Spending lots of time with your quarantine crew? Yeah..us too! While we’re all navigating this new reality, we may also be running out of things to do in the home, or ways to stay busy, or maybe ways to keep the little ones busy (did someone say all the above?) Whatever your reality looks like these days, we hear you – and we’re here to share some of our top picks for staying busy, productive and inspired.
That said, I thought it was about time to bake a cake! Because do you really need an excuse to bake a cake – especially these days? Honestly, I haven’t baked a layered cake in YEARS. I actually can’t even remember the last time I baked a cake in general– not even for a birthday (kind of sad, I know) I guess I am usually a ‘pie’ kind of girl, or even cupcakes – but I was feeling inspired at the challenge of baking a cake, AND getting creative with decorating one.
The best part about this is, you don’t have to turn into Martha Stewart to have fun with the process – go for the store-bought cake mix if that’s your thing. Invest your time and energy into the process of decorating the cake to your liking. Whatever you’re in the mood for – go for it – there are no rules and your kiddos will have a blast.
That said, I admittedly opted for 3 boxes of Cinnamon Swirl cake mix because this was a last-minute endeavor and I didn’t have the resources for a homemade base – again, work with what you have and don’t put too much pressure on yourself! I had a plethora of Starr Ranch Growers granny smith apples on hand because these are my favorite to snack on with some peanut butter throughout the week, so I went ahead and cored and very thinly sliced about 3-4 apple rings coated with cinnamon sugar and laid them on top of each frosted layer of cinnamon swirl cake. So inside instead of cake filling, there was cream cheese frosting and apple slices – YUM. This actually helped add another level of moisture to the cake that was so delicious, and who doesn’t love a warm baked slice of apple in each bite?!
To decorate the cake, opt for pretty flowers in the garden, greenery, more apples, or let the kids turn it into a full-on arts and crafts project – anything to keep them busy, creative and having fun!
Aside from baking a cake – here are a few other creative ideas for keeping the whole family productive that you can implement into your own home!
- Challenge yourselves to meal prep EACH meal of the day together – participation and involvement from the little ones will make them feel so special when a part of this daily task.
- Build a fort together.
- Ride bikes, rollerblade, or simply carve out time to go on walks around the neighborhood to let out some pent-up energy and load up on some much-needed vitamin D.
- Did someone say coloring books? Amazon has a ton of these – they’re so fun the adults will want to join in too.
- Try out a new Pinterest recipe together.
- Do a puzzle on the back-patio.
- DIY s’mores on the stove.
- ‘Glamp’ in the backyard.
- Make homemade no-churn ice cream and have a ‘build-your-own’ ice cream party.
- Treasure-hunts around the house.
How are you and your family staying both productive and positive lately? What have been some activities that were a huge hit in your own household? Was it baking and decorating a cake together? Or perhaps painting a masterpiece? We want to know in the comments below!