If you live with your family or with roommates, being home alone may be an opportunity that doesn’t come often. You get to just chill out and enjoy peaceful moments of solitude. This is also the chance to do things that you usually wouldn’t do.
How do you take advantage of this “me” time?
Here are some ideas to fill those idle hands while you are by yourself at home:
- Start a Scrapbook
If you have a craft subscription box lying around, use it to build a scrapbook. This is an opportunity to take a trip down memory lane and have a wonderful “crafternoon.”
Having a personal scrapbook allows you to reminisce at happy times. Also, cutting page accessories and designing page layouts will give you a meditative focus.
Starting a scrapbook will also give your brain a much-needed workout. You’ll be trying to recall the kids in a particular photo or the age of a friend – details that you may include in your scrapbook.
- Plant a Garden
You don’t have to travel to a national park or visit a local forest to spend time out in nature. You can do so in the comfort of your home by starting a nice mini home garden.
A good way to begin is by planting herbs, such as thyme and rosemary. You can easily use these plants for pasta recipes and other wonderful dishes that you’ll whip up in your kitchen. If you have a yard, consider planting vegetables and flowers. Veggies are healthy to eat, while flowers add life and beauty to your house.
- Spruce Up the Appearance of Your Room
If you’re lucky enough to have more than a day to yourself, take your solo activity a step further by giving your bedroom a makeover.
Given that everyone in your home is away, you can pull all the stuff out of your room into the hall easily and give your walls a fresh coat of paint. This is also a good time to rearrange the furniture to make your space more spacious and comfortable. Go ahead and experiment with different arrangements. All you need is some energy, which you can get with a nice, hot cup of coffee.
- Bake Sweet Treats
If you like eating delicious desserts, why not make them from the comfort of your kitchen? Now that you have the entire home all by yourself, bake all the cookies, cakes, pies and other sweet treats you want and give them to your friends and family later on.
If you don’t know how to bake, don’t fret. Use your alone time to practice with some cookbooks or YouTube cooking videos. Just remember not to burn the house down while you’re experimenting on your desserts.
- Enroll in an Online Course
Having additional time on your hands means you can expand your skill set and improve yourself through online courses. This is a good opportunity for you to refine your career skills, study a new language or learn how to repair parts of your house.
- Finish a Puzzle
Have you ever started a jigsaw, riddle or crossword puzzle and end up not finishing it due to time constraints? Now that you’re all alone, continue where you left off and complete that puzzle.
Focusing on a tangible challenge that requires determination will encourage you to think outside the box. You will feel especially accomplished when you finish – assuming that you are not missing the last piece of a hundred- or thousand-piece puzzle.
- Rearrange Your Closet
Hone in on what you truly need, want and love by doing an inventory of your closet Although purging unwanted clothing items can offer a huge sense of relief, this activity is not necessarily all about getting rid of your clothes.
You’ll want to begin by reorganizing your closet by cut, color or season. Then, donate or sell the clothes that you no longer wear or use. This activity will surely keep you busy for several hours on end.
- Sing Your Heart Out
Unless you have a voice of a concert singer, your parents or roommates will most likely shush you when you begin singing. When you’re home alone, enjoy your private concert and sing to your heart’s content. Take this time to practice those high notes that you always miss without worrying about offending anyone’s ears.
- Pick Up a Paint Brush
You don’t need to be a present-day Van Gogh or Da Vinci to enjoy painting. Grab some coloring or painting materials and a paper or canvas. Then, just paint whatever you want. Your stress levels will go down with every stroke.
When you’re home alone, don’t just sit there and wait for your family or roommates to come back. Get busy by doing one of these activities.