Jackson Free Press

Sometimes it can be freeing and fun to think like a kid when looking for things to do. Various health experts suggest kid-like activities to relieve anxiety and open up the mind.

What did you love to do at age 5 or 10 that you haven't done in a while? Let the ideas below take you back to a happy place, at least momentarily, where fun comes first. If you feel silly doing these activities alone or with other people your age, bring a kid along for the fun; he or she will be happy to take out time to play.

Jump
• Monster Spider Jump at Northpark Mall (1200 E. County Line Road, Ridgeland, 601-209-0779), Food Court. $7 per person or come with group of three and jump for $5 per person. Little children who want to jump need to be over 20 pounds.

• Pump it Up (1576 Old Fannin Road, Brandon, 601-992-5866)

Ride a Bike
• Natchez Trace. For more information, visit http://www.natcheztracetravel.com and click bicycle under "Ride the Trace" or call 800-377-2770. (Also, be sure to read "Break Out Your Biking Gear" for more information on biking.)

Bowl
• Fannin Lanes (1145 Old Fannin Road, Brandon; 601-919-8001)
• Cotton Bowl Lanes (3003 J.R. Lynch St., 601-354-5738)

Roller Skate
• Funtime Skateland of Clinton (931 Highway 80 E., 601-924-6500) and Pearl (123 Legion Lake Road, 601-939-0880) are fun places to strap on old-style skates and roll the night award.

Explore
• Petrified Forest (124 Forest Park Road, Flora, 601-879-8189)
• Russell C. Davis Planetarium  (201 E. Pascagoula St., 601-960-1550)
• Mississippi Museum of Art  (380 South Lamar St., 601-960-1515)
• Jackson Zoological Society (2918 W. Capitol St., 601-352-2580)
• Mississippi Children's Museum (2145 Highland Drive, 601-981-5469)