Monday I’m writing about the snow in our yard, Tuesday we’re still shivering all day, yesterday we were outside in short-sleeves basking in the sunshine and seventy-degree weather, and today? Back to chilly temperatures and rain.
North Carolina weather at this time of the year always seems a little crazy. The sudden spikes in temperature that we welcome with open arms are immediately followed by cold weather– often in the form of an ice storm or snowfall. The arrival of Spring is imminent, but for now we are still cooped up inside for another few days.
If you’re cooped up inside with kids who are, let’s just say, a little more fun than usual, I have two suggestions.
First, read this post on why my friend Anna is Februweary and let her perfect blend of humor and poignancy be a balm to your frayed nerves.
Second, try a new project at home with your kids. I KNOW, you’ve already done all the new things and you’re exhausted of Pinteresting ways to keep them from (literally) running into the walls. We have too. Though my kids are still running into the walls and making me wonder where they’re stashing the speed.
But even though hiding in the bathroom and hoping for the best is preferable at times, finding something constructive to do often helps to make the time pass faster and keeps us from getting on each other’s nerves.
Build a DIY Marble Run with stuff you already have at home!
Marbles are magic toys in our house. They are only rarely taken out which always keeps them exciting. Note, they are rarely taken out because they are noisy and a little too enticing for babies who like to ingest.all.the.things, but they do have the remarkable power to keep my kids entertained for long stretches of time.
Coupled with wooden train tracks and blocks, playing with marbles gets even more fun (and dare I say, a good occasion for everyday learning?).
Make a track, planning for some trial and error, add bumpers/guard rails as needed, and send the marbles down. We also put bowls at the end to catch the marbles and predicted which bowl the would fall in.
After you play with one set up for a while, try changing up the track to see what kids of variations you can come up with.
If you don’t have train tracks at home, here are a few more marble run ideas with household items:
1. From craft sticks and a box top @ Frugal Fun for Boys
2. Out of plastic bottles @ Lizon.org
3. Using toilet paper rolls @ Powerful Mothering
How did you keep the marbles from flying off the track? We tried it and they flew right off. My daughter was so disappointed because she worked so hard. We’ve decided to try the pool noodle tracks next time.
We used some of the taller/larger blocks to act as buffers around the bottom and curves. It took some manuevering to figure out how to make it work, but that was part of the fun. ?
how cool is this!!!!
This post makes me wish we had kept a few of our wooden train tracks around. We gave them all away, although we still have plenty of wooden blocks in bins! Inspiring idea…thanks!
Thanks Julie!
I’m going tongue this with blocks and hot wheels car tracks!?