For the past two months, we’ve explored the importance of rest, relaxation, and play. Today, we want to leave you with 71 ways to add play to your day. You’ll see some of the suggestions are silly, some are spontaneous, and some you might think aren’t fun at all. And that’s ok.

Our Invitation

Here’s our invitation: add to the list and make it your own. When someone says “I’m bored,” pull out the list, ask for a number and take five minutes to add play to your day.

We don’t walk through all 71 ideas on the podcast, that’s what this list below is for. Instead, we have a short conversation about coming up with this list and one idea on the list.

Enjoy! Or maybe we should say, “have fun!”

Write it Down/Talk it Out

• Create a “play” list – what activities can you do for hours on end?  
• Put play on your calendar if you need to. 
• Include others in moments of fun and play.

71 Ways to Add Play to Your Day

1. Laugh
2. Toss a ball
3. Kick a ball
4. Color (outside the lines)
5. Grab a board game
6. Grab a deck of cards
7. Get on the floor with a child and play with their toys
8. Experiment in the kitchen with a new recipe
9. Go to a ballgame
10. Go to a park
11. Go for a bike ride (or take a scooter for a ride)
12. Swing on the swings
13. Slide on a slide.
14. Write with your non-dominant hand
15. Go for a walk or a run
16. Play catch with your dog
17. Jump in a pool (that’s deep enough to jump in)
18. Splash in a bathtub
19. Have a pillow fight
20. Play hide and seek
21. Play a childhood game outdoors
22. Listen to your favorite music 
23. Have a dance party – for five minutes in the kitchen
24. Set a timer and dance like no one is watching for five minutes
25. Lay in the grass and look at the clouds
26. Pick a flower
27. Paint with your fingers
28. Paint with watercolors
29. Draw with your eyes closed
30. Draw a flower/plant/still object without looking at your paper
31. Draw an object from memory without picking up your pen (toilet, a flower in a vase, an oven, the console in a car)
32. Blow bubbles (with bubble gum or a wand) 
33. Make a rootbeer float
34. Skip a rock on a lake (or sink it)
35. Go swimming
36. Take a boat ride/Go kayaking
37. Go fishing
38. Take a hike 
39. Have a picnic
40. Play in a sandbox
41. Plant seeds/bulbs
42. Eat dessert first
43. Leave your phone at home
44. Do what you want for an entire day
45. Start the day with a joke or “groaner” Did you hear about the house with the roof? It’s over your head.
46. Tell a knock-knock joke.
47. Eat breakfast for dinner
48. Sew something for fun – without a machine.
49. Take 10 pictures of someone you love (use your cell phone)
50. Take a selfie to remember a moment of fun
51. Host an unbirthday party for the people you work with
52. Celebrate an ordinary moment with ___
53. Give a standing ovation at an unexpected moment
54. Movie night in your PJs 
55. Toss confetti at the end of a long day! You made it!
56. Sit down with someone and make a list of fun things to do this summer. Have fun doing it. 
57. Play dodgeball
58. Jump in the deep end of a pool (if you know how to swim)
59. Follow the spontaneity of a child
60. Have a tea party 
61. Find designs in the bark of a tree, the clouds, pavement, flowers, etc.  
62. Share a silly memory of the person you’re with right now.
63. Play kickball, volleyball, cornhole
64. Jump rope
65. Jump on a pogo stick
66. Jump on a trampoline
67. Jump on the bed (…while singing no more monkeys jumping on the bed…) 
68. Jump in a puddle after the rain
69. Play in the rain
70. Read or listen to a book
71. Play eye spy.