Many communities regularly have events that are free to attend. In my area, this includes concerts in the park (in the summer, not now, of course), holiday celebrations and carnivals.

Some of these can add up if you do spend money at them, especially the carnivals. Rides are generally not free, after all! But many of the events in my area offer free crafts for the kids to do as well as free music to listen to.

Hey, they can’t all be my ideas. Have each of the kids and the parents take turns picking a free or cheap activity to do as a family. Set up some rules, and encourage some creativity. You never know what people will come up with.

No, not just fun this time. It’s practical and a great lesson for the kids.

Before Christmas is my usual favorite time, but cleaning out the closets, toy boxes and so forth to find things you should give to charity can be done at any time of the year. The decluttering feels great, and even younger children can be encouraged to understand what a good thing they’re doing to encourage their enthusiasm.

This can be hard, as many younger children really hate to give up anything, even clothes that don’t fit and toys they ignore. But it’s such a wonderful lesson for them too!

Talk to the kids about why you want to send these things to whichever charity you support. Point out how much easier it will be to find the things they really do enjoy. Find that button that you can push to really get your child interested.

Running low on fun family activity ideas? Get a book from the library with ideas. It could be crafts, cooking, just something to get your creativity going. With luck you’ll even have the basic supplies at home.

The best part about checking out craft and activity books at the library is that you don’t have to worry about outgrowing something you’ve paid for. Just keep changing as interests change.

How’s the weather outside? Have you been taking advantage of winter weather with your family?

Being in southern California, mud pies is all we get to do unless we want to take the time to drive up to the mountains for whatever snow is available. Lucky us (I think?), mud is something that appears in quantity in our back yard with the rain, and one section takes a really long time to dry.

Whether you have snow or mud, odds are the kids will love playing in it. And if it’s right in your yard or neighborhood, it’s very easy to get to.