Hey, hey, hey! We are screeching into summer like a sunscreened kid on a slip’n’slide!!! (That’s wild, crazy, out of control, and squealing, in case you’re wondering…) The school year has finally come to an end, or is just about to for some, and everyone–kids and parents–is more than ready! But do you also wonder what to do with all the extra time?? I’ve got some fun ideas for you! Here in sunny Arizona, we actually don’t take a long summer break anymore, due to the extreme heat. We spend most of the summer staying inside in the cool air conditioning, plugging away at the new school year. Our big breaks come later when the weather isn’t trying to cook us. We do take a small break for a few weeks, but that’s it! When we lived in California, and the summer was more mild, we took the whole summer off. I am so excited to share some of our family favorites with you today!
Now, I know I have published my Summer Basket idea list (Didn’t see that one? It’s definitely one to read f if you have kids at home!), but this is different. Today I’ve got a list of IDEAS and ACTIVITIES for you to try out! It’s a fun one, for sure. Lots of options…just like summer should have, right? Just one more thing before I give you the list. My goal in putting this together is this: To help you and your kids find the joy in the summer months, no matter what the weather or circumstances are!
To kick off the list, lets talk about snacks. Summer=Snacks, am I right?? That’s just a given at our house! I like to make things interesting by taking a little bit of extra time to make some extra special snacks throughout the summer. Here are our family’s top favorite summer snacks of all time:
- smoothie popsicles (Make your favorite fruit smoothie recipe and freeze in reusable popsicle molds…I keep our freezer stocked with many varieties of these! My favorite kinds are the ones I can use wooden popsicle sticks in.)
- rainbow gelatin cups (Buy clear plastic cups, and add gelatin colors layer by layer, waiting enough time between colors for the gelatin to solidify…the kids get a kick out of helping with this one too! Heads up: this one takes many hours to do, so it’s great activity during the day and family dessert that night!)
- trail mix bags (I make whatever mix we feel like that week, separate into single serve baggies, and keep them in a basket in the pantry. Easy for grab and go snacking and trips to the park!)
- fruit kebabs (These are so much colorful fun on days we barbecue in the back yard! And everyone gets to choose their own fruit combos, too! I simply cut up a variety of fruit and let everyone create a rainbow masterpiece or two…or three)
- watermelon sticks (I love to cut up half a watermelon at a time, saving the other half in the fridge. I cut one of the piece in half again. I then lay the watermelon piece on its side and cut it into “strips”. Lastly, I cut the opposite way across those strips, making pieces that are easy to grab and eat!)
Now that we’ve covered some easy and entertaining summer snack ideas, let’s talk about water!!! For me, it’s just not summer without water to play in! We have never had an in-ground pool in our backyard, but it never kept us from water play! When the kids were babies, we had the cutest water splash mat they could sit on in the shade and splash until their heart’s were content. As they grew, so did our water play! Here are our favorites:
- water table (A MUST for toddlers!!! Hours of patio play, and they don’t take up much room either. Plus, in non-summer months they can become sensory tables.)
- blow-up/kiddie pool (Size depends on the size of your kids! We got small and shallow ones when they were young, and the size and depth increased as they got older and bigger! We did this for years. We even had one that our play slide could fit into for hours of homemade water slide fun!)
- spray bottles (We purchased empty spray bottles, labeled them clearly as play sprayers, filled with water, and let the kids spray whatever they wanted in the yard. Mostly, they ended up spraying themselves, which was totally ok!)
- slip ‘n’ slide (This is one we brought out when they were just a little older, and boy did they love it! We have several summers worth of video with one of these slippery things! Use with caution though, as injuries can occur.)
- wiggle-hose sprinkler (I have to admit that I wasn’t so sure about this one when someone gave it to us, but once we got it going, the kids adored it! So many giggles and shrieks of joy! I would totally buy this one again.)
Two categories of summer fun….check! Now, sometimes, summer fun doesn’t need to involve snacking or getting soaked. There are so many other activities that maybe we just don’t have time for during the school year. I love these, too. And the best ones can most definitely be rolled into the school year, just to remind kids of the lighthearted summer days. Here’s our family’s list of favorites from this category:
- sidewalk chalk watercolors (Use regular sidewalk chalk dipped in water…like a paintbrush…the colors go on the pavement smoother and brighter! A great variation on a time-honored classic!)
- aluminum foil rivers (Grab several rolls at your local dollar store, and have each child fashion a long “riverbed” out of it. place hose at the top, and watch the water be directed down the paths they create! Older kids will enjoy making boats and floating them own their man-made streams, too!)
- mud kitchen (Yes, this one is messier, but oh so worth it!!! You can set up a simple mud kitchen “table” out of a few cinder blocks with a piece of thick particle board balanced between them. We used small buckets and spoons (also bought at a dollar store). Everything is temporary…at the end of the summer, it gets dismantled.)
- library reading challenges (Many local libraries have kids’ and teens’ reading challenges over the summer. They often include contests and prizes. Plus, it’s an automatic weekly field trip opportunity! I just love the library!)
- theme week (I always tried to do this in the middle of the summer to liven things up a bit. We chose one theme for each day of the week. We would have a brainstorming session to think of theme day ideas, then take a vote. Each theme day would be planned out, complete with homemade costumes when needed, themed food, themes arts and crafts, etc. My favorite was “Olympics Day” where each kid dressed as a participant of their favorite Olympics sport. We made Olympic torches, rings, had relay races, and more!)
What a wonderful time of year this is! So much excitement, and plenty of chances to stretch our planning wings, too! I love a change in pace, a turn in the road, a switching of gears…however you want to put it, I think it’s great fun! Sharing that joy with the kids is something I will never regret doing, either. But before we go, I have to confess something to you. I don’t think of myself as “the fun mom.” I know I just listed off a bagillion and two fun summer ideas, but truth ne told, they don’t come easily for me. I have to really focus on the “fun” when I am planning, or my ideas can fall flat. What I have shared with you are my tried and true, never-fail, summer fun ideas after years of practicing them. I hope they resonate with you and give you the jump start you may need to have an awesome, unforgettable summer with your kids. After all, we only get 18 of them!!! Enjoy every moment, mamas! Find the joy in everyday this summer!