For anyone who is at their cabin this week in British Columbia, today’s blog is dedicate to you. It is soooo not fair!. Here in B.C., we have gone from the hottest week on record, last week, to the wettest week on record, this week. And with rain forecasted for the next five days, we are if for a very soggy stretch. Kid’s Activities normally appear on the Saturday blog, but I have put together some ideas that will hopefully keep you and your children from going stir-crazy.

Movies are always a favourite. Judging by the crowds at today’s matinee of Ratatouille, a story about a rat who escapes the sewers of Paris to become a French chef, I predict this will be the sleeper hit of the summer. This is a great family movie with a funny storyline and Pixar’s amazing animation. I haven’t enjoyed a kids flick this much since Finding Nemo.

Board games are another great way to have fun and beat your kids so to speak. There are the old favourites: Monopoly, UNO, and Scrabble, but Sarah, from Kids Books, Vancouver, B.C., recommends checking out these:

• Rush Hour made by Binary Arts. This is a board game/puzzle/toy. It’s small and portable making it great for cart trips.
• Frog Juice by Gamewright, is a card game suitable for kids 8 and up.
• Slamwich and Rat-a-Tat-Cat, both made by Gamewright are also card games recommended for children age six and up.
• Labyrinth by Ravenburger, is one of Sarah’s personal favourite. This game is not only good for kids, but the adults like to play it once the younger folks have gone to bed.

There is nothing better than curling up with a good book on a rainy or sunny day. Below are some of Kids Books‘ best sellers and staff favourites.

Ages 5 - 7 Picture Books

1. Skippyjon Jones in the Doghouse by Judy Schachnew (this author has written a whole series of Skippyjon books)
2. Stanley’s Party by Linda Bailey and Bill Slavin
3. Please Louise by Frieda Wishinsky and Marie-Louise Gay
4. Scaredy Squirrel by Melanie Watt
5. The Snail and the Whale by Julia Donaldson also by the same author, The Gruffalo

Easy Chapter Books - ages 6-8

1. Rainbow Magic series - popular for girls
2. Geronimo Stilton series
3. Frankie K. Stein series
4. Ghosthunters and the Totally Moldy Baroness by Cornelia Funke also a series book

Novels for ages 7-10

1. Bone #6: Old Cave by Jeff Smith
2. The Lightning Thief by Rick Riordan
3. Fairy Rescue by Gwyneth Rees
4. World According to Humphrey by Betty Birney
5. Edge Chronicles series by Paul Stewart and Chris Riddell

Here’s to staying sane, keeping dry and having fun this week.

Cheers,

Julie

This entry was posted on Wednesday, July 18th, 2007 at 8:00 am and is filed under Entertaining. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.