--- title: The House Fairy | Pam's Blog | Family Games description: Family Games | Pam's blogs reflect a celebration of life and encourage families to be organized just enough to be punctual, get enough rest, eat healthy, complete daily chores, get sunshine and exercise and enjoy each other. --- Hello, Friend[Access Your Account](https://www.housefairy.org/my-account) ### Happy Kids,  Happier Moms [![facebook](https://blog.housefairy.org/hs-fs/file-422096398-png/social_buttons/facebook.png "facebook")](http://www.facebook.com/therealhousefairy) [![twitter](https://blog.housefairy.org/hs-fs/file-426374790-png/social_buttons/twitter.png "twitter")](https://twitter.com/HouseFairyPam) [![pinterest](https://blog.housefairy.org/hs-fs/file-426359165-png/social_buttons/pinterest.png "pinterest")](http://www.pinterest.com/thehousefairy/) [![youtube](https://blog.housefairy.org/hs-fs/file-426364010-png/social_buttons/youtube.png "youtube")](http://www.youtube.com/user/MakeItFunVideo/featured) [The House Fairy](https://www.housefairy.org/) ## [Camp Grammy](https://blog.housefairy.org/camp-grammy) Posted by [Pam Young](https://blog.housefairy.org/author/pam-young) Jul 29, 2019 4:07:40 PM [![](https://blog.housefairy.org/hs-fs/hub/341571/file-1392416010.jpg) ](https://blog.housefairy.org/camp-grammy) When my grandchildren were younger, I turned my home into a summer camp for them. Now most are grown and too busy with their own, big kid activities. It’s kind of sad, but it’s all part of life. It just happens, but I’ve got photos to remind me of the fun we had. One year, my son’s two children came down from Seattle. Brooklyn was eleven and Jackie was eight. When they arrived, Brooklyn was especially clingy. She wanted to be hugged a lot and often a hug would last a minute or two. I knew the reason; she’d been away at a soccer camp the week before and her mom was with her just one night and then they came here for the week. Jack didn’t go to camp, so he had been with his mom and dad and wasn’t in the least clingy. [Read More](https://blog.housefairy.org/camp-grammy) Topics: [Family Games](https://blog.housefairy.org/topic/family-games), [Being a Mom](https://blog.housefairy.org/topic/being-a-mom) ## [Camp Grandma a Re-Run from 2014](https://blog.housefairy.org/camp-grandma-where-fun-and-love-abound) Posted by [Pam Young](https://blog.housefairy.org/author/pam-young) Aug 3, 2018 6:00:00 AM [![](https://blog.housefairy.org/hs-fs/hub/341571/file-1392097542.jpg) ](https://blog.housefairy.org/camp-grandma-where-fun-and-love-abound) When my grandchildren were younger, I turned my home into a summer camp for them. Now most are grown and too busy with their own, big kid activities. It’s kind of sad, but it’s all part of life. It just happens, but I’ve got photos to remind me of the fun we had. One year, my son’s two children came down from Seattle. Brooklyn was eleven and Jackie was eight. When they arrived, Brooklyn was especially clingy. She wanted to be hugged a lot and often a hug would last a minute or two. I knew the reason; she’d been away at a soccer camp the week before and her mom was with her just one night and then they came here for the week. Jack didn’t go to camp, so he had been with his mom and dad and wasn’t in the least clingy. [Read More](https://blog.housefairy.org/camp-grandma-where-fun-and-love-abound) Topics: [Family Games](https://blog.housefairy.org/topic/family-games), [Being a Mom](https://blog.housefairy.org/topic/being-a-mom) ## [6 Fun Things to Do in October Before it's Over](https://blog.housefairy.org/things-to-do-in-october-before-it-is-over) Posted by [Pam Young](https://blog.housefairy.org/author/pam-young) Oct 23, 2014 9:00:00 AM [![](https://blog.housefairy.org/hs-fs/hub/341571/file-430717438.png) ](https://blog.housefairy.org/things-to-do-in-october-before-it-is-over) **** *Whatever the present moment contains, accept it as if you had chosen it. * *Always work with it, not against it.* ** ~Eckhart Tolle** ## **1. See the sights** October in our state of Washington and its neighbor Oregon are stunningly beautiful now. Take a drive through the countryside and it’s not too late to get one more picnic in. What are some famous sights in your area? Go check them out. If you have already been to them, try to discover something new about them. If there aren’t any famous sights in your area, then go discover ones that aren’t famous. ## **2. Stock up on Scary Accessories ** Be sure to replenish your stock of of bloody ears, warts, sores, scars, witchy wigs, noses and glasses, eye patches and such, while the stores offer them. There's nothing worse than needing a bloody eyeball in the middle of March!  ## **** ## **3. Take a discovery walk** Things are always changing, but October seems to inspire Mother Nature to order up some drastic alterations. I like to think of her shopping some mystical catalogue, oblivious to what current color schemes are being pushed in fashion news and saying, “Oh, orange, red, yellow, lime green and brown, yes that’s what my trees are gonna wear!” ## **** [Read More](https://blog.housefairy.org/things-to-do-in-october-before-it-is-over) Topics: [Family Games](https://blog.housefairy.org/topic/family-games), [Playing with Kids](https://blog.housefairy.org/topic/playing-with-kids), [Daily Thought,](https://blog.housefairy.org/topic/daily-thought) ## [Learn Some Fun Thoughts Your Kids are Thinking!](https://blog.housefairy.org/kids-bored-1-great-way-to-change-that) Posted by [HouseFairy](https://blog.housefairy.org/author/housefairy) Aug 22, 2014 6:00:00 AM ##### Aug 23, 2013 # Quiz Time! House Fairy here! I suggest you have a pad of paper and pen available so you can write down your kids’ responses, because you may learn something about them that you didn’t know. You could also be ready to ask them some questions of your own, after the House Fairy asks hers. By the way, did you know your kids will love to be “interviewed,” and they’ll feel so important when you take notes?  [Read More](https://blog.housefairy.org/kids-bored-1-great-way-to-change-that) Topics: [Family Games](https://blog.housefairy.org/topic/family-games), [Playing with Kids](https://blog.housefairy.org/topic/playing-with-kids), [Entertainment for Mom](https://blog.housefairy.org/topic/entertainment-for-mom), [Being a Mom](https://blog.housefairy.org/topic/being-a-mom) ## [10 Boredom-busters for Kids](https://blog.housefairy.org/10-boredom-busters-for-kids) Posted by [Pam Young](https://blog.housefairy.org/author/pam-young) Jul 23, 2014 6:30:00 AM [![](https://blog.housefairy.org/hs-fs/hub/341571/file-1103243891-png/723/Boredom_Buster_Sardines.png) ](https://blog.housefairy.org/10-boredom-busters-for-kids) God knows we humans get bored and I think that’s why He made seasons for us. But when it comes to kids, sometimes the seasons are just too long! By now, I’m sure you’ve heard those dreaded two words: “I’m bored.” And you know telling your kids to go outside and play just doesn’t work. I scoured the Net for new ideas to help bored kids and I got bored with the same old stuff I’d read in magazines when my kids were young; like read a book, watch TV. I did find a few out of the hundreds I read, which I share in this blog, but I’m also going to tell you about some things I did with my kids when they got bored, that still work with my grandkids today. ### **Blame it on routine** We can blame boredom on routine and that’s probably why we love to go on vacation to break away from the everyday grind of routine. As a reformed slob I know that when I was in a pigpen, it was my disorganization and lack of a routine that put me there. But I must say I was never bored in those pigpen days! I escaped the pen by creating a routine that had my kids and me up, dressed and fed by 7:00 and in bed with a clean and tidy home by 8:00. I love what Flylady says, “Routines and habits are the backbone of a peaceful life.” Routines and habits breed success, but they are also the perpetrators of boredom. When boredom creeps in, it’s time to shake things up. ### **A Lesson from the bears** There’s a place in West Yellowstone, Montana called [*Grizzly and Wolf Discovery Center*](http://www.grizzlydiscoveryctr.com/index.php?PHPSESSID=49df6796e01e809ac19e2f882f606eeb). The Center offers every visitor to Yellowstone a chance to uniquely experience the world of grizzly bears and gray wolves. All the animals at the Center are unable to survive in the wild and serve as ambassadors for their wild counterparts. Terry, my husband, took this photo at the Center.(I promise this has something to do with boredom.) If you plan to go to Yellowstone don’t miss this place. But what does it have to do with boredom? Hold your pants on, it’s next. Animal behaviorists have discovered that bears in captivity get bored. Have you ever seen a bear pace back and forth at the zoo? (There’s a polar bear at the San Diego Zoo that does it and it’s heartbreaking.) A pacing bear is a bored bear. There are no pacing bears at the *Grizzly and Wolf Discovery Center*, because they experience change every day. When you think about it, Nature is always in flux. That’s why it’s so good to get out in Nature as much as we can. At the Center, visiting children are each given a bucket of food for the bears and they’re allowed into the bear’s cage to hide the food (the bears are put in a holding cage while the children are hiding the food or else the children would be the food).So your first boredom-buster is: ### **1. Hide breakfast** Let the kids sleep in while you prepare breakfast. Whatever you fix, put it in a cooler along with utensils and hide it where you want everyone to eat. You could eat in the bathtub, the family room, under the dining room table with a blanket thrown over to make a tent, your bedroom or in the garage (don’t eat in the car, you do that enough already). Or you could eat outside someplace. Put a note at the table where you always eat that says: “Find breakfast.” (You could give some hints.) When they wake  [Read More](https://blog.housefairy.org/10-boredom-busters-for-kids) Topics: [Family Games](https://blog.housefairy.org/topic/family-games) ## [10 Fun Musts for Kids to Do this Summer](https://blog.housefairy.org/10-fun-musts-for-kids-to-do-this-summer) Posted by [Pam Young](https://blog.housefairy.org/author/pam-young) Jul 21, 2014 10:00:00 AM [![](https://blog.housefairy.org/hs-fs/hub/341571/file-937340597-jpg/Blog_Photos_/7_Picnic.jpg) ](https://blog.housefairy.org/10-fun-musts-for-kids-to-do-this-summer) One thing I always tried to do as a parent when my kids were young was to create a sense of wonder and magic in their lives. I really believe that summer is the perfect season to make memories. My mom was a master at creating memories for my sister and me. Thinking about why my summers as a kid were so special, I have renewed admiration for what my mother put into planning our summers. She was a BOP (Born Organized Person). She always had a daily agenda for the summer months and it included household chores first and then fun. Attention moms, use fun activities you plan as a reward for getting the mundane household responsibilities accomplished every day. We lived in the country on a 20-acre farm, surrounded by other farms which are now lovely subdivisions with fancy-names like *Salmon Creek Estates*, *Crest Ridge Acres* and *We Are Rich Now Village*. Our farm was a ghost farm, because there were no pigs in the pigsty, no chickens in the coop, no cows or horses in the barn but we had all the buildings to play in. Because I was the oldest (my sister is five years younger) Mom was thrilled that I was so creative. If you want to know how creative, you’ve got to read[*** The Sidetracked Sisters’ Happiness File.***](http://shop.makeitfunanditwillgetdone.com/the-sidetracked-sisters-happiness-file-ebook) Once our chores were done and that was usually by 10:00 in the morning, my sister and I spent the rest of the summer outdoors, interrupted only by the horn of our 1955 Ford. The beep either meant lunch, or time for the day’s planned activity which is the source of my blog today. [Read More](https://blog.housefairy.org/10-fun-musts-for-kids-to-do-this-summer) Topics: [Family Games](https://blog.housefairy.org/topic/family-games), [Playing with Kids](https://blog.housefairy.org/topic/playing-with-kids) [All posts](https://blog.housefairy.org/all) ### Subscribe to Pam's Blog! ### Follow the House Fairy ### Recent Posts ### Posts by Month - [June 2020 (1)](https://blog.housefairy.org/archive/2020/06) - [March 2020 (1)](https://blog.housefairy.org/archive/2020/03) - [September 2019 (1)](https://blog.housefairy.org/archive/2019/09) - [July 2019 (2)](https://blog.housefairy.org/archive/2019/07) - [June 2019 (1)](https://blog.housefairy.org/archive/2019/06) - [May 2019 (1)](https://blog.housefairy.org/archive/2019/05) - [April 2019 (5)](https://blog.housefairy.org/archive/2019/04) - [August 2018 (2)](https://blog.housefairy.org/archive/2018/08) - [June 2018 (2)](https://blog.housefairy.org/archive/2018/06) - [February 2018 (2)](https://blog.housefairy.org/archive/2018/02) - [November 2017 (1)](https://blog.housefairy.org/archive/2017/11) - [May 2016 (1)](https://blog.housefairy.org/archive/2016/05) - [November 2015 (5)](https://blog.housefairy.org/archive/2015/11) - [September 2015 (4)](https://blog.housefairy.org/archive/2015/09) - [August 2015 (1)](https://blog.housefairy.org/archive/2015/08) - [December 2014 (12)](https://blog.housefairy.org/archive/2014/12) - [November 2014 (6)](https://blog.housefairy.org/archive/2014/11) - [October 2014 (13)](https://blog.housefairy.org/archive/2014/10) - [September 2014 (9)](https://blog.housefairy.org/archive/2014/09) - [August 2014 (3)](https://blog.housefairy.org/archive/2014/08) - [July 2014 (6)](https://blog.housefairy.org/archive/2014/07) - [June 2014 (5)](https://blog.housefairy.org/archive/2014/06) - [May 2014 (2)](https://blog.housefairy.org/archive/2014/05) - [April 2014 (2)](https://blog.housefairy.org/archive/2014/04) - [March 2014 (2)](https://blog.housefairy.org/archive/2014/03) [see all](https://blog.housefairy.org/topic/family-games#) ### Posts by Topic - [Tools for Moms (11)](https://blog.housefairy.org/topic/tools-for-moms) - [Being a Mom (10)](https://blog.housefairy.org/topic/being-a-mom) - [Raising Children (10)](https://blog.housefairy.org/topic/raising-children) - [Entertainment for Mom (6)](https://blog.housefairy.org/topic/entertainment-for-mom) - [Family Games (6)](https://blog.housefairy.org/topic/family-games) - [Cooking Videos (5)](https://blog.housefairy.org/topic/cooking-videos) - [Fitness (5)](https://blog.housefairy.org/topic/fitness) - [On Being Organized / Disorganized (5)](https://blog.housefairy.org/topic/on-being-organized-disorganized) - [Playing with Kids (5)](https://blog.housefairy.org/topic/playing-with-kids) - [Recipes (5)](https://blog.housefairy.org/topic/recipes) - [Chores and Children (4)](https://blog.housefairy.org/topic/chores-and-children) - [Happiness (4)](https://blog.housefairy.org/topic/happiness) - [Cleaning (3)](https://blog.housefairy.org/topic/cleaning) - [Daily Thought, (3)](https://blog.housefairy.org/topic/daily-thought) - [De-Cluttering (3)](https://blog.housefairy.org/topic/de-cluttering) - [Habits (3)](https://blog.housefairy.org/topic/habits) - [Manners and Children (3)](https://blog.housefairy.org/topic/manners-and-children) - [Health (2)](https://blog.housefairy.org/topic/health) - [House Fairy Videos (2)](https://blog.housefairy.org/topic/house-fairy-videos) - [Children's Rooms (1)](https://blog.housefairy.org/topic/childrens-rooms) - [Great job mom (1)](https://blog.housefairy.org/topic/great-job-mom) - [How to Clean Videos (1)](https://blog.housefairy.org/topic/how-to-clean-videos) - [Organization (1)](https://blog.housefairy.org/topic/organization) - [Relationships (1)](https://blog.housefairy.org/topic/relationships) - [appreciation for moms (1)](https://blog.housefairy.org/topic/appreciation-for-moms) - [de-junking (1)](https://blog.housefairy.org/topic/de-junking) - [faith (1)](https://blog.housefairy.org/topic/faith) - [peace of mind (1)](https://blog.housefairy.org/topic/peace-of-mind) - [succeed (1)](https://blog.housefairy.org/topic/succeed) - [thank a mom (1)](https://blog.housefairy.org/topic/thank-a-mom) ## Subscribe by RSS ![rss-icon1](https://blog.housefairy.org/hs-fs/hub/341571/file-570749489-jpg/social_buttons/rss-icon1.jpg?width=50&name=rss-icon1.jpg) [Mom's World Feed](https://blog.housefairy.org/blog/rss.xml) [Privacy Statement](https://www.housefairy.org/privacy-statement) **About The House Fairy** The House Fairy is the brainchild of New York Times bestselling author Pam Young. A stay-at-home mom of three, stepmother of two and grandmother of 12, Pam has enjoyed most of her life surrounded by happy children of all ages. With a major in drama (not in college, but in life) Pam has always been able to see with the eyes of a child. Writing a shelf of “self-help” books to inspire disorganized moms, Pam’s focus has always been on solutions to the challenges mothers have in life.