Saving Money on Entertainment

Here are some inexpensive or even free ideas to keep you and your family entertained. This is a great list to refer to if you are stuck hearing the words, "I'm bored" from one of your little ones.

Many of these ideas are appropriate for children, but some of these ideas are more appropriate for adults, but children may still participate with supervision. (Be aware of your child's abilities to determine if an activity may be a bit too advanced for him/her.) Even if an activity seems childish, do it anyhow. You'll be surprised at how much fun it can be.

Movies

Only go to matinee movies or discount movie theaters.
Borrow video and audio tapes, CD's, and DVD's from the library instead of buying them or renting them from the local video rental.
Have a movie night at home with homemade popcorn and treats.
Bring your own snacks to movies. (You might have to sneak them in if the theater doesn't allow them.)

Arts and Crafts

Have a craft day, and do nothing but crafts all day.
Create an artistic masterpiece on the sidewalk using chalk.
Press flowers.
Make homemade play-dough.
Gather a bunch of collage materials to keep on-hand in a collage box. Use the items to make collages or decorate other craft projects.
Make your own bookmarks.
Draw, color, paint, etc.
Sculpt something out of clay.
Make friendship bracelets.
Learn origami.
Practice face painting.
Make paper airplanes.
Clip out pictures from old magazines and make a collage.
Make pet rocks.
Paint plaster sculptures.
Make clothes for your dolls and stuffed animals.
Decorate plain t-shirts with fabric paint, buttons, patches, etc.
Make jewelry out of noodles.
Make a picture by pasting pasta and beans to a heavy piece of paper.
Make homemade gifts and cards.
Recycle trash (e.g. coffee cans, toilet paper tubes, milk jugs, etc.) by turning it into a craft (piggy bank, coffee can stilts, etc.).
Make crazy food sculptures then eat them.
Build a bird's nest out of sticks, grass, and mud.
Build sandcastles and sculptures out of sand.

Sports

Invest in a comfortable bike and go for a bike ride. (Mountain biking is especially popular.)
Get out the roller skates. (Don't forget about safety pads and helmets.)
Buy a basket ball and learn several basket ball games.
Play in a pool. (Try to find a friend who has one or go to an inexpensive public pool.)
Play baseball or catch.
Make an obstacle course.
Have your own mini-Olympics by competing at different activities.
Play tennis at a local park.
Play badminton or volleyball. The equipment (including the net) are usually pretty inexpensive.
Play Frisbee games.
Play blanket volleyball.
Play water balloon toss using towels to throw and catch the balloons.
Play dodge ball.
Play soccer.
Play kickball.
Learn new ways to jump rope.
Try cross country skiing. (No lift tickets necessary.)
Go sledding.
Go ice skating.
Spend an afternoon bowling.
Go swimming at a public pool or at a friend's house if you don't have a pool.
Go hiking.
Learn to rock climb. (Requires proper equipment and instruction costs initially, but once you get settled in, it's often completely free.)
Take up kayaking. (Requires proper equipment and instruction costs initially, but is usually free after you get then hang of it.)

Events

Check our churches, school, local community centers, parks, etc. for free concerts, lectures, classes, shows, etc.
Have a picnic.
Have a BBQ party.
Throw a party for your pets.
Attend the county fair. (Set a budget first, or you'll spend away your entire savings.)
Attend free or inexpensive firework shows. (Fireworks can be seen from miles away, so sometimes you can save yourself a hassle and money by finding a location where you can legally hang out and enjoy the view.)

Places to Go

Go to museums.
Go to zoos.
Check out veteran memorials.
Go to the mall.
Visit the pet store or animal shelter.
Go to the park.
Go to an orchard or berry farm and pick your own fruit. (Make sure that you do this where they actually allow you to do this for a small fee and not at some random field.)
Go to a state or national park.
Go to the beach.
Go to a lake.
Go to a river.
Visit a farm where you can watch or even pet the animals.
Take your kids to an indoor play facility at a restaurant (such as McDonalds).

Games

Collect board games and have a family game night.
Buy a jigsaw puzzle from a thrift store and put it together as a family.
Look online for free crossword puzzles, word searches, brain teasers, etc.
Invest in a deck of cards and learn several new card games.
Play marbles.
Play hopscotch.
Play jacks.
Play charades.
Play tag.
Play hide-and-seek.

Imagination

Build a fort in the bedroom or backyard.
Make a tent using blankets and sheets.
Have a tea party with all of your stuffed animals.
Get dressed up and have a fashion show.
Play in Halloween costumes even if it isn't Halloween.
Play store using a calculator as a register, a notepad for receipts, homemade play money, and packaged items from the pantry. You can even make a scanner out of a piece of plastic, a broken notebook cover, or even a piece of paper with lines drawn on it.
Play restaurant. Make menus. Serve peanut butter and jelly finger sandwiches as appetizers.
Create a model city out of blocks and drive around it in toy cars (such as Hot-Wheels).
Make a play kitchen using cardboard or old furniture.
Use old broken appliances, such as telephones and radios, to play house.
Watch the clouds move. Look for pictures in the shapes of the clouds and have a contest to see who can find the craziest picture or the most pictures.
Go on a treasure hunt. (Make a treasure map or hide hints around the house or yard. To make a secret treasure map, paint the map using lemon juice, and the treasure hunters must put it under a warm light bulb to watch the map appear.)
Have your own carnival. Make booths out of cardboard boxes and play carnival games.
Go camping indoors.
Build something with blocks, Legos, etc.
Play in a sandbox.

Performance

Put on a play.
Teach your pets a new trick.
Have your own circus show. (Use your pet's new tricks or showing off unusual talents.)
Teach yourself magic and have a magic show.
Have a puppet show. (Use the puppets you made during one of your arts and craft days.)
Learn to play an instrument or sing and put on a concert.
Have a poetry reading.

Hobbies

Take up gardening. (Container gardening, vegetable gardening, fruit gardening, flower gardening, landscaping, etc.)
Learn to cook gourmet foods, breads, desserts, etc.
Start collecting post cards, stamps, coins, etc. and put them in a display.
Convert all of your boring photo albums into scrapbooks.
Learn to knit, crochet, needlepoint, or sew.
Take up bird watching.
Become an armature photographer.
Learn to whittle.
Take up woodworking.
Try fishing.

Literature

Make a family newsletter. (Include photos, information about the family, movie reviews, recipes, etc. and send copies to all of your relatives and friends.)
Write a story.
Write poetry.
Make a list of books you want to read and read them.
Make audio books by recording your voice into a tape recorder while you read books aloud. (Give your audio books to small children along with a copy of the book as a gift or listen to them on car trips.)
Write to a pen-pal.
Borrow magazines from the library instead of subscribing.
Write in a journal.
Download free books from the Internet.
Make your own comic books. (Draw your own pictures or cut them out from magazines.)
Start a book club.
Read a story to someone else.

Exploring and Learning

Inspect common items around the house and yard with a magnifying glass.
Look at bugs, flakes of skin, cloth fibers, plants, etc. under a microscope.
Start a nature collection. Collect bugs, different types of plants, seeds, rocks, soils, feathers, etc. (Don't kill the animals/bugs just take pictures of them.)
Use binoculars to look at distant hills. (Don't look in your neighbor's windows.)
Use a telescope to view the stars and planets.
Try to locate all of the constellations and planets.
Feed the birds, squirrels, ants, etc.
Learn bird calls and try to imitate them.
Check out some science project books from the library or find experiment ideas on the Internet and try them.

Just Because

Blow bubbles. (You can even make your own bubble solution. Test out different recipes to find out which works best.)
Run through the sprinkler.
Have a water gun or water balloon fight.
Have a day/night of beauty. Give each other (or yourself) facials, manicures, pedicures, new hairstyles, make-overs, etc.
Have a scavenger hunt.
Feed the birds. (For a change of pace, try feeding the birds at parks and ponds where it is allowed.)

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