Bed sheets and blankets for indoor tents, or forts, on rainy days, was a favorite of my childhood.  The entertainment was in the improvising and building, not the net result.  Such activities prompt creativity and engineering skills.

KILL YOUR TV and disallow the use of video games!

This reminds me of an article I saw entitled, "how to raise a creative child."

My sister saw that, and replied, "how do you NOT raise a creative child?"

I thought they were pretty much naturally that way, left to their own devices.

My only daughter entertains herself so well with pretty much anything at her disposal.  That's normal, huh?

After moving with my young daughters to a part of the world where TV was pretty nonexistent, I was amazed at the games that local children made up—subsequently my daughters joined in. Given regular paper, construction paper, pencils and crayons /markers, the kids made up board games, card games and varieties of games that didn't fall into any category. Not only did the process of devising the game take time (and thought) but the design and drawing took hours; often the actual playing of the game happened the next day... They also played a lot of outdoor games with balls (like dodge ball) and devised their own 'new' games by slightly changing the rules to old ones.

I always like to just sit and watch kids use their imagination. Those little guys can make serious play things out of just about anything. Being out doors in the fresh air and sunshine seems to help them along and allow then to enjoy even more.

Good article from Dr. M

Good comments from fellow Mercolains, or Mercolites, as Katy B put it one time.

Oh boy, does this bring back memories.  Wow, I have not thought of this for mega years. 

One of the most memerable things we did when we were growing-up was ---

We put on theatrical shows.  Singing, dancing, poems, plays,and musical numbers.  We learned to work together and form a great team.  We learned to choreoghraph, build sets, sew, knit, write scrips advertise, work behind the sets, direct, produce and many other facets, pertaining to show business and the public.

We also had to read a lot in order to accomplish our goals.

Our shows were a success and we loved every moment of the full process, even when we did not agree. 

As far as the cost was concerned, we used what we already had, and asked our neighbors for materials that were throw aways.

Thank you Dr. Mercola for this very found memory.