Adventures in Babysitting

Jody is back and unfortunately still stuck in the warehouse. Her leg has healed up though, so she can be a bit more active. It's been pretty grim recently, so let's take the time to have some fun. When she was little, Jody and her brothers would tear around and never walked anywhere, and that sort of movement is good for adults too. So kids, join in with your grown-ups! You'll want to clear some space first, so you can start off with dancing!

We're playing snakes-and-ladders - Marsh family style. Sometimes when her parents worked late, Jody would babysit her younger brothers, who would need to be exhausted before they'd go to bed. One night, they played snakes-and-ladders but actually got to be the snake, and climb a real ladder. Try this by doing 1 minute of Snake Wiggling

Now time to climb a ladder. Or as the Ministry likes to call it, Inchworm! One minute of these. Go!

Nice work Runners. When Jody's grandmother came to visit, she would take all of them on a big day out. They always chose the Safari Park. They would always make up stories about the animals and then act them out. So try that now! Imagine being an elephant and how they move and try to imitate that. Or how about a giraffe or a monkey. Jody stopped going to the Safari Park when she was fifteen and she'd love to go back to those times, but if she can't see a tiger, she's going to be one!

Jody had a lot of fun with that! The acoustics in the warehouse were great for the elephant noises. Next up is another Marsh family game called 'Floor-is-Lava'. Put some cushions or towels or anything non-slippery down on the floor, or draw chalk circles if you're outside, or your imagination works too. Those are your stepping stones, and the rest of the floor is bubbling hot lava. Your mission? To cross the room without getting burned! You can make it harder by moving the stepping stones further apart, or by alternating hands and feet like in Twister. Try to move in ways you normally wouldn't.

Jody used to hate that song, but her brother loved it and now she can't hear it without thinking of him. She hasn't managed to find any of her family yet. Her brothers would be all grown up and able to have kids of their own by now! The Abel kids are all great fun to hang out with, so this one is for them. The Abel Township Kid's Superstar Challenge. Try to do as many Star Jumps as you can in a minute!

That's the workout done, but take a few minutes to relax and recover. Think about a place you really want to be, somewhere you can't get to right now. Jody is thinking about the tiny garden outside her old house. It's okay if missing somewhere makes you sad. Those places aren't gone as long as you remember them. We'll visit new places and make new stories to tell to a bunch of new kids eventually.