Our boys are grown. Cheryl and I enjoy empty-nesting. I remember a few times when the boys were little that we were stuck at the house and couldn't go anywhere for a period of days.

There was an ice storm. Times when we had no electricity in our town. And there were a number of times one of the boys was too sick to get out of the house.

We had to improvise to find fun things to entertain the boys—and ourselves.

I have a suspicion there are many families in this scenario with the COVID-19 crisis. Who knows how long many will be stuck in their home?

I see my role as a pastor to help families. I spent some time brainstorming things families could do together—especially families with younger children who have a harder time entertaining themselves.

Here are 12 ideas you can do at home to hopefully pass the time and enjoy each other.

1. Get out all your old picture albums. Discuss when the pictures were taken and tell stories you remember about those times.
2. Build a life map for every member of the family. Include critical moments, spiritual markers, funny stories and hard times. This may especially be good for elementary students, but I think high school students could even enjoy it. This could be a great way for parents to share their legacy with children.
3. Play a FaceTime game with grandparents or elderly people in the church. You may have to coach them through it on the phone, but this would be a way to spend quality time with people you miss and love.
4. Write and make an original movie with your phone camera as a family. Dress in costumes. Share it online. Who knows? It might become a hit and go viral. It could also be entertainment for the rest of us waiting out this crisis.
5. Make a collage of things you want to do when this is over. Find pictures in old magazines or just draw them. Do you want to go to your favorite restaurant, to the beach or even on a cruise?
6. Spend time dreaming about the future. Where do you hope to travel someday? What would be a dream vacation? Let children share what they would want to do vocationally someday? Where would they want to live? What will their family be like?
7. Discuss your family's genealogy. Talk about relatives they may have never met. What are unique stories about your family? How is the father's family different than the mother's family?
8. Parents, tell stories from your childhood. Share some funny things you did. When is a time you got into trouble? Who was your favorite teacher? What was your favorite class and why? Share what you liked to play and talk about some of your best friends.
9. Trace the story of the Bible. Google if you need to, but cover the major highlights from the creation to the coming of Christ. (This one may require some research on your part, but it would be a learning experience for the whole family.)
10. Decorate the house for Christmas. Why not? You might be inside a while. You could watch Christmas movies and sing carols. Let it remind you of fun times to come.
11. Have an Easter egg hunt. It's almost Easter. If you don't have eggs—improvise. You could even just do a scavenger hunt. Hide items in the house and have fun looking for them. Be sure to share the real story of Easter.
12. Build a tent. You can build inside or, if weather allows, outside. Pretend you are camping out. Maybe even pack a picnic. Let everyone plan their own meal.

Bonus: Plant something outside and watch it grow over the next few weeks. Take pictures or a video every few days to compare the progress.

Let's get through this together! God bless you.

Ron Edmondson is a church and organizational leadership consultant. Most recently he was CEO of Leadership Network. Previously, he was a pastor, revitalizing two churches and planting two churches. He has also been a church leadership consultant.

For the original article, visit ronedmondson.com.

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