• The Good Life
    • Parenting
    • Clean & Tidy
    • Motivational Monday
  • Healthy Eats
    • Healthy Life
  • Conversations
  • Our Favorites
    • What’s Working Wednesday
    • Friday Favorites
    • Guest Post
  • Resources
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • Pinterest
    • Twitter

Mommy Convos

What to Do When Your Kids are Sick: 11 great ideas!

in Parenting, What's Working Wednesday on 04/10/16

Have you ever been stuck at home for over a week ’cause your kids are sick? Stinks, right? Yeah, that was us last September, for ten long days! What do you do to keep from going cray cray? I’ve compiled a list of fun ideas to make the best of your time home-bound with your kids, as well as my favorite ways to fight off infections. Here’s my story I wrote up just as we were getting over our ten-day wrath of “the sickies”:

It all started when I dropped the kids off at the gym daycare for a Zumba class, and then it hit… My two year-old got a croup-y cough, followed by a bad cough for my four year-old. Then, regardless of my efforts to save the baby from the sickness, she eventually developed symptoms which led to an ear infection. Three trips to the pediatrician later, we finally hit the lovely lingering stage 🙂 For three social girls and one social momma- ten days is LONG!

Since we wanted to avoid the spread of germs, here’s what we did to keep from going loco!
What to Do When Your Kids are Sick: 11 great ideas!
1) Borrowed a bunch of games from a family member.

Huge win! That made such a difference to be able to try some new things and have some fun! Here’s my quick review of all the ones we borrowed:

The Frozen Spot It game was fun enough that I ended up ordering our own on Amazon. I’d compete with Josh at the same time the girls raced each other. Amazon says it’s discontinued (crazy?!) , but it’s still in stock now!

Blokus was actually really fun for a date night in! That wins the prize for the most fun for mom and dad. *Don’t tell my husband I bought it for us Christmas… and I wish we could open it already!!!

Mighty Mind was totally great for my  four-year-old. It kept her busy for a long stretch. Good, classic brain game.

Feed the Kitty was cute to see my girls easily catch on. It’s a simple game you can play as long as you like.

***Fibber and Yahtzee Jr. we never got around to trying, but Fibber is like B.S. for kids and my nieces and nephews think it’s super fun 🙂 I hear Yahtzee is a fave!

2) Chalk silhouettes on the back patio:

I’m so thankful the weather was pleasant! I really liked having an extra excuse to just lay down while the girls did mine :

What to Do When Your Kids are Sick: 11 great ideas! What to Do When Your Kids are Sick: 11 great ideas!

What to Do When Your Kids are Sick: 11 great ideas!

3) Marble Tower/ Toy Rotation

I loved this as a kid! A Marble Tower is a great toy to keep for special occasions, or a quiet time closet. Toy rotation comes in especially handy when kids are sick: keep a few “batches” of toys. Some are in the toy box, and some are tucked away. Bring out new batches as needed!

4) Fed the ducks at our local pond.

It felt so good to get out of the house, and there was no one else around to poison with our contagious germs!

The rest of the activities we did were pretty ordinary: taking silly selfies, watching movies, and cooking together… So- I am sharing my list for “next time” below: (I found these fun ideas from momtastic!)

5) Washing ______:

Once you’re done cooking, turn the facet on just enough to trickle and let them stand at the sink “washing” the dishes along with tupperware, cups, large utensils and etc.  Giving baby dolls or cars a bath can be fun when kids are sick too!

6) Origami: great low key activity for older kids.

Check out her paper crane tutorial to get started, and google “origami” for more ideas.

7) Reading books: Novelty is your friend here.

Once the kids are in bed and your spouse is home, head to the library and stock up on some new-to-them reads.  Stories about being sick may especially help little ones feel better.  Llama, Llama Home with Mama is one of my favorites.

8) Turn-taking picture drawing:

Sit (or better, lay) on the couch together and take turns making a collaborative drawing.  Begin by drawing a shape, then pass the paper and crayon to one of your children to make their contribution.  Keep passing and drawing in a circle until your creation is complete. This is also fun to follow the same idea, but just telling a story! Cuddle up by the fire, (draw one if you don’t have a fireplace!) and take turns adding to the story.

Read more: 10 At-Home Activities for Sick Kids

These last 3 ideas are my favorite ways to help fight infection:

What to Do When Your Kids are Sick: 11 great ideas!

9) Garlic Ear oil.

If you have a child that gets ear infections often, I can’t recommend this enough! My doctor recommended this oil to help soothe and fight infections in the ear and it seriously works! I was hesitant to buy something that I’d have to drop in my baby’s ear- that just seemed like it could make things worse. But seriously, my daughter loves it- she will calm right down and hold still so I can put it in for her. She often shows the telltale signs of ear infection- irritable when she lies down, swatting at her ears, etc; but I put a drop in each ear once or twice a day if I’m suspecting an infection and it’s ALWAYS cleared up on it’s own since I’ve learned how to use it!

10) Sanitizing.
sick kids

I usually like our bodies to build up immunity to germs. But, when we’re really trying to get rid of a bug we have, I keep a bottle of sanitizer out: made pretti-er with scrapbook paper and packing tape! I also will pullout those oh-so-convenient disposable disinfecting wipes, and these babyganics wipes are way better alternative to the main-stream brnads. No toxins in them! They get an A on the EWG rating, when Clorox and Lysol both earned a D. I found out about how cool they are from the One Hollistic Home Facebook Group and they have some added tips on disinfecting that I thought were great!

11)  On-guard going 24/7.

sick kids

On-Guard is a blend of essential oils that is targeted to fight infections, and it smells like a fresh, fall day! I have loved this diffuser so much!

Mommy Convos is actually going to host a Facebook Live video this Thursday, Oct  6 at 8pm with some friends at The Daily Essential Co, and they are going to talk more about how essential oils can help with better health! We hope you can join us!

About Jennica

Jennica is a mom to four energetic girls, and wife to her love-at-second-sight husband. She ran a cleaning business for ten years, and would love to see the day that her entire house could be clean-- all at the same time. Until then, you’re likely to find her folding big loads of laundry while listening to inspiring podcasts, or chasing her little girls down the street!

Restored 316 Feminine Wordpress Theme Design using the Genesis Framework

Sign up to get our latest printables for FREE!

« #1 Hack for the Newborn Blowout
Finn + Emma: a Friday Favorite Review »

Trackbacks

  1. Cut Packing Time and Stress in HALF with These 5 Tips - Mommy Convos says:
    June 14, 2017 at 8:48 am

    […] Garlic Oil– This stops ear infections in their tracks. This has literally saved us about ten trips to the doctor to get an antibiotic for my youngest daughter. I wrote about it here. […]

  2. How to Create a Delightful Sunday as a Mother: Problems and Solutions - Mommy Convos says:
    March 13, 2018 at 11:00 pm

    […] Play board games together regularly on Sunday. Need some ideas? Mommy Convos’ favorite games are mentioned in these posts: here, here, and here! […]

So glad you found us!

Hi there! We are Morgan & Tiffaynee and we are the mommies behind Mommy Convos. It is our mission to inspire mothers to build and strengthen their family relationships. We believe mothers can change the world, and that happens - one conversation at a time.

Join the convo!

Don't miss out on our latest insider freebies!

Instagram

FOLLOW ON INSTAGRAM

Popular Posts

How to Get What You Want from Mother’s Day- 2021 Edition

childbirth, postpartum depression, how to identify PPD and PPA, difficult pregnancy and childbirth, traumatic childbirth, childbirth, how to understand what postpartum depression looks like

How a Difficult Childbirth can Surrender your Mental and Emotional Health

5 reasons to give adventures instead of gifts this year

Planning Christmas Like a Minimalist

Join Us on Instagram

FOLLOW ON INSTAGRAM
Daily Boutique Deals

© Mommy Convos, LLC and mommyconvos.com, 2017.
Unauthorized use and/or duplication of this material without express and written permission is strictly prohibited.

Copyright © 2023 · glam theme by Restored 316

Copyright © 2023 · Glam Theme on Genesis Framework · WordPress · Log in

  • Contact Us
  • Terms of Use
  • About Us