Looking for some hobbies for stay at home moms? If you’re feeling burnout or bored, a new hobby can be a breath of fresh air.
I’ve seen several memes and mom quotes floating around with a similar theme, essentially that moms have no hobbies. Well they ring true for me.
It is easy to lose ourselves in motherhood.
Babies and young children need a lot from us. It can be physically, mentally, and emotionally draining.
Which is exactly why you need a hobby.
It’s healthy to have something that you do for yourself. While we are focusing on caring for our kids, we need to care for ourselves as well.
Having a hobby you enjoy can help lower your stress and increase your overall happiness. We can all use some more happiness in our lives, right?
So whether you want a creative outlet or something that keeps you active or even a hobby that makes you money, finding the right fit for your life is important.
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In This Guide:
How To Find Good Hobbies For Stay At Home Moms
Picking a hobby as a parent isn’t always as easy as it sounds.
Think of things that you actually like doing or used to enjoy pre-kids. Consider things that you’ve always thought about trying. Are you interested in artistic hobbies to try or maybe more outdoor activities?
Then figure out how much of yourself you can invest in something. You’ll see my list below has ideas with very different levels of commitment.
When it comes to trying to pick a hobby, parents often feel limited by either time or money, or both.
It’s really important to find something that fits your lifestyle. So first, let’s talk about time, because that is usually in short supply.
I totally get it, some days I don’t have time for a shower, let alone time for a hobby. I still haven’t finished the baby blanket I started for my third and he’s almost a year old.
One of the biggest obstacles to starting a hobby is generally figuring out what to do with your kids, especially when they’re very young and require a lot of attention.
Parents have a few options when it comes to picking a hobby that fits your family.
- Pick something you can do when the kids are sleeping
- Pick something you can do with your kids
- Pick something you can do while you kids are otherwise occupied or with childcare
Your specific situation and time constraints probably dictate which option works best for you.
Just to give an example, I used to be an avid reader before I had kids. Since my first was born, I have tried and tried, but most of my reading had been picture books.
I finally had a break through last year. I had been trying to make time after my kids were in bed, but by the time I finished with all of the other household things that needed to get done in that short sleep window, I was too tired to read or really do anything besides zone out in front of the tv.
But I realized that I actually had a perfect opportunity for reading WITH my baby when I was nursing in the evening and at night if I read ebooks on my phone. I had been spending that time scrolling through social media and I don’t even know why.
Reading instead actually improves my mood (unlike social media), makes me feel happier, more accomplished, and like that time is put to good use. It feel like I’ve gotten a little piece of me back and I’m kicking myself for not figuring this out years ago.
Would that work for you? It totally depends on your circumstances, but there may be some other creative solution you haven’t even thought of yet that gets you back to doing something you love.
As an added bonus, reading costs me nothing because I borrow the ebooks from the library, which brings me to the next issue… money.
Many one income families have tight budgets. Paying for a lot of new supplies, lessons, or registration fees simply may not be an option.
Luckily, there are lots of inexpensive hobbies for stay at home moms.
For instance, if you want to learn a new skill, but can’t afford the cost of classes, check youtube. I have found tutorials for so many different things for free on there all just a click away.
Finally, just take the plunge.
When picking a hobby, don’t stress and don’t overthink it. You aren’t marrying it.
Just try something. If it doesn’t work out, try something else.
List of Hobbies For Stay At Home Moms
Need some inspiration for a new hobby? Here is a list of the best hobbies for stay at home moms to help you brainstorm ideas that will fit in your life.
- Writing or Reading Poetry.
- Gardening. No yard? Try an indoor window herb garden. You can even get a starter kit.
- Hiking.
- Bird watching.
- Fishing.
- Beekeeping.
- Flower arranging.
- Singing. Take voice lessons, find a local karaoke night, or join a choral group.
- Crafting. This is really broad since there are so many different types of crafting. Depending on your interests, a quick google or pinterest search can give you lots of ideas to try out. Some popular types of crafts to try making:
- Home decor
- Cards
- Jewelry
- Candles
- Soap
- Textile Arts. Have you ever tried sewing, knitting, crochet, embroidery? There are tons of tutorials to learn how to on Youtube and free patterns everywhere. You can also find some super cute embroidery starter kits on Amazon.
- Scrapbooking.
- Painting. If you need some inspiration check out some YouTube tutorials. Another fun way to paint, if you don’t feel that artistic is to try paint by number.
- Photography. No fancy camera? You may be surprised to find out how much you can do with your phone. Also, photo editing is a whole other skill you can practice.
- Podcasts. You can find podcasts are almost any topic so there is sure to be something that meets your interests.
- Calligraphy. You can learn calligraphy and other forms on hand lettering at home with a few supplies using online courses, YouTube tutorials, or a practice guide.
- Cake decorating.
- Horseback riding.
- Play an instrument. Even if you haven’t played in years, pull it out and get some new sheet music to learn your favorite songs. Or learn a new instrument. It can be very hard to teach yourself, but you can find lessons for many instruments online.
- Volunteer. Get involved in your community by volunteering for a cause near to your heart. Virtual volunteering opportunities are also becoming more common which could be a great option if you’re stuck at home.
- Learn a language. Popular language game apps are fun and can aid learning new vocabulary. If you’re serious about becoming proficient, you’ll likely need to take classes and many are available online.
- Create digital art.
- Cooking/Baking. You may find that this fits well in your normal routine since you’re likely already spending some time on food preparation. You can pick a new recipe every week or two to try out.
- Geocaching. Unfamiliar with geocaching, it’s a bit like a treasure hunt with a GPS.
- Juggling.
- Reading. Maybe digital books on your phone can help you the way it helped me. Also, you can make reading a more social activity by joining or starting a bookclub
- Adult coloring books.
- Puzzles.
- Exercising. Great for mind and body! Consider joining a gym that offers childcare. Some popular forms of exercising include:
- Yoga
- Barre
- Cross-fit
- Running/jogging
- Cycling
- Weight lifting
- Swimming
- Join A Rec Sports League. Find a local adult league to play your favorite sports. Alternatively, you could look into coaching or refereeing for a children’s league.
- Fantasy Sports. Fantasy isn’t just for dudes, and if you’re into sports it can be an easy hobby to pick up. Though football is most common it isn’t your only option, you may prefer baseball, basketball, or hockey. Maybe not a typical mom hobby, but is actually pretty convenient since you can do it on your phone, on the go, and invest as little or as much time and effort as you want.
- Dancing.
- Bowling.
- Playing Games. Board games are a fun social activity, but even if you can’t meet up with others many games are available online or apps. Video games are another fun hobby that can be social or individual.
- Beer brewing.
- Blogging.
- Journaling. Keeping a journal can be great for lowering stress. Bullet journals are very popular, but you don’t have to limit yourself to a certain style. Not sure what to write about? Consider keeping a gratitude journal of things you’re grateful for or google prompts to get started.
Hobbies For Stay At Home Moms To Make Money
Since living on one income can be a challenge, many stay at home moms want to find hobbies that make money. This certainly can be trickier to accomplish, but many moms find ways to monetize their hobbies.
So if you’re looking for a hobby that doubles as a side hustle, here are some ideas:
- Sell crafts online. Open an Etsy store to get your crafts in front of millions of people.
- Freelance writing. Are you a great writer? Lots of websites are looking for content and will pay for your work.
- Blogging. Though it can take some time and effort to create a money making blog, it’s low startup costs make it fairly easy to try.
- Investing in the stock market. If you have some time to research and extra cash, this can be a pretty lucrative hobby, however, you can obviously also lose money.
- Flipping items. Shop garage sales, good will, or even clearance finds and refinish them if necessary and resell them online at a profit.
- Teach a skill. From tutoring English to music lessons, if you have a skill there is probably someone out there who would pay you to teach them.
- Photography. How much you can make will depend on your skill and equipment. You may not be booking weddings as an amateur photographer, but you can likely sell your work as stock photos. You could also try to grow your instagram following and monetize it.
- Pet sitting/dog walking.
Any other great hobbies for parents that we forgot? Do you have a favorite hobby or one that makes you money?
Also, who has a creative way of making time for your hobbies?
Share your tips with us, we love to hear from you!
