I don't want this to sound as negative as it might, but here goes...

My oldest daughter has always been the outgoing one. She needs to know what's happening every minute of the day. She starts talking the moment she gets out of bed, etc... Her every minute in 1st grade is planned, though I've had this dilemma before school started it's just really hard now I guess.

I dread school breaks. We're on day two of fall break right now. She's bored and we have three more days to go. Staying at home is pure torture (for her and me, lol) and I can't come up with enough things to keep her occupied. Well, OK, grocery shopping. :eyesroll She would love a zoo or a museum but we're in a small town with nothing for 100 miles. She loves to window-shop on ebay and gets annoyed when I put an end to screen time. At 8:00 this morning she was complaining that she had nothing to do. Repeat all day long and by dinnertime I am batty.

I try to buy her toys but everything is laden with princesses or Bratz. I get frustrated and leave empty-handed. She likes the library but has had her fill after ten minutes. Pretty much everything I present bores her after ten minutes actually. Summers are awful because she's not an outdoors person.

I have no problem playing with her sisters. I'm really good at playing. She outgrew playing a long time ago. She is most happy when she can spend the day with the neighbor girl. I've asked her what they do and they watch TV and jump on the trampoline.

So, please, tell me, how does the introvert parent keep an extroverted child happy? She was literally pacing the hall last night after dinner. What do I do with her and what is there for her to do herself? She does like (some) downtime when coming home on school days and there are days when the neighbor can't play.

I feel for you; my dd is like that sometimes. But I have a feeling that your dd is more like my friend's ds (whom I love dearly and would throw myself in front of a bus for him, but----), he needs to know what we are doing 24/7. He will knock on our door until we answer. He can't play by himself, so he loves playing with my ds. But my ds just wants to be by himself sometimes, and won't come out of his room (they are 9). His mom has tried endless things to get him to do things by himself; but it's really hard. He loves sports and social events, so he is in a lot of activities. He talks nonstop and loudly, so it is hard for me (an introvert). I don't really have many ideas for you; but here are some things that I do when my dd is really bored: print out worksheets/activities from the internet (she can't get enough of them); bring home an activity book from the library; tell her she can help me with dishes/sweeping/laundry (she will run away and play by herself usually!); wash barbies in the sink/big bowl outside; wash a sink w/baking soda and vinegar; take a bath with color tablets (she can be in there for an hour, and I still have to drag her out!). I hope things get better (my dd plays by herself 100X better now that she is older!).