Ideas for Indoor Fun at Home

For an easy, no-prep toddler activity, I don't think it gets any better than blowing bubbles. Chasing and popping these magical floating spheres is the height of fun for little ones! It's an active, easy toddler activity you can do anytime, anywhere.

Give your toddler an old house painting brush you're ready to retire and set them up in the driveway with a container of water. They can dip the brush and "paint" designs all over the driveway, the sidewalk, or the outside of the house.

Playing with water is an awesome, time-honored sensory activity for toddlers and little kids. A water table is great when the weather is warm and the kids can splash outside, but if you are ok with a little mess, big bowls and plastic cups on the kitchen floor will do just as well. Lay out a big towel or two to try and contain the mess, but a change of clothes will probably be inevitable!

Play dress-up. Few things delight a child more than seeing grown-ups wearing a ridiculous variety of wigs, masks and accessories, so join in on the fun!

Doll houses are great for both boys and girls. It teaches them to be gentle as they try to set things up and play without knocking things over.

Placing letters on a letter board. I discovered this one by accident, but I love how it keeps my 4-year-old sitting quietly for long stretches of time while he tries to get the plastic letters to stay in my felt letter board.

This probably depends on the kid, but when my kids were little I would give them a task/goal such as "we can go to the park as soon as your shoes are on and I finish one quick chore" and then walk away to do my own chore somewhere close by, like emptying the dishwasher. I found that they would figure out how to do things for themselves when I wasn't standing over them and tempted to help or looking at the clock. Be sure to do this a looong time before you have to be out the door.

Dressing dolls, especially barbies. When my kids were really little this usually involved me sitting and playing/dressing dolls with them and then they gradually learned to do more and more on their own.

Sturdy stair guards at the top and bottom of the staircase are a must once baby starts moving around!

I discovered that a heavyweight hairband looped around both door handles was just as effective (if not more!) at keeping my cabinet doors shut than those cabinet latches made specifically for baby proofing. Plus, they were way easier (and less annoying) for me to take on and off, making it more likely that I'd always keep it on. This only works on certain handles, though, like pull bars and knobs.

I am not a fan of the plastic plug in outlet protectors. Thankfully, most of our outlets were not accessible to our young kids (who also never showed any interest in them), but the plugs were pretty easy to remove and then posed a choking hazard once they were loose. I much preferred the outlet covers that go over the entire outlet, as it was still easy for adults to use the outlet while keeping the opening covered from curious little hands.

If you have thick runner-type rugs for hallways or entryways, they can also serves as great padding for edges on shorter bookshelves, tables and fireplaces. Just put the rug on top like a tablecloth, and let it hang over the edges. Certain rugs work especially well for this, like those faux-fur ones that are super soft and fluffy.