Frugal Indoor Fun
By Nancy Twigg, Fri Dec 9th

Now that the weather is so cold, the kids can't go out and playfor long periods like they can in the summer. This means morehours to fill with fun indoor activities. Although thetemptation may be to entertain the family by spending money(going to the mall, renting movies, visiting a fast foodrestaurant or arcade), there are ways to keep the kids busywithout draining your pocketbook. Here is a list of indooractivity ideas that are all either completely free or cost verylittle.

* Spend an afternoon writing letters or making homemade cards tosend to out-of-state relatives. Let the kids make drawings,finger paint portraits, or collages to send to Grandma andGrandpa to adorn their refrigerator. * Help the kids make upskits or act out stories to perform for Dad when he gets homefrom work. Along those same lines, help the children puttogether a family talent show in which they sing, dance or domagic tricks. For added fun, use a camcorder to record theperformances to watch later. The children will love seeingthemselves on TV. * Pull out the teapot and teacups and hold anafternoon tea party. Along with your tea, serve fingersandwiches and cookies. If your children are too young for tea,serve heated lemonade or hot chocolate. * On a cold afternoon,spread a blanket on the den floor and have an indoor picnic. Eatthe same kinds of picnic foods you would in the summer. * Gocamping indoors. Pitch a tent in the living room and let thekids pretend that they are on a trip. Pull out thesleeping bags and they can take naps in the tent or even sleepthe whole night there.

Let them invite friends over for anindoor sleepover. * Get the whole family together towork a giant jigsaw puzzle together. Be sure to have plenty ofpopcorn on hand for snacking. * Provide the kids with fruits,vegetables and snack foods cut in a variety of shapes and sizes.Ask the kids to use the different shapes to create their ownedible artwork. The only rule is that they have to eat whateverthey put on their plates. Be sure to take pictures of theircreations before they eat them. * Almost all kids enjoy playingdress-up. Gather up all the outdated clothes, gaudy jewelry,weird hats and bright makeup you can find and let the kids gofor it! Be sure to take pictures. * Pull out those board gamesor card games. When's the last time the family enjoyed afriendly game of Scrabble or Monopoly? Turn off the TV and enjoysome family together time as you enjoy some friendlycompetition. * Speaking of cards, why not use those playingcards to build card houses? Compete to see who can build thetallest card condominium. * Rather than renting movies from thevideo store, borrow videos from friends. In return, offer tolend them any videos you own. Be sure to return them promptlywhen you're done.

About the author:Nancy Twigg is the editor of Counting the Cost, a free emailnewsletter about simple and frugal living(www.countingthecost.com/index1.htm). For more creativemoney-saving ideas, visit Nancy's newest website,www.CreativeFrugality.com