, “Quarantine” loosely…
If you are quarantined in your home then you with have the virus or you have symptoms, but haven’t been tested. This means you don’t leave your home for 14 days! Not even to get essentials! Someone must go get your meds or whatever for you!
Social distancing means to stay home, leaving your home only to get essentials. This includes walking your dog, getting fresh air. It’s not a recommended time to travel to other communities or go on vacay. Stay the fuck home.
We can “flatten the curve” if we work together. The sooner we do the sooner life can go back to normal. (𝘳𝘦𝘱𝘰𝘴𝘵 𝘧𝘳𝘰𝘮 𝘞𝘪𝘯𝘥𝘺 𝘙𝘢𝘴𝘮𝘶𝘴𝘴𝘦𝘯)
I believe that all schools are now closed until further notice, due to recommendations from the CDC. Some parents are trying to adjust to having their kid(s) home full-time, some also trying to balance working from home. I know for our community, our schools are officially closed until early April, yet personally I believe the date will be extended. I moved my daughter who attends the University of Texas in Austin back on Wednesday because the school closed the school down for the semester along with the dorms. My other two, Emily (10th grade) and Rebel (4th grade), children’s school has not set up any type of at-home curriculum, so as of now I am NOT sure what the plan is. Are your kids participating in some sort of online homeschool during this time?
Normally, we offer 9 free workouts. Click here to get my PDF with all 9 free workouts. Recently, we added a new sample workout from our latest program 10 Rounds. You can click on this link to test it out.
Do your kids need to burn off some energy?
trainers Tony Horton, Shaun T and Leandro Carvalho. This is a temporary service where we make these free to access.
Fun activities to do at home with kids
- Treasure hunt (with clues, hide a favorite toy somewhere in the house)
- Make a batch of play doh
- Tint shaving cream with food coloring, paint the windows or glass doors (or the inside of the shower glass) then rinse it off
- Go through clothing from previous seasons, try on and cull things that are too small
- Play dress ups in mum and dad’s clothes – do a photoshoot
- Graffiti the garden fence with chalk
- Make a small bowl, plate, egg cup or statue from air dry clay
- Day spa – do a Mani/Pedi/foot soak/face mask
- Go through old photos and videos, and old craft and paintings
- Have a Living Room disco – play freeze, musical chairs, have a dance off
- Go through recipe books together and have a bake off challenge
- Do a backyard scavenger hunt
- Make Origami animals or paper ninja stars
- Gardening – pull weeds, trim bushes, collect flowers for a vase
- Make a mud kitchen in the garden, make different colored rock paint
- Practice hammering nails into a plank of wood
- Organize the books on your shelf into a rainbow of colors
- String up a sheet tent in the backyard
- Find three toys to give to charity
- Using Lego characters or other small toys, make a stop motion movie (download the app Stop Motion to your phone or iPad)
- Organize your Lego and then have a building challenge. Who can build the best house, hotel or shop?
- Write notes of love, compliments or doodles and hide them around the house for family to find
- Do a marshmallow toothpick engineering challenge
- Create a “God’s eye” weaving using sticks and wool
- Build a teepee fairy house
- Try shadow drawing, leaf rubbings, painting bark or stones
- Build a bug hotel
- Try leaf threading and make a nature chandelier
- Use a mirror to draw a self portrait
- Create an Alfoil river in the garden and float things down it
- Learn to braid hair
- Create an obstacle course
- Build a fort using the couch and every cushion/pillow you can find
- Thread pasta into jewelry
- Make 3D paper rainbows
- Make your own bubble blower
- Put goggles and swimmers on and swim in the bath
- Go through your board/card games and challenge yourself to play them all. Design your own game
- Make greeting cards for the stationery cupboard to be used for birthdays and other occasions
- Paint a family portrait to be framed and hung
- Choose a picture book each and read aloud to each other in the biggest bed in your house
- Have a handball tournament
- Write a short story or poem that includes a dog, an umbrella and some sushi
- Find 10 different shaped leaves in the garden
- Create a paper crown for a member of your family and decorate it
- Make a paper chain to hang up in the dining room
- Try the traveling water experiment
- Fill a small spray bottle with water and aromatherapy oil and then spray and wipe the house
- Fold paper and cut out paper snowflakes
- Make pom-poms out of wool
- Play drawing games like Simon Says drawing
- Put on a puppet show using toys behind the couch
- Make DIY rain clouds in a jar
- Do the magic milk experiment
- Create a sensory shaker bottle using an old bottle, glitter and water (and whatever else you’d like to put in there!)
- Outdoor games like egg and spoon race, tag team races, three legged races, or play stuck in the mud
- Fold paper planes and see how far they will fly
- Build the highest block tower you can
- Learn how to bake bread
- Make a Lego zip line
- Keep a balloon in the air as long as possible
- Build a house with a deck of cards
- String up the Christmas lights in your living room
- Play cinema – make tickets, popcorn, give your guests a rug and watch a movie together
- Play hotels using your bedrooms as ‘hotel rooms’ or restaurants by setting up the dining room like a restaurant with menus (or hospitals, vets, banks, etc)
- Make up a workout and do it together (eg: 25 star jumps, 20 squats, 15 crunches, hop like a bunny around the lounge room, frog leap your partner)
- Choose an inspirational quote and create a poster for your room
- Change the bedsheets and build a sheet city in your bedroom before they get washed!
- Press flowers within a few heavy books
- Play the gummy bear game (using dice and 5 gummies each. Roll a 1 you eat one in your pile, a 2 you pass one bear to your left, a 3 you pass to your right, a 4 you keep it, a 5 you eat it, a 6 you keep it – keep playing till the gummies are gone!)
- Make sidewalk paint
- Make a magic potion using aromatherapy oils, glitter, water, petals
- Take some garden clippings and see which ones you can get to grow roots for replanting
- Use masking tape to make a race track. Race matchbox cars. Or use the inside of your bathtub as a ramp for racing
- Listen to a kid’s podcast or audio book. Podcast suggestions:
- Brains On
- Wow In The World
- Circle Round
- Little Green Pod
- Good Night Stories for Rebel Girls
- Fierce Girls
- Story Pirates
- But Why?
- With some old clothes, cut and create clothes for your toys
- Take everyone’s height measurement on a door frame
- Using butchers paper, trace a partner’s whole body. Now try to include as many body parts and organs as you can
- Give someone a back, foot or head massage
- Try sharpie tie dye using a sharpie and rubbing alcohol
- Take some artistic photos in black and white. Play around with filters and see what you can create. You could use a phone or learn how to use the proper camera (if you have one)
- Water play – buckets, scoopers, whisk, pouring jugs, straws, bubbles!
- Have a picnic lunch outside. Take books and toys with you
- Sort through all your crafts and art supplies. See if something inspires you. Organize and sharpen all your pencils and test all your markers
- Make a bottle rocket
- Make rainbow paper
- Make a stained glass window using clear contact & cellophane
- Make a marble run
- Paint a stick gnome
- Make a rainbow stick
- Jump rope – can you get to 100 without stopping?
- Take apart an old appliance. Can you put it back together?
- Research your family tree – see how far back you can go
- Make a time capsule of this time to be opened in 10 years
- Get swimmers on and wash the car or your bike!
- Set up camp in the garden and play inside the tent
- Write a letter to a friend, relative or teacher to mail
- Lie on a rug in the garden and spot cloud shapes. Make up a story about what you see.
- Work together to a family emblem, motto or song. Include elements that are important to you and your family
- Learn to finger knit, french knit or braid wool into friendship bracelets
- Sketch your dream red carpet look!
- Try Michelangelo drawing under the table
- Make a pretty lantern using an old jar, tissue paper and glue
- Make an infinite paper flipper!
- Make frozen dinosaur eggs (or you could use fairies, or Ooshies, etc)
- Make a paper cut out family
- Make a paper plate whale
- Try dying some old plain fabric using natural dyes
- Do a chalk photo shoot
- Interview the members of your family
- Make a popsicle stick catapult
- Can you draw or paint with your feet?
- Do a Yoga class together
Shopping list for craft activities
Play-doh
- Cream of tartar
- Table salt
- All purpose flour
- Food colourings
- Vegetable oil
General craft supplies
- Chalk
- Shaving cream
- Food coloring
- Paper – colored and white
- Air-dry clay
- Glitter
- Cornstarch
- Mini marshmallows
- Toothpicks
- Wool
- Acrylic paints
- Watercolour paints
- Crayons
- Shaving cream
- Balloons
- Sharpie
- Rubbing alcohol
- Butchers paper or a large paper table cloth
- Baking soda
- Vinegar
- Duct tape or Masking tape
- An empty plastic bottle
- Black paper
- Clear nail polish
- Tissue paper
- PVA glue
- An old jar
- Sticky tape
- Marbles
- Popsicle sticks