Things to Do on Rainy Days

The spring weather has been colder and rainier than usual and my kids are bored on the weekends. Here are some ideas for things for the older kids to do on those cold wet and rainy days.

You can try putting a scrapbook together that can be sent to a relative like grandma. Don't make it seem like homework. Instead buy a small notebook and encourage the kids to tell her about the things in their lives through the expression of images. All you need for this are plenty of old magazines and the usual art supplies.

You can also try making own jigsaw puzzles. This is done by gluing magazine pictures to cardboard and then cutting them with a pair of scissors. The kids can then trade puzzles with each other and see if they can put them together. You can use these again and again if you store the puzzles in bags or boxes. They also make neat gifts for other kids if your kids get bored with them.

Making mini pizzas is also a good distraction on a rainy day. I use an English muffin or tortilla and then set out different toppings on the table. They then can create their own pizzas. Once they complete their creations it is only a minute or two under the broiler or in the pizza oven

In the same vein is cookie decorating. I just use freezer dough. I slice it up into coins and just give them icing, candies and all the tools they need to be creative with the cookie dough. Sometimes I roll it out in sheets as well.

Little kids get stressed like we do if they do not get to work out. This is why I sometimes recommend an exercise DVD. Get them doing some aerobics. This makes them less irritable and less maniacal if they have been acting out.

Use all of the empty boxes form a recycling bin to create some kind of miniature city or castle. You can also make something like a dollhouse out of a cardboard box. Let the kids draw on the boxes as well.

6. Use all the empty boxes from the recycling bin to create a city, or a castle, or cars for toys. The ideas are endless. Kids can draw on and decorate the boxes, and the mess is easily dealt with by recycling.

Sometimes when it's raining I just let my kids play outside anyway. I only do this if it is not too cold or if none of the kids or sick. They love playing in the rain. Afterwards we strip their clothes off and have hot baths. The good thing about this is that they eat all of their dinner and sleep really well all night.

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Why Crash Diets Won’t Work

Is your kid's bedwetting caused by ADD? As many children with ADD do suffer from sleep disorders, it is common for them to suffer from bed-wetting, also known as enurosis. Some of them sleep very deeply and may have difficulty waking up to go to the bathroom when their bladder is full. As most children with ADHD have difficulty with discipline and organization in the first place they may be less responsive to behavioral interventions. Disciplining an ADD bedwetter may make him wet the bed more which is definitely the case with my bedwetting nine year old.

Children who suffer from ADD, feel ashamed for many reasons in the first place so you should never shame them more by striking them or being harsh with them. Bedwetters and especially ADD bedwetters can't control themselves at all. This is the result of constant criticism and rejection from their peers. Some of them just may accept the bed-wetting as one more thing in their life that cannot be changed or controlled and not make the effort to change the situation.

Bedwetting is thought to be more common in boys than girls. At age five bedwetting affects 7% of boys and 3% of girls. By age ten, it affects 3% of boys and 2% of girls. By adolescence, 1% of ADD sufferers still suffer from bed-wetting

Doctors do not know an exact cause of nighttime bedwetting (also called enuresis) in ADD afflicted children, except that the area of the brain that controls impulses seems to be under active.

Enuresis may occur on its own in normal and ADD afflicted children because of slow neurological development, a small bladder and a tendency to produce too much urine at night. It has also been attributed to anxiety, a sudden change in routine and emotional trauma. Kids that have been shocked in some way bed wet more. Kids that move to a new school will also wet the bed. Even seeing a scary movie can cause it.

Before you jump to conclusions you should realize this first. A very small percentage of children might experience bed-wetting as the result of such physical problems as bladder infections, kidney infections, chronic nephritis, diabetes mellitus, lower spinal cord problems and congenital malformations of the urinary tract. Bedwetting is also associated with enlarged tonsils or adenoids. Get your kid checked out by a good doctor if you suspect it has a physical cause.

If your kid is a bedwetter get some help or medication for him or her. This can last into adult hood for whatever reason and cause your child years of humiliation. Make sure there is not something you can do for some of her to treat this type of symptom, which may or may not be a sign that your kid has ADD. Sadly, adults with ADD will wet the bed their entire life and there is very little they can do about it as they have no control over the part of the brain that controls urges.

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