Two fine days and a thunderstorm.

That’s how the British summer has been described in the past, and if this year is anything to go by I’d say it’s true.

I don’t know about you but we seem to have had more rain than sun in our neck of the woods, which poses something of a problem when you’ve got kids to entertain.

The trouble is I hate crafting, and I also work from home with the kids so rainy day activities ideally need to be something we can do at home or involve wi-fi so I can carry on working too.

With that in mind today I’m bringing you 10 great rainy day activities for kids that don’t involve the dreaded soft play and don’t involve your undivided attention either.

10 great rainy day activities for kids

1. Make a home cinema. Draw the curtains, put the popcorn in the microwave and settle them down on the sofa with their favourite film. HMV’s Blu-ray store has absolutely everything you can think of from old classics to new releases. If the weather’s really miserable you can always tuck them under a duvet for extra cosiness.

2. Build a den. All you need is sofa cushions and a few sheets from the airing cupboard and bingo: hours of fun!

3. Open a shop. It’s amazing how a piece of paper with the words ‘so and so’s shop’ printed on will fire their imagination. The chances are you’ve got a toy cash register and food somewhere in the toy mountain, and I give them real money to play with for added authenticity.

4. Play online games. There are all sorts of online games to choose from and even better they’re free, such like Solitaire which is not only a fun card game, but educational at the same time too.

5. Write thank you cards. We always seem to have thank you cards that need writing, and BB always runs out of patience if we try and do them all in one hit. So if you do a bit here and a bit there when it’s raining it doesn’t seem like such a massive job.

6. Open the plastics cupboard. What is it about the plastics cupboard that kids love so much? Mine will play with the tubs and lids for absolutely ages – admittedly you’ve got to put it all away again afterwards, but it’s a chance to tidy the cupboard up at the same time and put it all back neatly. So you’re killing two birds with one stone.

7. Visit a garden centre. It’s probably yet another sign I’m turning into my mother but you can’t beat a trip to a garden centre. And if it’s got a pet section and a coffee shop then you can string this one out for the whole day – the fish tanks alone will keep them occupied for ages (I do love a pet shop – it’s among my top 10 free things to do with kids).

8. Go swimming. You might think swimming is a faff but once you’ve got the contents of the swimming bag licked it needn’t be a big drama. Other than wet towels and costumes I don’t even unpack ours after each trip so it’s ready for next time, and the chances are they’ll be knackered afterwards so you might get a bit of peace to do whatever it is you need to do.

9. Baking. There’s nothing like the smell of something nice emanating from the oven on a wet day. Like swimming, baking needn’t be a faff as long as you contain the mess – if I’m baking with the kids I buy those pre-mixed cake kits so all you need to do is add egg and water instead of weighing everything out and spilling things everywhere.

10. Puddle jumping. They say there’s no such thing as bad weather, just inappropriate clothing, so failing all that if you’re going stir crazy and you’ve just got to get out then this one’s for you. Get your raincoats on, wellies out and you’re all set!

How do you entertain the troops in wet weather? Do you have any special activities they love? I’d love to hear your hints and tips!

This is a collaborative post.

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