Cheap Entertainment

Since I became a SAHM 3 months ago, it has been about 120 degrees outside every day.  ;)  Without cable television, I have had to get creative with entertaining my kids.  Coloring, building castles with wooden blocks, and playing baby dolls can get old after a while.  How do I reward my kids for being good?  I take them to Walmart.

Walmart is not only entertaining for adults - we have all seen the People of Walmart website - it is a poor man's Disneyland for toddlers.  My 2-year-old gets excited as soon as she hears the word.  Just the ride to Walmart is exciting, as my 2-year-old likes to point out waterfalls (fountains, sprinklers, etc.) and lighthouses (cellphone towers) along the way.  It seems we live in a very scenic part of the country...

Then she shouts "Walmart!" and the real fun begins.  The girls like the shopping carts with the double toddler seats so they can sit side-by-side and giggle at each other. 

We usually start out in the food section.  My girls can spend 20 minutes just watching the chickens cooking on the rotisserie.  We talk about all of the food we see.  Then we make the rounds to the big televisions, the fish and the bicycles, pointing out letters and numbers on the store's signage along the way.  If they behave themselves, they get to go through the Toy Museum Department.  The beauty of this is that they can look at the toys all they want, and even play with some, but we don't buy anything.  Santa Claus gets some good ideas, and Mama is able to pick up a few necessities along the way. 

Occasionally we shake up our routine and go to Lowes instead.  Our local home improvement store is full of fun things for toddlers, and the girls get to drive the race car shopping cart through the store.  Holiday yard decor, the outdoor garden center, the outdoor furniture and the ceiling fans are our favorite areas. 

It doesn't take much to entertain my kids.  Shopping is a real treat for them, and we usually run into nice old ladies along the way.  I hope they never lose that sense of wonder and appreciation for the simple things in life like the rotisserie machine.