Most of the world right now is on home quarantine, lock-down, mandatory shelter-in-place, social distancing or as we say in Singapore on a “Stay Home Notice (SHN)”. If you have been home now for a few days, I am sure your eyeballs are ready to pop out and your butts are aching from sitting on your couch – there is only so much television you can watch.
Now if you are a parent and are reading this, you know that free time will really not exist! Doing even one item on this list would be a dream. You are probably now way more busy then before and probably ready to pull your hair out by now. Trust me – I totally understand!
Do not fret, SuperMommy is here to help with a list of 100+ things to keep you occupied (or at least laughing) during your time at home during this Covid-19 / Coronavirus situation. AND PLEASE, do not take all of these seriously, many of them are just there to put a smile on your face (sorry had to put that disclaimer in there just in case…). 🙂
And before we get started, please can you just take a minute to follow me, aka SuperMommy, on Instagram @SuperMommySG. Thanks in advance! xoxo
Feel free to share and forward this list on to all your friends – let’s all stay united and get through this together.
100+ Things to Do while on Home Quarantine
(1) Do the work that you brought home from the office!
Who are we kidding, no one is that bored yet – work is not happening. Please look below at the rest of the items on the list.
(2) Spend quality time with your kids.
Sounds great in theory, but two weeks in your house, with your spouse and kids doing “distance learning” – it’s enough to put you in the loony bin. But just FYI, you are on quarantine, so you will not be able to leave and drive yourself to go to the loony bin.
(3) Spend time with your spouse / partner.
Great for the first day or if you are newlyweds, but after years of marriage, spending every moment with your partner just might not work. Let’s not kid ourselves here (see #3 above).
(4) Catch up on sleep!
Getting up before the crack-of-dawn at 6am is so pre-quarantine! Turn off that morning alarm and just get some extra zzzzz’s. Anytime between 9am – 11:59am sounds great (that’s still morning right?).
(5) Learn to sew your own surgical masks.
Oh yes you can! Maybe this can be the new skill you learn in (#36) and then start your own online business selling these masks (see #67) – now that’s an idea.
(6) Make a Quarantine Daily Schedule
Make a daily schedule that gets you up and out of bed each day (of course after you catch up on your zzzz’s in #4). Find things from this list to help you with your schedule – a new skill (#36), black-tie events (#56), toilet paper forts (#14), dancing (#8), cooking, cleaning (#35), etc.
(7) Find God, then find Waldo.
Need I say more?
(8) Make up a new viral dance move.
Create a new dance move, and then make it go viral. If the backpack kid could do it, so can you!
(9) Explore your inner Tiger Mom.
Who needs distance learning, when your kids have you? That’s right, take learning to a whole new level. Your kids will be begging to go to school once the quarantine is over.
(10) Make a quarantined pen-pal in another country.
Now is the perfect time to make a friend in a different country, at least you will have something in common to bring you closer together.
(11) Learn a new language.
Learn a new language and then practice on your virtual pen-pal (see #10 above).
(12) Spy on the neighbors.
See what the neighbors are doing during their quarantine and copy them, but only you try to do it better.
(13) Have a virtual party with friends on Zoom.
Who says you need to all be in the same room to have fun? Get dressed up, crank up the music and party the night away on Zoom, Skype, Facetime, Google Hangout – of whatever you choose. Dancing on the table and stiletto heels are optional.
(14) Make a toilet paper fort with all the toilet paper you hoarded.
Yes, we all “stocked-up” and have very clean behinds. Now you can put all that toilet paper to good use.
(15) Write a letter to your future self.
Who needs friends, just tell your future self all your inner-most thoughts, wishes, dreams, fears and whatever else you can think of. Once we find a cure for the virus, this will all be a distant memory and you can look back and laugh.
(16) Make a virus time capsule.
Put the letter to your future self (see #15) and other interesting items from around your house in the time capsule. Make sure to include some quarantine journal entries as well.
(17) Make a “Coronnial” baby.
This refers to the generation of babies that will born 9 months from now as a result of all of us being quarantined, aka the “Coronnials”. Oh yes, this is now a thing, go online and see – LOL.
(18) Start a “Diary of a Quarantined Couch Potato”
If the “Wimpy Kid” and “Dork” could write one, so can you – the “Diary of a Quarantined Couch Potato” might just become the next best seller. Something to think about…
(19) Coordinate your clothes by style and color.
Organize your clothes by style and color, match your socks and neatly fold your clothes. If your clothes are already done this way (like me), then shuffle them up and do it again.
(20) Start an Instagram page for an inanimate object.
You don’t need to be a fashion diva, just find any item in your house and make it the center of your new Instagram page. A rock, purse, mug, tiara, LEGO piece, stuffed animal, watch, picture, anything you can imagine. Place that object in random places in your home, take some pictures and viola – there is your new Instagram page. You may think this is a bit silly, but it is actually a thing – I personally have a lot of pets, stuffed animals and inanimate objects leaving me comments. Make sure your object follows me too (@SuperMommySG). 🙂
(21) Clean out your email inbox.
Yes, that’s right, it’s time to delete those 1000’s of messages that you have had in your inbox since 2004 when Gmail was created (I personally have over 90,000 in my inbox – #OMG).
(22) Write out all of your Christmas Cards.
Who cares if it is only March, no time like the present to get it done. If you don’t have cards at home, just make your own (or better yet, have your kids do it – this should keep them occupied for hours – I would say 100 cards should be enough). This is actually two activities in one!
(23) Shop online for Christmas gifts during “Cyber Monday Quarantine”.
Who needs Cyber Monday, now you have a full “Cyber Quarantine” to shop for your Christmas gifts. Just imagine all the special promotions going on right now. What are you waiting for – get started.
(24) Earn the right to wear yoga pants.
Practice some yoga positions at home. When the quarantine is over you can say with confidence that you do yoga to your friends. This will give you a legitimate reason to buy yoga pants besides wearing them to run errands around town (yes, I do this too).
(25) Literally “make” your own friend.
Now some of us don’t have the benefit of being trapped quarantined with others in their home. If you are alone, or just had enough of the people in your house, why don’t you make / create your own friend? You can watch “Castaway” to get some inspiration.
(26) Learn to play an instrument.
You might have found your old high school instrument while cleaning out your closets, see #35 below. (I know my parents definitely still have my old flute and sister’s clarinet stored away somewhere). If you don’t have an instrument, make one and then learn how to play it. I hear that pots & pans work great.
(27) Research different online courses.
This will take about 1/2 a day to find just the right course for you. With so many out there it will be hard to choose.
(28) Take an online course.
Now that you have found the course, sign-up and start learning.
(29) Pretend to be on vacation.
Make the most of the time you have off from work. Turn up the heater, put on your bikini, make a daiquiri and pretend to be on a fabulous vacation!
(30) Get a nice summer tan.
If you were on vacation (see #29) then of course you need a fabulous tan to go with it. Self-tanner or sunbathing in your backyard – either will work great! Take selfies of your awesome vacation and fabulous tan to share with your friends on social media. You can maybe even use these pictures for your Christmas cards (see #22).
(31) Get into shape – Jane Fonda anyone?
Some of you probably don’t even know who Jane Fonda is – yes I am #old. Find an exercise work-out plan online and do that for at least 1 hour each day. Then follow-it up with a relaxing bath (see #71).
(32) Learn a new makeup technique.
Shadow, highlights, contour – take your pick. Lots of time to try out each look on yourself..
(33) Practice your newly acquired makeup skills on your quarantine-mates.
Share the skills you have learned. Who says hot pink lipstick doesn’t look good on men?
(34) Plan your end of the year holiday.
If you plan this early, you might even get the flights and hotels for practically free! Let’s keep our fingers crossed that everything will be back to normal by December. Just make sure to buy travel insurance too.
(35) Spring clean your entire house.
Dust, scrub, clean, organize, coordinate, shuffle things around, donate, etc. – this could potential take days, but you have lots of time to spare. This might be very therapeutic for some of you (like me) and at the end of it all you will feel very accomplished and glad you did it.
(36) Master a skill by watching YouTube videos.
Pick something totally random, doesn’t have to be a useful skill – just to say that you did it!
(37) Make a YouTube video on the skill you learned.
Make a video of the skill you learned in #36 and show the world that you are a pro.
(38) Reminisce back to the pre-virus days.
If the virus is getting you down, take some time and look through photos/videos and lift up your spirits. I am sure you have at least 10,000 or more pictures / videos saved between you and your quarantine-mates! If you are old school, you probably have a bunch of actual picture albums as well.
(39) Take charge of your kitchen.
Organize and clean out those kitchen cupboards. Throw out the expired foods and take inventory of what you have left. Toss out chipped cups and old plates. Then organize your food by the different food group categories. When you are done cleaning the cupboards & pantry, then clean the fridge.
(40) Pretend you are on Top Chef.
This is your chance to let your cooking skills take center stage. Have your fellow quarantine-mates select 5 random ingredients from your kitchen for you to whip a meal.
(41) Read an actual book.
No more virtual reading – put your Kindle and iPads aside, I am sure you found at least one book during your Spring cleaning. Let’s save screen time for watching mind-numbing shows on Netflix and not screens for reading books. Flipping pages can also be quite therapeutic.
(42) Make your own board game & then play it.
If you have board games at home, play those. Once you get bored of those games, then make your own board game and then play – another 2-for-1 activity.
(43) Make online scrapbooks/organize all of your pictures.
With so many digital pictures, its hard to know where to start. Just jump right in start creating. This is something I have been meaning to do for years!
(44) Meditate and find your inner Zen.
Meditate, stay calm and then become one with your sofa & TV.
(45) Have Christmas in Spring.
Christmas is my favorite time of year. Who says home quarantine has to be miserable. Take out your Christmas tree and decorations and make time of year fun for the whole family. You can even put on Christmas music, wear Santa hats and binge watch Christmas movies. Yes, I know lots of Christmas mentions on this list – will move on now.
(46) Play hide & seek.
Make your kids hide and take a long time finding them. This will give you some extra time to do the other items on the list.
(47) Start a Quarantine Diet.
How awesome would it be back to work in a few weeks 10 lbs lighter with a glowing tan (see #30). This will be very easy to do, especially if you didn’t “stock-up” on food when everyone else did. Make sure to incorporate a daily work-out into your routine (see #34).
(48) Pretend you are at a hotel.
Turn down service anyone? Put a mint on your pillow and pretend you are at a hotel. Then get in your robe (see #99) and draw yourself a foot bath (see #65).
(49) Fix something.
If nothing is broken, break it and then fix it.
(50) File your taxes on time this year.
Yes, the US tax filing date has been extended and maybe other countries too – so this will be the year you can finally file on time without stressing yourself out.
(51) Instead of a word of the day, try the word of the hour.
Learn a new word every hour and use them in sentences as you WhatsApp or video conference with your friends. You will be quite the wordsmith when all of this is over.
(52) Make friends on social media.
After a few days, I am sure you will have run out of things to say to your quarantine-mates and WhatsApp friends. There are only so many memes and news articles that you can share about the virus on a daily basis (I get at least 100 messages or more a day on the virus – it’s addictive). Make some new friends on social media and share with them instead.
(53) Play a challenging mind game.
Crossword puzzles, Soduku, chess, you get the gist. Learn to play if you don’t know how and then play with your quarantine-mates.
(54) Alphabetize your books.
Alphabetize, organize and categorize your books like a library!
(55) Clean your shoes.
Not that you are leaving your house anytime soon, but when you do, you will have the cleanest and shiniest shoes!
(56) Host a black-tie event.
It’s time to fancy it up a bit with a formal night-in with your quarantine-mates. Hanging out in pajamas is fine for the first few days, but can get old fast – let’s get out the gown and tux, polish the silverware, take out the fancy plates, lights some candles and pop some champagne.
(57) Run a marathon in your apartment.
Even if you live in a small studio apartment in the West Village, this is still possible. First block off the running zones (place water at key points – optional) and then run the same route over and over till you hit your target miles / meters. Make sure you also dress the part with some cute shorts and running shoes.
(58) Give each other mani & pedi’s.
Take turns giving your quarantine-mates mani & pedi’s. This will be even better after you soak in the nice foot bath (see #65). Take pictures of your cute toes and put it on Instagram.
(59) Play some hoops.
The NBA may have cancelled their games, but that doesn’t mean you can’t play. All you need is a garbage can and a ball (even crumpled up paper will do) practice your jump shot, sit on your couch or play with others – it’s up to you.
(60) Do a hair treatment.
I am sure your hair could use a good wash and treatment right now, especially after a few days of being lazy and not styling it. If you don’t have any fancy products at home, just try eggs, olive oil or whatever you can find in your kitchen (ask Google when in doubt).
(61) Make your skin glow.
Give yourself a facial at home – wash, exfoliate, extract, mask and tone – detox those pores and make your skin glow.
(62) Play video games.
Dust off the old Atari and Sega console from the back of your attic (yes, the one you found after you spring cleaned in #35 above), plug it in and start playing. If you have a newer console, that is okay too.
(63) Learn the art of calligraphy.
Learn how to write in calligraphy. After you have learned this, you can practice your skills with your Christmas cards (see #22) and make place cards for your black-tie event (see #56). Your friends are sure to be impressed with all your your fancy handiwork.
(64) Paint your walls in happy color.
Paint the walls in your room or your entire house! I heard “rainbow” really brightens up the place.
(65) Relax with a foot bath.
Between running the living room marathon and the virtual dance party, your feet can probably use some pampering. Draw yourself a warm foot bath, add some Epsom salts and relax.
(66) Find your inner Picasso.
Bring out the artist within. Use color or make it black & white – just let loose – draw, paint, splatter – you decide!
(67) Start an online business.
Whether you are selling, consulting or providing a service, you too can start your own online business. You can sell old vintage clothes & items that you found after organizing your closets (see #19), sell your homemade crafts on Etsy (see #70), start consulting people on your new skill (see #36) or anything else that you can think of.
(68) Do a 1000+ piece puzzle.
I am sure you found that 1000+ puzzle hidden somewhere in the back of your closet – well now is the perfect time to dust it off and do it.
(69) Finish your baby book.
Yes, that dreaded baby book with all the cute pictures, handprints and more that has been on your “list of things to do” forever that you never got around to doing. It doesn’t matter if your kids are already in college, now is the perfect time to get it done.
(70) Get Crafting.
Bring out the beads, colors, paper, yarn and whatever else – it’s time to get your craft on! You might even be able to sell what you make on Etsy!
(71) Take a long bath with bubbles.
Take a load off and relax. Between all the spring cleaning, marathons, cooking and whatever you are doing at home now has probably made you tired. Fill the tub with bubbles, put on some music and just take a break.
(72) Memorize random trivia facts.
Whether it’s history, movies or Harry Potter, now is the time to brush up on all your facts and become a trivia whizz. Imagine how surprised your friends will be when you wow them with all these facts at your next post-virus get together.
(73) FaceTime friends & relatives.
So what if you can’t see them in person, they can still virtually be with you. This will be even better if you do this after you learn to apply makeup (see #32) and then call them to show of your new look.
(74) Bowl a strike.
Make your own fun indoor bowling game. Collect all your empty soda cans, water bottles, canned goods or any other recyclables and line them up.
(75) Do a random act of kindness.
Brighten someones day with a random act of kindness. This can be as simple as sending an e-card, ordering food delivery or donating money online to a charity for people who have the virus. Even spreading kind words and happy thoughts on social media to someone you don’t know is all you need to do.
(76) Feng Shui your home.
Rearrange your furniture according to Feng Shui principles and bring harmony into your home. Everyone can use a little bit of harmony right about now….
(77) Try on all the clothes in your closet and take selfies.
Try on different outfits from your newly organized closet and post the selfies on Instagram. Have your friends tell you to “keep” or “donate” the item.
(78) Shop online for your summer wardrobe.
Now that you are 10 lbs lighter (see #47), you will need a new fabulous wardrobe. Mix and match styles to get the perfect look. Hopefully soon you will
(79) Write online reviews for all of your Amazon purchases.
For years you have read the reviews, but never actually left one of your own (yes, guilty). Now is the time to give-back and let others know exactly what you think.
(80) Learn how the stock market works.
The markets will soon go up again. Start learning how financial markets work and get in on the upward climb. Start investing when you think the time is right.
(81) Learn how to Ferment Food.
Fermented food – not even sure what this means (#clueless) and this is exactly why you should learn how to do it! While you are at it, learn how to “can” food as well. Better to have more food, than less in your house.
(82) D.I.Y. your own home cleaning products.
With all the spring cleaning (see #35) you are doing, you are definitely going to need more cleaning supplies. Use YouTube or Google to help you make your own cleaning products.
(83) Take Online Quizzes.
Take online quizzes to find out your personality, compatibility, parenting style, work skills and more. A great way to keep busy and find out more about yourself.
(84) Go makeup free for the next few weeks.
Now this actually gives you more time then less, but either way it might be really refreshing and great for your pores.
(85) Stand in your backyard and count the stars.
If you don’t have stars, count the leaves, if no leaves, count the ants, if no ants, then count the cars, if you don’t have cars, then just get your butt back inside.
(86) Go on a Scavenger Hunt.
Make your own scavenger hunt with clues and hidden treasures around your house – the more complicated the better. Then have your quarantine-mates go on the hunt for the items.
(87) Do the long jump.
Create an obstacle course using various types of furniture, boxes and things from your house and jump over them.
(88) Have a picnic in your backyard, balcony, or rooftop.
Make meal times a little more interesting by having a picnic.
(89) Color code your LEGO.
This can potential take up hours – trust me I have done it before! Once you are done color coding, organize it by style. Similar to what you did with your closet in #19.
(90) Play Cheeseball Catch with your mouth!
Toss your food of choice (cheeseballs, M&M’s, grapes, nuts, etc.) it in the air and then catch it with your mouth! After a few days you will be a pro. Just make sure not to waste any food, especially if you are running short on supplies!
(91) Make a Bucket List Board on Pinterest.
Pinterest has so many creative ideas for just about everyone and everything. Make a bucket list board with all your future plans, or create another board that interests you.
(92) Update your resume / LinkedIn profile.
This is probably something you have been meaning to do, but just haven’t had the time. Even if you are in your dream job, it doesn’t hurt to update your resume, CV, LinkedIn profile – you never know when the next opportunity will come your way. This way you will be prepared.
(93) Pitch a tent in your living room.
Take out your camping gear from your newly organized and color coded closet and pitch your tent indoors. Have a mini-campout right in your living room.
(94) Make S’mores.
Of course you need s’mores if you are having a campout (see #93). If you don’t have the ingredients for s’mores at home, then use your newly acquired Top Chef skills from #40 to whip something up.
(95) Build a pillow fort.
Use all the pillows, sofa cushions and blankets in your house to build a fort. Make a big sign that says “No Kids Allowed” and use it as your secret hideaway. But just remember that blanket walls are not sound proof – make sure you have some earplugs as well.
(96) Make sock puppets.
Make good use of those un-paired socks you found after organizing your closets (see #19) by making sock puppets. This can double up as the friend “you make” from #25.
(97) Put on a mini-theater production.
Use the sock puppets you made in #98 and put on a play, if that doesn’t work, use stuffed animals. Take a video and share on social – yes people are bored right now and will be watching.
(98) Bake something.
Bake yourself a yummy treat. You deserve it after all those activities you have been doing. And yes, I know you are on the special Coronavirus Quarantine Diet to lose 10lbs (see #47), but sometimes you need a nice baked dessert straight from the oven to lift your spirits.
(99) Lounge around in your robe all day.
You are now at #99 and probably super tired from all those activities. It’s time to take a break and put your robe back on, it’s not like you have any visitors dropping by. Just chill out.
(100) Help SuperMommy come up with more ideas for this list!
Still have nothing to do while quarantined? Help SuperMommy find another 50 things to add to the list! Please just leave it in the comments below. The more wacky the idea, the better – we could all use a good laugh.
(101) Wow, you made it to the end of the list – you must be really bored!
If you have reached all the way to the bottom of this list, you must have really run out of things to do! Go back now to your sofa and continue watching Netflix.
Stay healthy & safe everyone! Laugh and try to be positive! We will hopefully soon get back to our normal lives. 🙂
-xoxo-
SuperMommy
