Ever been taken back to a room at the doctor’s office, have a nurse weigh your child, ask if you have any questions, and then say the Doctor will be right in?
Ever found yourself wondering if that nurse remembered to tell that Doctor that you were even there?
Here are ten ways to be proactive at entertaining your children while waiting in the doctor’s office. (Please note: these would not really be appropriate for the waiting area, but are fair game once in the room.)
1. Play I-Spy. The rooms at our pediatrician’s office are very colorful, so this is always something the girls want to do.
2. Play Simon Says. My girls are a little too young for this, so it’s really just a glorified version of “Do what Mommy says.” Hey, why not throw in having them respond with, “Yes, Mommy!” and make it a training exercise as well?
3. Play Ring-Around-The-Rosie. It’s okay, I promise.
4. Give bumpy horsey rides with the kids on your knees.
5. Explain the different “doctor” equipment in the room.
6. Play Peek-a-Boo.
7. Sing songs softly. Especially ones with fun action or hand motions.
8. Play copycat. Do something and have the children imitate you. (Jumping jacks, standing on one foot, turning around, making a silly face… they love this one; especially once they get to be “the cat.”)
9. Play thunderstorm. Pretend it’s raining and everyone has to huddle under an umbrella to stay dry. (The girls actually made this one up; they love to make rain noises by slapping their laps.)
10. And if the doctor is still not there, Repeat.
The point is to be creative and be happy. If you are impatient, your children probably will be, too.
Really the sky is the limit.
Last time we went, I happened to have a brush in my purse because we rushed out so early and I hadn’t had time to really get them ready. So we played beauty shop; I fixed their hair while talking to them in my awful imitation Brooklyn accent. They thought it was hilarious. (If they only knew it was helping me stay sane as well… )
What do you do to occupy your children while waiting?
Oh yeah, and if all else fails, tell them to make faces and take pictures. = )
small steps, big picture 
That was great! I used to read the magazine articles in a high pitched British accent.
Firstly, I LOVE the name and tag line of your blog. Totally inspirational. Loved this post too. When we wait for doctors or in shopping lines, my go to game (if there is any kind of pattern on the floor) is a version of mommy says: e.g, stand on a square, put your hand on a black dot, put your knee on a green triangle, change places with someone, stand tall on a red square.