On Saturday morning, we received word that our children’s school would close for the next two weeks to help prevent the spread of the Corona Virus. Like many Southern Californian parents, this news thrust me into a new role as a , “home school” mom. Before my sons ages 5 and 4 began preschool, I LOVED my time as a stay-at-home parent with them exploring Greater Los Angeles. Each day we’d visit children’s museums and botanical gardens. When they started school we became Disneyland Resort Passholders and look forward to our monthly visits. But with the efforts to contain the virus, most of our go-to activities are closed. To top it off, there are many rainy days ahead in the forecast. That’s why I wrote this blog post to serve as a guide showing us parents what we CAN do and a few places where we CAN still go.
INDOOR ACTIVITIES
- Cook or bake together. Make shamrock waffles on St. Patrick’s Day Tuesday or make pizza together using a store-bought pizza assembly kit.
- Camp inside with homemade tepees and forts
- Play board games. I can’t believe how much the kids enjoyed Monopoly. The game has not ended for three days now. We have it stationed in the front room so we can go back to it as we want. We are also waiting for Candyland and Sorry to be delivered from Amazon.
- Do Arts & Crafts
- Have a movie night
- Have a dance disco party
- Get organized: donate or throw away old toys and clothes.
Make a Schedule
There’s a COVID-19 mock schedule floating around the Internet providing an idea of how parents will get through the day. What I noticed is that there was no allotted time for cooking and cleaning LOL- so some aspects of it are unrealistic. It will be important for us parents to create a sense of normalcy with a schedule we keep each day that allows time for learning , play, snacks and breaths of fresh air. I would also encourage parents to include “naptime” or “quiet time” in their schedule each day or even a few times a day if needed so parents have time to catch their breath, make meals and straighten up.
Best Meal Prep Practices
I will be home with three kids under 5 years old for the next few weeks. I have found I am less stressed when I have meals prepared in advance. The challenge in having small children is finding the time to cook. This is why I suggested an implemented “naptime” or “quiet time” for older children that gives parents time to make meals. Here are my tips:
- Make enough for leftovers. Eating the same thing two days in a row isn’t that bad. It will save parents a lot of time cooking and cleaning if they decide to double their recipe so it stretches a little further.
- Freeze Meals. Like I said, I encourage parents to double or even tripple their recipes so they can eat the same thing for an extra day or two- or freeze a serving for next week. Some of my favorite meals to make in bulk and then freeze are soups, spaghetti casseroles and enchiladas.
- Use your Instapot. I can’t say enough about the Instapot. Go online there are so many recipes on how you can make meals in record time. I use my Instapot to save time on making collard greens, beans and soups. I even use it and delay the cooking start time so that my steel cut oats breakfast is ready for my family when I wake up and that’s one less thing to do.
Outdoor Places You CAN Still Visit
The news and health guidelines change daily. As for today, I wanted to highlight a few places you might consider visiting if you really need a breath of fresh air or to get out the house sparingly during the weeks of the quarantine. Please use caution, wash your hands, implement social distancing of having a space of 6 feet away from others and disinfect as needed on your outings. Most outdoor gardens have closed their shops and restaurants as they operate as an outdoor-only facility at this time. Here’s a list of them.
OUTDOOR GARDENS
1.You can still visit Descanso Gardens. Most of the other kinds of programming they offer including the children’s train is cancelled during the next several weeks but you still can see the blooms. Right now tulips are blooming and they are glorious.
2. You Can Still Visit Antelope Valley Poppy Reserve. Again, they are operating as an outdoor-only venue during this time. While there’s no superbloom this year- it is poppy season. You will also see an array of other wildflowers there as well.
3. You can still visit The Los Angeles County Arboretum. “Explore the 127 acres of plants, natural landscapes and wildlife. ” You’ll surely spot a peacock while there and that will be a bright spot in your day .
4. You Can Still Visit Huntington Gardens . “Explore living collections of orchids and camellias, a botanical conservatory, fragrant rose garden, childrens’s garden and more, in 16 themed gardens spread over 120 acres. “
5. You can still visit the Flowerfields in Carlsbad . If you’re up for a drive to Carlsbad you can still see the gorgeous ranunculas bloom. You might also visit the beach. I have taken my sons the last 3 years- looking forward to taking Brielle in a few weeks.
Other Outdoor Ideas
- Make a vegetable garden in your yard
- Go on a scenic walk or hike
- Fly a kite in the backyard
- Have a scavenger hunt in the backyard.
My hope is that with all of the social distancing we will receive a greater gift of family togetherness. I am hoping in the weeks to come our nation will return to a sense of normalcy and we can begin picking up on our regular adventures. Please get more ideas on FREE things to do with kids in Los Angeles as well as 10 other unique spring adventures for your family.
