Family Fun At Home: Do-It-Yourself Projects To Keep Kids And Parents Entertained
PITTSBURGH (KDKA) - So we are captive in our homes with the four walls closing in and nowhere to find separation, even from those we love.
So how do you bring down the heat on the pressure?
How about a little creativity?
Amanda Mushro is a mother of three little ones and a parenting expert who has turned her own experiences into help for other parents.
Mushro displayed a table full of do-it-yourself ideas and there in the middle of it all was something that looked like beer pong.
"We're gonna call this a jingle bell toss! Same idea, but definitely kid-friendly," Mushro said.
Using a small size cup, like a bathroom cup, she explained, "We just glue them onto a piece of foam board or poster board you can use the size of a cardboard box us some Christmas decorations, I have these little tiny Jingle bells, and the kids just toss them into the cups, and this is making your own family game night that's super inexpensive the things that you have around the house."
Putting no limits on their creativity Mushro says Gingerbread houses are a blast.
"Either grab one of the gingerbread kits," she said. "You just use what you have at home, which I absolutely love the idea of using what's in the house. I actually found some old Easter candy. I know it's awful but I still have some, you can grab something like gingerbread cookies, or graham crackers and they can be the base of your house, you can use something as simple as icing that you may have leftover in your pantry or you could just use regular glue, just to make sure that your kids, obviously aren't eating the candy once you're using glue, but I love the idea of letting them be creative and use things you already have at home to make their own food gingerbread masterpiece."
One of those many shipping boxes you've gotten can turn into a home movie projector.
Cut a hole in one end of the box the size of the largest magnifying glass you can find. Mount the magnifying glass on the inside of the box at the hole, find a movie on your phone or tablet, make sure the 'lock screen' is on, turn it over and up against the magnifying glass, and it projects on the wall.
WATCH: Family Games To Play While At Home
Mushro says board games are a blast but can get old.
She recommended one called "Incoherent Family" which has a stack of cards that one person draws at a time.
"That has a jibberish phrase on it and you read the phrase, over and over until someone guesses what it is, so this example is 'talk owned booze' Hey, and everybody sort of says it over and over again and it's actually 'Taco Tuesday', it will get everybody laughing and everyone in the family can play," Mushro explained.
A DIY gift Mushro has come up with a Hot Cocoa Snowman.
"It is so easy to make. Its just three small mason jars, (glue the tops of two to the bottoms of two others so they create a stack), and then you fill it up with everything that you need her hot cocoa, like a hot chocolate mix, maybe some mints and marshmallows, we decorated it to look like a snowman. It's a fun craft and an inexpensive gift that your kiddos can give to friends and family," she said.
A small plate, mini-marshmallows, and a straw can create a fun game for all.
Mushro explained: "fill the plate with marshmallows, then use the straw to blow them off the plate. So, if we time it and then you can see who can blow those marshmallows off faster, and then you've got yourself a winner."
Not to mention, clean up is easy - just eat the marshmallows.
For more creative ideas you can check out Amanda's website.
