With everything going on in our world right now, we are searching for ways to have fun at home. It is rare that the Country Boy and I get to escape and have fun.  Traveling to exotic and fun places is out of the question, as most hotels don’t allow pets – much less cows and chickens.

Getting a farm sitter isn’t too difficult, but if we are gone for any length of time, it gets expensive.  So when we really need a break, we usually create our own fun at home right here on the farm.

Just so you know: This post contains affiliate links; if you click on a link and make a purchase I might make a small commission, but it does not affect the price you pay!

movie-style clapper board

Dreams

My dream of one way to have fun at home is to have an outdoor movie theater.  The more I research doing that, the more I realize that I will have to have a lot of patience. I have to wait until the price of the equipment comes down.

Still, I can see in my mind’s eye a group of neighbors enjoying popcorn, Junior Mints and Cokes out in the front pasture.  I can hear them laughing at the antics of Cary Grant, Josephine Hull, Jean Adair and Peter Lorre, all in their full glory on the ‘big screen’.  (Can anyone name that movie?) 

Since that dream isn’t in the cards right now, I have to find something else fun to do.  If you are in the same boat I am, try a few of these things at home.  They are great alternatives to going out, and you just might have a lot more fun!

It’s Easy to Have Fun at Home

silver bowl of popcorn surrounded by boxes of candy, movie dvds, and a bottle of Coke

1) Dinner and a movie

Movie rental these days are cheap. If you prefer to own your favorites, purchase them. Think of a restaurant you would want to visit, and mentally peruse the menu. Then do your best to re-create your choice in your own kitchen.

Set up a table (go ahead, add the tablecloth and use the good dishes) in front of the television. Pop in a movie, and you have an instant dinner theater.

Throw a blanket on the floor, grill some burgers or fry some chicken, and have a picnic. Either way, I bet the meal tastes a bit better, the movie is more entertaining, and you can have an inexpensive way to have fun at home!

You can serve dinner outside, and head back in to pop popcorn. Just don’t forget the Milk Duds and Junior Mints!

wooden box holding multi-colored dominoes; plastic trains, a plastic Holstein cow

2) Game Night

One of the best ways to have fun at home is to invite a few of your friends over for a game of Mexican Train. You can have a Bunco night or play Trivial Pursuit. When the kids come to visit, we often surround the kitchen table playing Dominoes or board games. It is a ritual, and a few hours of guaranteed fun.

You can also set up lawn games, such as Bean Bag Toss and Croquet. Take it a bit further and have a competition. Set up several playing areas with checkerboards and mark one table for the winners.

As each game concludes, move the winner up one space, until there are just two remaining players at the winner’s table. The winner of that final game receives a prize as the Champion Checker Player.

You can offer any type of prize – keeping it simple and fun is probably the best.

picnic basket on a blue and white check cloth; plate of fried chicken, roll and coleslaw, vase filled with sunflowers

3) Neighborhood Picnic

When I was younger, the adults in the neighborhood were the best at finding ways to have fun at home. Growing up on Bolch Street, this was a given every summer. All the neighbors would gather in our backyard. Daddy would grill hamburgers and hot dogs. The others would bring the rest.

All the kids would catch fireflies and play kick the can. The adults would sit and visit. At the end of the evening, those noisy ice cream makers would finally go quiet and we would gorge ourselves on several flavors of frozen paradise.

For several years, we held a Chili Cook-Off at the Plantation. It was a lot of fun, and I hate that we don’t do it anymore. I think it is something we need to get started again. It may not be a Cook Off, but a neighborhood picnic would be just as much fun. I believe I’ll get started planning that!

woman in a blue check shirt and walking with a man in a brown jacket and jeans; both adults holding hands with a young boy in a blue jean jacket and jeans

4) Walk and Talk

One of the most difficult things to find on the farm is Time. The Country Boy and I often find ourselves ‘speaking’ to one another as we pass each other through the back door – him leaving, me getting home.

At night, we are both usually so exhausted that we give each other a rundown of our day, then settle in to just enjoy the quiet. After a while, it gets too uncomfortable to us to be so ‘distant’ with one another, we find ways to have fun at home in the simplest, least complicated ways, like taking off for a walk down to the pond or across the pasture.

Click the Image to Learn More!

Relax & Enjoy!

In a world that is overwhelmed with busyness, some days the way to have fun is to just slow down, relax and enjoy life. Find a shady spot underneath a tree. Set up a hammock, or a small table and chairs. Then relax and enjoy by:

If none of these things appeal to you, think of what would, and get started.  Set aside one Saturday a month to just do something.  Choose one of the things on my list, or something impromptu. 

Either way, you will have a day to look forward to, and a means to getting out of your daily rut.  The fact that you will have fun doing it is just icing on the cake!  (You will have some of that homemade ice cream to go with that cake, right?)

Looking for More Ways to Beat the Summer Heat? Keep Reading!

pitcher of lemonade filled with lemon slices, a mason jar filled with lemonade with a slice of lemon and mint leaf on the rim

Chill Out! How to Make Homemade Popsicles

Stay-Cation: Loving the Best of Both Worlds

How to Make Summer Delicious with Ice Cream

How to Create a Barn Quilt

Baking Bread as a Relationship – Join the Party!

Julie Murphree is a blogger, newspaper columnist, and speaker on all things ‘Living a Simple Life on the Farm’. She is the author of \\\'The Farm Wife – Living a Simple Life on the Farm. She and her husband have 60 acres in NW Louisiana where they actively work on living as sustainable as possible.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.