At last the holidays are here, the kids are up at the break of day, brimming with energy and raring to go, you drag yourself out of bed, stretch and prepare yourself for the day ahead only to find rain streaming down the windows when you pull back the curtains! So what's the back up plan? Well, if you are stuck for ideas, you have arrived at the right hub.

1. Dance
   Put some loud music on, clear some furniture out of the way to make a dance floor and then get your groove on! This activity is great fun and great exercise as well.
   
2. Make a den
   You will need: pillows, cushions, blankets, sheets, pegs, string and an adequate space. This was one of my favourite activities when I was a kid regardless of whether it was raining outside or not and I still love making dens with my own children.
   
3. Bake some cakes
   Children love getting messy, so where better to do this than in the kitchen. It gives them a chance to have fun and to learn about cooking and of course there is always a plate of yummy treats at the end.
   
4. Make a movie
   You don't need to have any expensive equipment for this, you could simply use your mobile phone. Get your kiddies to draw out a story board, get dressed up and then its lights, camera, action and you have a family premier. If you have a computer, there are also many free video editing software packages that can make your movies look really professional.
   
5. Get a board game out of the cupboard
   I am guessing that most houses have a board game or two in a cupboard or up on a shelf somewhere. Brush off the dust and get out the pieces, it doesn't take long to remember how much fun they are. Some of my favourites are Scrabble, Monopoly and Buckaroo.
   
6. Have a carpet picnic
   Just because its raining outside, doesn't mean you cant have a picnic. make sandwiches, get out the picnic blanket and enjoy.
   
7. Veg out on the floor and watch a family movie.
   This could be a continuation of no 6. After filling up on a lovely indoor picnic lunch, why not stay on the floor, maybe add some cushions, cuddle up and watch a great family movie.
   
8. Make homemade greetings cards
   This is a lovely activity, and you can use up old magazines and a variety of recyclable materials. You will probably need some glue, colouring pens/pencils and maybe even some glitter. Encourage your youngsters to get creative and you can put them away and save them for a family members special occasion.
   
9. Make friendship bracelets
   Friendship bracelets can be made from a variety of cottons, twines, cords, beads, shells or any other appropriate trinkets and using some simple macrame knots can be fashioned into lovely items of dress jewellery that people give to each other as a symbol of their friendship. There are some great how to videos on the web as a starting point.
   
10. Get your raincoat and wellies on and go splashing in puddles.
    This last item is self explanatory. As someone once said, there is no such thing as bad weather, only the wrong clothes. [1992 Daily Telegraph 23 Sept. 13]

Now I've finished writing this, I can't wait for the next rainy day.