*Updating* 33 Things to Do Indoors with Kids in Kansas City

Okay, so my visions of snuggling up by a fire and homeschooling every day last winter were blown to bits by the fact that my kids are getting older and bounce off the walls when stuck inside on freezing days. So here are some indoor ideas I have come up with so far ... some are free and some are so expensive they should not even be on the list. Enjoy!

Last updated in 2019, pre-COVID, and some things may have changed so I'm updating again now on the day after Christmas 2022 :-) Some of these are included for no charge once you purchase your $39.99 Pogo Pass (if you use my referral link here, then you don't pay $79.98!)

Please use this list and enjoy it and have fun NOT being stuck in the house with your kids when it is 10 degrees outside this winter. Maybe I'll see you out there and please, I beg of you, don't judge me when you see me out with my 5 kids and I am feeding them Kit Kats for lunch with a Capri Sun chaser. Assume we got all our homeschooling done that morning. Definitely let's chat and share in this parenting thing.

Feel free to leave me more ideas in the comments section, or email me at mommykerrie at yahoo dot com. Thanks, and see you around!

You could take your kid on the $5 Roasterie tour and get to wear a nifty cap like this one! Reminds me of Laverne and Shirley a little bit!

1. Aaron's Family Fun Center in Belton (my new neighborhood, close to Peculiar). Aron and the kids went bowling there one night and had a blast. Check out this post about Kids Bowl Free all Summer! If you homeschool or have little ones, go during the day in the winter, and for just a few bucks you get a game, shoes, and a soda!
   
   
2. Bass Pro Olathe or Bass Pro in Independence just to mess around, especially at Christmastime.
   
   
3. Blue Valley Recreation Center and Activity Center. Indoor pool. Massage chairs. Enough said.
   
   
4. Coffeecade in Peculiar, MO has throwback video games, a pinball machine, a beer pong machine (!), gift items like Chiefs stuff, soaps, and coffee. They also have great coffee drinks and baked goods!
   
   
5. Centerfire shooting range if your kids are a little bit older and you are cool with teaching your kids how to safely handle a gun.
   
   
6. Christian Youth Theatre. $5 shows on Fridays during certain times of the year. They also have classes and plays that your child can audition for!
   
   
7. Coco Key for indoor water fun!
   
   
8. Great Wolf Lodge for indoor water fun!
   
   
9. Ibis Bakery in Lenexa field trip.
   
   
10. IKEA in Merriam ... If you sign up for the family card we are talking about free kid meals on Tuesdays, free coffee for you and lots of roaming space. Here is my post about that.
    
    
11. Indigo Wild factory, where they make amazing soaps (ZUM bar!) and other great-smelling things.
    
    
12. Jump City indoor bouncy houses.
    
    
13. Kaleidoscope and Hallmark Visitors Center (both free!).
    
    
14. Kaw Prairie Church and play area.
    
    
15. Kidscape in Shawnee moved to the Heritage and Arts Center 87th and Metcalf!
    
    
16. Lakeside Nature Center near the Kansas City Zoo. Look for the Nolan Connors brick near the front door. He's my friend Jill's son who died in his sleep on December 31, 2012 at age of 13; he used to volunteer here.
    
    
17. Matt Ross gym and pool For $170 for 3 months you can get a family pass to  ... definitely worth it for big families if you can scrape the funds together. Check out the game room and explorer room for playing.
    
    
18. McDonald's Playlands! 87th Street in Overland Park by the Central Resource Library; 95th Street in Overland Park by Oak Park Mall; Belton by the Cass County Library; Lenexa near 435.
    
    
19. Let's Go Putt Indoor Mini Golf (Prehistoric Putt) in Independence, Mo replaces Paradise Park.
    
    
20. The Roasterie field trip (*updated* $5 for the tour)
    
    
21. Science City at Union Station and buy the planetarium tickets! Boom -- homeschool science for the week for the win!
    
    
22. Scheel's is a fun place to hang out and they have a Ferris wheel!
    
    
23. SkyZone (kinda expensive for my crew for only an hour of play even with the homeschool discount ... you have to buy their sky socks and good luck washing them and finding them ever again, hence the buying of the sky socks again and again). Get the monthly pass with friend option (a sibling counts as a friend) and go often!
    
    
24. Steamboat Arabia Museum in the City Market area takes care of history for the day.
    
    
25. Wonderscope Children's Museum in Shawnee Red Bridge Area.
    
    
26. Coming soon to replace Zonkers.
    
    
27. Library events reading time and craft times.
    
    
28. Paint, Glaze and Fire or some other ceramics painting spot (you can take the older kids).
    
    
29. The ballet and KC Symphony.
    
    
30. Check out Stone Lion Puppets' free shows.
    
    
31. The Coterie at Crown Center, where you can go with a group to get the $5 tickets. 
    
    
32. Emerald City Gymnastics has a homeschool open play on Mondays and Thursdays from 2-3 p.m. ages 4 and up ... only $5 for an hour of open play (half the price of SkyZone and no Sock Police and a great staff!).
    
    
33. The Foundry Parkside Coffeehouse at Cedar Ridge Christian Church in Lenexa. Friday afternoons you'll find bunches of homeschoolers there.

When you get home from having a ton of fun with your kids, you can either get this free on Kindle Unlimited (30-day free trial then $9.99 a month), pay hardly a thing for the ebook version, or order the print version for 2-day delivery on Prime and make one of these tater tot casserole recipes for dinner!