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10 Stay At Home Activity Ideas

ByCaitlin

With many people being quarantined to their homes to help prevent the spread of the COVID-19 virus, I thought I would put together 10 stay at home activity ideas that are fun and happy! These ideas are geared towards dog moms, equestrians, movie lovers and more. Some of the activities below do take place outside but depending on your current situation, the outside might be your very own backyard! 

Let’s get to it!

Girl-Cuddling-With-Brindle-Rescue-Dog-Sparkles-And-Sunshine-Blog-10-Stay-At-Home-Activity-Ideas

1. Organize Anything and Everything

Do you ever wish you had time to organize different parts of your life? Whether that be your home (i.e. closet, kitchen, bathroom, etc.) or maybe all of your barn gear (saddle pads, grooming brushes, care products), now is the time to go through it all! 

Need some inspiration before you get started? No problem! One of my favorite organization brands, The Container Store has an entire section of their website dedicated to projects and inspiration. They have videos on a variety of topics that you can sort through and they also include how long it will take to complete that project. Some of the videos they have are:

2. Clean Your Tack/Brushes

If you have a horse that is always rolling around in the mud, you’re most likely having to clean your brushes a lot. I know I have to with Herman! ? Cleaning your curry comb and soft brushes doesn’t take a ton of time but it does have a huge impact on their skin. 

Cleaning your tack is also super important if you want it to last a long time. I’m an equestrian on a budget, so if I buy something, I’m doing my best to make sure it lasts as long as possible. My two favorite products to clean my tall boots, bridle and saddle are Fiebing’s Saddle Soap and Belvoir’s Tack Cleaner Spray. If you’re also looking to condition those same items, my favorite conditioner is Belvoir’s Leather Balsam Intensive Conditioner. Both the Saddle Soap and Leather Balsam products come with a sponge so you don’t have to worry about purchasing that too!

3. Take Your Dog For A Walk

It might be starting to get pretty hot here in Florida, but odds are it’s starting to warm up near you with beautiful temperatures. I mean heck, even in the mornings and evenings it’s wonderful here in Florida. Why not enjoy that weather and take your dog for a walk? Petco recently released a video stating that pets cannot be infected by/or spread the COVID-19 virus and when you’re outside you’re still practicing social distancing. 

Please remember that I am not a vet and this information could change later on. If it does I will do my best to update this post and share across any channels possible. 

Just do your best to limit social interaction and maybe avoid areas where there are usually many other people. I personally am also staying away from dog parks at this time just as precaution.

4. Give Your Dog or Horse A Bath

If you’re trying to keep everything in your house as clean as possible, you might as well clean your dog too! Diesel hates baths and since our current apartment doesn’t have a dog washing area like our last two did, we have gone back to the old-fashioned bathtub routine. It’s definitely a two-person job since one of us has to actually lift his 100 pound self into the tub haha! 

If you have access to a backyard though, I highly recommend a product called The Booster Bath. My mom has one at her house and it’s basically a portable dog washing station that you can attach your hose to and you can wash your dog at height level, reducing the risk of hurting your back from leaning over into the tub or hurting your knees after an hour of resting them on the hard tile bathroom floor. 

This product is especially great for large breed dogs. You can also purchase steps that your dog can use to walk right into the tub!

Now, if you are currently going through the awful fungus skin season like I am with Herman, then now is a great time to give your horse a bath a little more frequently. My current go to antifungal/antibacterial shampoo is the E3 Elite Equine Evolution Antibacterial Shampoo. I linked it directly from Dover’s website but I have seen it at many local tack shops and other online retailers. Herman’s owner Ashley also loves to use Myst’s Equine Products Coat Elixir to help give his skin some additional moisture!

5. Exercise

Since most gyms around the country are closed, including mine, we’ve all had to resort back to working out at home. Luckily, there are so many things you can do without having to go anywhere!

If you have a cable subscription, many providers have free, on-demand workouts that you can do from the comfort of your own home! I recently saw last night that Xfinity has free workouts in multiple disciplines and they also have videos from YouTube channels like PopSugar Fitness! They also have some subscription channels that you can purchase from major fitness brands such as Gaiam, Jillian Michaels and more!

If you have a Peleton bike, you can still enjoy your favorite cycling classes from the comfort of your own home. Now, I know that is an expensive purchase and I don’t expect everyone to have one (I don’t even have one ha), but it’s a great resource to list.

You can also go on YouTube or Instagram and find many free workout videos from hundreds of fitness instructors. 

6. Netflix and Chill

Sometimes you just need to relax and watch some TV on the couch with your dog, right? I currently have a Netflix and Hulu subscription and love binge watching TV shows. One that I just started is Netflix’s Love Is Blind and oh my gosh it’s so great and I’m only on the second episode. 

If you’re not a big TV show person, both subscriptions have hundreds of movies from all genres that you can watch too. Grab some popcorn (or any fun snack), kick your feet up and enjoy!

Looking for some funny rom-com movies to watch? Check out my blog post featuring 35 Galentine’s Day movies that are perfect for anyone staying in!  

7. Play With Your Dog Inside

Even though Diesel loves to play with his friends at the dog park, he also loves to play inside! One of Chandler and I’s favorite games to play with Diesel is called Puppy in the Middle. I think I’ve mentioned it before, but it’s a game we made up years ago where we’re both on opposite sides of the room and we throw the toy back and forth. Diesel always gets tired out within like 20 minutes and has the time of his life trying to catch the toy (which sometimes he does ha!).

You can also play tug of war, fetch (just be a little careful haha) and if you have a laser pointer, trust me that is a GAME CHANGER. Laser pointers are not just for cats. In fact, my cat Felix couldn’t be more UNamused ha! Diesel literally freaks out of excitement and will chase it all over the house. Best $4.00 I’ve ever spent in my life ha!

8. Ride Your Horse

If you have your horses on your own property or are still able to go to your barn, there’s nothing better than going for a ride on your horse! What I like about my barn is that it’s close enough to go visit and it’s not too large with tons of people visiting it constantly. I think the most people I’ve ever seen at one time was 10 and that was pushing it. 

When I had my lesson on Monday there were two other people there, making it a perfect activity for social distancing. 

9. Play Board Games

I. Love. Board games! One of Chandler and I’s favorite things to do is to go to a game night or to host one! People are so creative and have come out with so many fun board game options for all ages. Below is a brief list of some of my favorites that include some classics and maybe some options you haven’t heard of before!

  • Exploding Kittens
  • Life
  • Horseopoly
  • Yahtzee
  • Sushi Go!
  • Clue
  • Battleship

If you’re currently at home by yourself and don’t have others to play with, there are many similar games that you can play right from your phone such as the Words with Friends Game App. 

10. Learn Something New

If you saw my March 2020 goal check in, I had shared that one of my goals was to continue to expand my digital marketing skills. Two of my favorite websites to learn new things are SkillShare and Udemy! Both websites offer online learning courses in a variety of topics including personal development, business, photography, graphic design and more! 

If you’re a dog mom or equestrian who’s always looking to learn new things about your horse or dog, below are more great resources that you can look through too!

All of the above resources also have YouTube channels where you can explore hundreds of topics and expand your knowledge in many areas!

I hope you loved the ideas above and that you are already thinking about all of the things you are going to be doing today, this week or even this month! If you’re enjoying any of the activities above, please share with me, I’d love to know! Simply leave a comment below or feel free to send me a message on Instagram! 

Photography: Nikki B Photography