Things To Do While Staying Home

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My mom has stayed home for a couple of days now and is already saying “I’m bored!”. I imagine that with so many people staying home, there are a lot of people saying that and wondering: what are fun things to do at home?

One result of my illness is that I have spent A LOT of time at home for years now. I’ve been joking that I was ahead of the social distancing curve. Here is my list of things to do when bored at home.

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Work/School

Let’s start with the obvious. A lot of people are going to be doing work or school from home. This means that you will still have a full day of things to do.

For more information on how to succeed in an online course, check out this blog post.

Reading

I love reading! I think it is a great hobby! This could also be a great time to start a reading challenge.

While you are at home, spend some time reading. Start on those books that you have laying around the house and have always wanted to read. You can also use ebooks!

Or give audiobooks a try. You can check out your library’s website or find some good options on archive.org.

This is also a great thing to do at home with the kids. Have them pick their favorite books or revisit some old favorites. If you have kids in the house, take the time to read with them.

Right now, American Girl is offering free downloadable books. If you have kids that love American Girl then definitely take advantage of this! They are great!

Watch Something

There are so many great things you can watch.

You can binge-watch a great new series (or an old favorite). Or just catch up on those shows that you loved but didn’t keep up with.

Have a movie night! You can watch a cute rom-com, a scary movie, or some classics.

You could also watch some documentaries.

Get a great streaming service and watch away!

Play with the Kids

If you are at home with kids, you can get in some serious playtime.

I love playing make-believe with little kids. There is no telling what will happen next. We go from doctor to teacher to rockstar to hairstylist to pet store owner.

I also love playing Barbie or babydolls.

Or watch them play dress up and put on a show for you!

Put aside your to-do list and have some fun!

Play with your Pet(s)

Play Games

This is one of my favorite fun things to do at home with family!

There are so many great games.

Some of my favs include:

Euchre
Cribbage
Backgammon
Rummy
Monopoly
Pitch
2’s and 10’s
Sequence
Rummikub

There are also great games to play with kids.

Ones that I like to play with my nieces are:

Yahtzee
Chutes and Ladders
Candy Land
Memory
Sorry
Jenga

By Yourself:

Try Solitare, Sodoku, or crossword puzzles.

Video games

You can also play video games or games on your phone.

Do a puzzle

Now is a great time to start a big puzzle that you can put off to the side and work on here and there.

House Work

I know, I know, not as fun, but it’s useful.

Catch up on some of the chores you’ve been putting off.

Cleaning

Clean the house. Clean the garage. Clean out your purse! There is a pretty good guarantee that you can spend plenty of time doing this.

Organizing

Go through things and start organizing.

There are millions of things to organize at home. You can also sort through your files.

Plus, go through and clear out your phone and computer. Then back them up!

Exercise

Use this time to work out.

You can workout at home without fancy equipment. There are a ton of apps and workout videos online.

Use online courses and apps to learn something

There are great resources available to learn a subject for free.

Have you wanted to learn a language but haven’t known where to start? Download Duolingo on your phone! This app is great. I spend a few minutes ~~every day~~ (okay, I skip days, you got me), and I feel like I am actually learning! Easy and helpful!

My two favorite online resources are Khan Academy (they do have an app too but I always use it on my computer) and Crash Course (from John Green and his brother Hank). I love these!

Khan Academy has seriously saved me in several courses. The videos are super informative and easy to understand. I know that Khan Academy is primarily associated with Math (which they are great at!), but they also cover a bunch of other subjects such as different sciences, history, art history, grammar, and economics. I have watched videos in all these categories and loved them all (yes, I am a nerd and proud of it!).

I am newer to Crash Course. I haven’t used any of these for school, but I have watched some for fun and found them all interesting and entertaining (I particularly like any with John Green, but that might just be because I am a big fan!).

Sites to take free courses:

There are also educational sites where you can take courses in a wide variety of subjects.

These are:

These sites offer paid and free courses. Though I believe that edX is primarily free unless you want to earn the verified certificate. In the others, you can search for just the free ones, there are lots of options.

Here are two lists of courses that are available (when you click on the link for a specific course, it will take you to the site that offers the course):

You can find some interesting information on archive.org.

Make a Scrapbook

Collect your photos and make a scrapbook.

Or look at old photo albums.

Either way, include the whole family and have fun reminiscing (my nieces who are 4 and 7 LOVE looking at old photos)!

Start a Blog

Okay, this one is more time inclusive and more of a commitment. Blogging is much more work than you might think. But if you have been wanting to start a blog, consider taking the plunge and giving it a go!

Social Media

Take some time to clean up your social media accounts. Update everything.

You can also use social media to stay in touch with friends or family.

Be careful with social media though, especially now. Some people are panicked so try to limit the panic and negativity that you expose yourself to (be careful to not go down the rabbit hole). Also, I would not recommend using social media for your news.

Talk

You are at home with your loved ones, so take this chance to really talk with them! Listen to their stories and/or find out about your family history.

Here are some lists for fun questions to ask:

You can also video chat or talk on the phone to family or friends. Give them a call and check-in. It can be great to catch up!

You could also have a family meeting. This doesn’t only have to be for serious (or problematic) discussions. Have a meeting just for fun. When I was little my family would have family meetings where we all sat at the table and set a timer. When it was your turn, each person got to talk about whatever they wanted. Everyone had to listen! No interrupting or eye-rolls. As the little sister (a 9 and 13 year age gap) I absolutely loved having everyone’s full attention! Give it a try.

Finally, you could also discuss or debate. I know that people say to steer clear of topics such as politics or religions, but I think that it is very worthwhile to hear your family’s viewpoints. Plus if you are anything like my family (we are all big debaters), you can pass hours if you get a good conversation going!

Start an Ancestry Search

Start learning about your ancestry. You can ask your family or use a service (like ancestry.com).

Do Crafts

Are you into DIY? Or do you like to do crafts with your kids (or grandkids or nieces/nephews, etc..)?

If so, then take some time to do a craft!

If you aren’t particularly crafty or artistic, you can always look at art or decide to learn about art (check out the sites listed for “learn something” above).

Have a Picnic

You can mix it up by having a picnic either outdoor or indoors depending on the weather. Who doesn’t love a picnic?! I sure do!

Take Up a New Hobby

Is there a hobby that you have wanted to take up? Now is a perfect time!

Knit or crochet

Make Jewelry

Sew

Start a Garden

Music

Practice or learn an instrument.

Or make a new playlist to listen to!

Cooking

Try a new recipe

Bake Cookies

I hope this gives you an answer to “What to do when you’re bored?”! Start doing some of the things off this list! And share this list of things to do at home for fun with your friends!