Thursday, August 5, 2010

Keeping Cool When It's Hot Out

It has been hot hot hot here lately. We are big on going outside and making sure that Doodlebug spends lots of time in nature, but it's been too dang hot lately. I really don't want her to spend all day sitting in front of the TV. So I thought I'd compile a list of ways to keep cool when it's super duper hot out (I'm talking 110 degrees kind of hot).

~Go out early. I don't worry about the chores or anything else until we've had some outside time. We have breakfast and then head straight out to take advantage of the cool time.

~Stretch your time with water. It starts getting warm and we fill the baby pool. I can sit with my feet in the pool and relax while Doodlebug plays, and she can stay outside longer. (Don't forget to water your plants with it when you're done!)

When it's time to come inside:

~Bring out the "special" toys. You know? The electronic ones you hide because you don't want to hear them. Sometimes this helps us to get by without the TV. We also rotate our toys, so now is a good time rotate some new toys out of storage.

~Get out of the house. Go to the library, the children's museum, etc. I'm sure you can come up with a list of places in your town. Just go somewhere with air conditioning.

~Go somewhere novel. And I mean in the house this time. For us this means opening up the guestroom for play. It's a whole new world for her to explore.

~Play with them. Rather than trying to accomplish a bunch of stuff, why not take a break and enjoy your kiddos? Build a fort with pillows and blankets, play with blocks, have a tickle fight... anything to enjoy each other and keep them happy.

How do you keep your kids happy when it's too hot out to play?

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