Fixing up the Basement as a Playroom Ideas

When I was growing up we played in the basement. My parents put a big rug down on one end of the basement with a couch and tables and lamps and an extra tv. the other side had a tile floor and all of our toys on shelves and toyboxes. we loved playing down there. it wasn't until i was teenager that my mom had it finished. and even then it was half way done lol. she had a guy throw up some paneling and one of those really crappy drop ceilings. years later she had it actually drywalled and a real ceiling put in. but we had a blast playing downstairs. i would paint the walls and throw down a rug and be done with it. although i agree with the poster about the bug bomb just be sure and wash all walls and surfaces afterwards to get rid of the bomb poisen.

You already got great suggestions, so I'll just add a few:
Keep an eye out at garage sales, goodwill, craigslist (free), free-cycle and other hand-me-down places (google for "Re-Store" in your area). You can find great deals! At those places you can find furniture, storage solutions, some home-improvement supplies, and lots of other useful stuff! Have the kids help "fix" and paint any items you get--really make it THEIR space. If it were my basement, I'd be fine with the cement block walls (temporarily), just make sure they are sealed and painted. If it gets very cold down there, you might have to find the money to insulate and put up drywall. I'd also be concerned about the hard (cold) floor. So, I'd say put down your padding & carpet across the room and add extra padding (foam mats found at any toy store) in the "danger zones" (i.e. floors & walls around bounce house). I wouldn't worry so much about the spiders, as long as they're not poisonous (black widows, brown recluse, etc). You can call in pest control if you're worried, but like somebody already said--once your kids are down there with lights on and lots of noise, they'll probably find new places to hide. :)

Our basement is 3/4 unfinished (1 wall is paneling) and our children have a play area down there. The majority of their play area is those square rubberish tiles (got ours at Sam's). We also added smaller patches of carpeting. We were given primary colored pull out containers for toys, added an older tv and stand, put a no longer used toddler bed (like a sofa) and added a reclining chair in there and the toys are now all over! We even put an outside play house down there and my scrapbook table is down there too so I can scrap/wrap presents while the kids play. We also have a computer on my desk (not hooked up to the computer) so my daughter can play games. Our ceiling is unfinished but we have lights / heat vented in so that helps. If it's too dark, I'd say add some floor lamps. My biggest thing was making the floor softer and using those pads really helped!

You could paint the ceiling white to add some brightness, put in some book shelves or storage shelves for toys and such, a dehumidifier to keep down the moisture though you might have to wait until it gets warmer (April/May) to buy one. A bright basement with constant use will help lower the spider population. Personnally, I can take the spiders but the centipedes not so much. If you do not have a lot of ceiling lights to add some light, you could put up lamps until you can get some electricity flowing down there. We plan to take down some wood walls and put up half walls with shelves built in (2 x 4 or 2 x 6 with drywall is much cheaper than it sounds) next year. This way I can watch my daughter play while I do laundry or if we do add a family room or just TV.

You can hang up fabric partitions to hide storage stuff. Maybe paint the ceiling white.

How about using tape to make a "road" for the ride on toys or make a hopscotch game? You could get tumbling mats to put in the middle so someone could be doing tumbling while someone is "driving". They have kits for rock climbing walls or if your ceiling is still open you could hang a rope for rope climbing.
Good Luck!

After getting a $22K quote for the Owens-Corning Basement Finishing system (!!!!!????) we did our own Po' Man Playroom.
We painted the walls white, laid a nice piece of carpeting, bought a small sofa, etc and 2 armoires from IKEA for the toys and games. We also moved our old entertainment stand & tv & Wii down there as well. Works out great. and we spent NOWHERE near 22K.

Monkeyballs in the corners repel spiders.
and we just ignored the ceiling since we may need easy access to cable, electrical, plumbing, etc.