Whether you work from home, or are a stay-at-home parent, or work outside the house, you need practical ideas to keep your kids busy, particularly during the summer months.
Here are some fun Ideas and activities we enjoyed with our children when they were younger.
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Grow fresh herbs in containers. Use old coffee cans, milk jugs, mason jars, plastic cups, or anything else you have around the house. Keep your herb garden on a patio or windowsill.
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Pick your own. Find a farm with blueberries, strawberries, raspberries, veggies, or flowers and get picking.
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Find a free concert near you. Kick back and enjoy some tunes with the family.
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Go to a local carnival or county fair. Eat cotton candy, elephant ears, or something really bad at least once this summer.
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Pack a picnic. Plop down to eat it just about anywhere such as a free concert, at a playground, or in a state park.
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Take in a minor-league baseball game. The parks are super family-friendly and there's always a fun giveaway or chance to win a prize.
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Visit a historic house or farm. Learn how times have changed and what people back then lived without.
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Visit a local farmers' market. Feast on the fruits and veggies of the season and enjoy a few locally-made treats.
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Play outside in the rain. Smell the rain on the pavement; splash in puddles; make mud pies.
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Run in the yard. Play kickball, frisbee, tag, and other outdoor games. You could even create your own summer Olympics.
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Set up a badminton net. Have a family badminton tournament or use the net to play volleyball with a beach ball.
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Take a hike. Choose a route near your house or take a drive to a more distant park.
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Take bike rides for fun. Either leave from your own house or drive to biking trails.
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Teach the kids to skip stones. Turn it into a competition.
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Camp in the backyard. Pitch a tent and bring out the sleeping bags. Sleep as a family under the stars.
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Catch lightning bugs. And then watch them flicker away into the night.
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Go to the drive-in. If there isn't one nearby, look for one near your vacation spot. Every kid should go to the drive-in at least once!
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Have a bonfire. Roast marshmallows and hot dogs. Make s'mores.
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Host an outdoor movie night. Rent or borrow a movie projector and show a movie on a white sheet draped across PVC pipe in the backyard. Or, use the side of your house as the screen. Bring sleeping bags, air mattresses, and pool rafts out as the seating and enjoy the show (with popcorn of course).
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Create and bake your own pizzas. Kids will enjoy picking their own toppings. They can help prep by shredding cheese, washing mushrooms, chopping veggies and so on.
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Let the kids cook dinner. Encourage them to plan the menu and shop for ingredients. Then allow them to cook dinner for the family. Supervise younger kids, but allow teens to go it alone.
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Make fresh lemonade or sun tea. Enjoy it on the front porch with some homemade cookies or sell it at a lemonade stand. I did this a lot as a child it was so fun!
