Fight Spring Break Boredom

Spring Break is here and while many local residents are packing their swimsuits and sunscreens for family trips to tropical locations, there are those, too (yours truly) who are staying put, preparing to tackle 7 days of no school, no sports- ok, less sports- and lots of predictable questions from the kids: Can I have a snack? How come we never get to go anywhere for Spring Break? What are we going to do all week? What’s for lunch? They want answers and they want them now!

This week, the kids are sure to be bored before they even roll out of bed in the morning. Lucky for them, I have spent lots of time researching fun activities to do in Simsbury and surrounding areas. I am a bit of a young-at-heart mom and I love activities that are equally engaging and fun for all 4 of us. I strive to find things that are so much fun that the kids (and I) willingly put our phones down for hours at a time! I know it sounds like a Herculean task: what could you possibly do that would be just as much fun for a 9-year-old as a 40-year-old and have kids happily keeping their phones tucked away for hours at a time? I am glad you asked.

Here are my tried-and-tested, fun family activities close to home. I assure you the snapchats and texts will go unanswered for an hour or two as you bond with your children without spending a fortune.

Storyteller’s Cottage
750 Hopmeadow Street Simsbury, CT
860-877-6099
https://www.storytellerscottage.com/

I cannot tell a lie, this may be my all-time, favorite spot in Simsbury. If you have not yet visited this beautiful Victorian home, turned literary Adventureland, you must do so. Go with the kids or go alone; it is worth a visit, even you just take a quick walk-through and breathe in the serenity of this charming escape. They have an amazing Harry Potter Room, an Alice in Wonderland Tea Room, and 3 Mystery Rooms that are fun and challenging for all ages. When the kids are bored, go right to the Storyteller’s Cottage calendar- chances are they will have a book reading, sing-a-long or board-game night planned that will be fun for the whole family!

One Friday, me and the kids attended a board game night that was held upstairs in the amazingly-cool, secret room that lives behind the massive book shelves. It was as if my family had transformed into the Cleavers; I couldn’t believe my own eyes-or ears. For an hour and half, we played together with a few staff members and my kids were at their absolute best: no fighting-or whining, or crying and at no point during our game-playing did anyone say, but that’s not fair!

Something about the ambience and the employees, who are kind and passionate about their jobs, had a very calming effect on all of us. It is hard to deny that this place was crafted from love, passion and ambition, and I sure hope it sticks around for a long, long, time.

It’s a Plaster Thing
14 Winthrop Street Tariffville, CT
860-651-4678
https://www.facebook.com/itsaplasterthing/

It feels like you are walking into your lifelong friend’s home when you enter this fun place. It’s a Plaster Thing offers all-the-fun of painting with absolutely none of the clean-up. I have been going here on and off for about 12 years, and I always leave thinking we must come here more often. Kids (and adults) choose one plaster item to paint to their liking. The facility provides brushes, aprons and paint at no additional cost, and the results are fantastic! Options of items to paint include kid-friendly characters, ballet shoes, Red Sox (and other sports) fanfare and even a large Elvis head. Everyone is sure to find one piece that screams paint me!

I personally can’t draw a straight line with a ruler, but I paint anyway and the results are actually kind of impressive. There is also something so soothing about sitting and painting – it sure slows down the pace of life. The best part of this adventure is that you can bring your artwork home the same day. Oh yeah- and the prices are insanely reasonable. We painted 5 items and paid $32.

Complexity Escape Room
2 Eastview Drive Farmington, CT
860-409-7009
https://complexityrooms.com/

We love escape rooms. Nothing says family memories like a little blood, sweat, laughter and tears. Complexity is great because it has puzzle rooms suitable for kids as young as 10-years-old. We tried the Pirate Ship room and our mission was to find the hidden treasure. All 4 of us were involved- we laughed, we cried (well, one of us did), we fought and we made up. I guess you could say it was like any other day in our house, but hey, this was a lot more fun.

Throw 4 unique and strong personalities into a room and tell them to solve a variety of complex puzzles in less than 60 minutes, and you’re sure to have lots of tension. But this was good tension; we left on a bit of a puzzle-high, and something about the experienced bonded us together in a weird puzzle-solving way. Complexity’s puzzle rooms have different themes and we are planning our trip back to experience the Mall-themed room very soon. Definitely worth a trip to Farmington; you can follow it up with a bite to eat at the nearby Wood-n-Tap.

Ron-A- Roll in Vernon, CT
85 S Frontage Road Vernon, CT
860-872-8400
http://www.ronaroll.com/

It is a bit of hike to get to there, but let me tell you it is so worth it! Walking into this roller rink brings you directly back to the 80s- the décor, the actual roller skates- yes, with four wheels and front stomper- and the DJ booth to boot. My kids are avid hockey players and have been known to rollerblade outside on occasion, but roller skates were a totally new concept to them, and boy, was it fun. We have been many times now, and all four of us skate for hours. There is a snack bar and rental skates available and the pricing is reasonable. The DJ hosts games like four corners and leads line-dances like the Cotton-Eyed-Joe! The kids love skating so much they don’t even seem to notice the arcade games in the lobby! We do, however, use our cell phones while there- they have an app that allows you to request music directly to the DJ, and requests that come in via the app go straight to the top of the request list!

Being pro-active is a very important part of beating boredom- so keep this list on you and be ready to answer the dreaded questions from your kids this week. When the whining starts at breakfast and they want to know exactly what it is you are going to do to entertain them, pull out this list and BAM- problem solved. Just remember to tell them no cell phones allowed- and whatever you do, do not mention anything about family bonding. It is much more likely to happen when they are unsuspecting.

What am I missing? Share your favorite family activities in the comments and together, we can and we will overcome this thing called boredom.