Outdoor Activities for a Family of 7

Have you heard of this group? It is full of nothing but outdoor ideas for famileis!

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/SoCalOutdoorsFamilies/

Lots of Love,
Linda
www.RivieraPlaySchool.com

2 moms found this helpful

Bonnie Springs up at Red Rock has a free animal petting zoo. If you want to feed the animals, they have little machines like gumball machine that dispense food for 25 cents. There is also a duck pond up there and a cute little restaurant with pretty good food. The prices are reasonable at the restaurant, but if you want to conserve you could definitely pack a picnic and eat out in the beautiful scenery.

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Red Rock Trails, Calico Basin, Floyd Lamb Park, Lake Mead with a bag of popcorn or bread, and my husband takes my little girl to the Bass Pro Shop for a free day of looking at fish.

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If you have a GPS unit, you can go Geo-Chaching! My brother does this with his 6 and 4 yr olds, and they LOVE it. They go to the geocache website to find the coordinates of geocaches in their area that are kid-friendly. Then they grab a few trinkets from home (marbles, crayons, McDonalds happy meal toys, etc.) and hike out to find the treasure box. Once they are in the coordinates (on the GPS unit) they start to look around for the box - hidden under a rock or in the crook of a tree) Then they open it and trade their treasures for one in the box. They stamp the log book and put the box back where they found it. It is a great way to take a hike and have a treasure hunt at the same time!

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Go online to Meetup.com and look for groups that get together to do things you like. I have starred hiking and meeting with people that have common interests. It is free and fun!

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Hey from a family of 8! Kite flying is great. You can start w/ cheap ones, and if they like it invest in the higher price ones. Costco get them in at summer time for about $20, and they are NICE for the price. We have invested in quads now, took a while to save, but so worth it. We all have fun,(13y-15m) (start saving now couple dollars a month) in a year or 2, get one) kids will be old enough then to really go on their own (3 of them at least) go hiking, back pack carriers for the babes.(used ones at thrift stores work great and $$is good I put hand towles or cloth diaper over the "teething" portion..but they scrub in the tub just fine. pick-nik lunches, scavanger hunt. make a list of things to find out side on a walk or in the mall(in another month) silly things kids can look for color of a sign, letters together, give them a list w/colors or what ever they are looking for age appropriate and HAVE FUN!! Catch bugs at the park. get a cheap set of "equipment" big lots get them in now/spring for CHEAP. kids LOVE BUGS...examine take a book from library with you and figure out what they are/eat etc. Plants/trees the same thing. Enjoy.

Hi there - I see you live in Vegas so I am not familiar with that area. I know we go to the park alot...but not just a regular park. We have one by us with a duck pond, a butterfly garden and hiking trails, and a small playground area. We take food for the ducks and a little lunch (we are about to be a family of 6) and it's a great 3-4 hours, at no cost. Fun for all ages!!

Good luck!

Short hikes are great. Try Eldorado Nature Center. I also like Atlantis park. Its fun for all ages. Not a hiking place but has some cute little trails and little climbers etc.
S.

Visit various parks and have a pic nic! Bring the ball one time, bubbles the next? Do a local narure trail, turn over rocks, jump on leaves......whatever entertains! You could visit somewhere like Seaport Village (not sure where you live) and walk and eat ice cream on the grass and watch the boats/kite flyers. If finances are not tight, ride the carousel. All kinds of fun things! Enjoy your family time!

Hi, D.,
I'm assuming you live in Southern CA? We love to go to the tidepools up near Point Fermin, San Pedro, etc. Also the Cabrillo Marine Museum up that way. There are also tidepools down by Laguna Beach somewhere. When my son was in preschool, we would take many trips (it's about 20-30 minute drive) to Irvine Regional Park in the city of Orange. It's a beautiful old park, great for picnics, and they have a small zoo there with animals native to the Pacific Southwest. They also have a train ride, and paddle boats, and a fishing lake. There is a small fee for those activities. Don't forget about the Nature Center at El Dorado Park in Long Beach. It's free! (except for parking.)
Good luck and have fun,
B.

Camping.
Hiking.
Picnic on the beach.
To a park (with or without playground.)
Or a different park every outing to see what's out there.
road trip to... ?
Grand canyon, joshua tree, whatever is around.
Ghost town (Calico?)

D. Y.

When my children were little, even as Y. as 8 months, we would take them camping and show them how enjoyable the outdoors are. There are places where children can play within the camp sites and still be safe. Teaching them about nature at this age can be lots of fun, also teaching them safety within nature is also very interesting as Y. children are very curious and lots of fun when they can use their imagination. They will learn how to spend more time outdoors when at home as well. Back yard camping trips will teach them how to behave during a camping trip also. Have fun!

Hi We vacation in Vegas a lot and like to go to the Ethel M Cand factory for the tour and they have a cactus garden that is fun to look at. We also like to watch the circus acts at Circus Circus but if you play a lot of midway games it can get expensive. Last summer we took the kids to Lake Mead in Laughlin had a blast on the water all day then stayed in a hotel at night and back on the lake during day wasn't very expensive at all. We also like spending time checking out the Bass Pro Shop. We live in CA and here we send lots of days at the park we try and go to a different one each time for variety. Bring a waffle ball & bat for fun bubble are cheap we play with sand toys & bring our own lunch. Do you have a zoo around another fun day. Go to the visitor center and get all the free coupon books and check out the tourist sites. Good luck!!

Travel Town in Griffith Park can be a lot of fun for little ones and adults. We pack a lunch and picnic there.

Kite flying.

bike riding

beach

I do not know where you live, Irvine regional park

The Annenberg Beach House is opening this Saturday in Santa Monica. A great beach experience with community pool, etc. It's FREE and open to the public. Check it out online.

Aloha

We have a family of 6 so I know what you mean by not spending a fortune.
Here is Hawaii the Honolulu Zoo has a family pass for a year for $25.00. What a deal!! Pack a lunch and drinks and you have a family fun day. Also we go to a local Park, Kakaaako and we grass slide on cardboard. There is lots of shaded trees and the babies are not in the sun. Again pack your Lunch, make a day!!
I also had the Childrens Musuem family pass when my kids were younger. The age range of interest would be from 1---10 years. But I am not sure on the family annual pass cost?
Another favorite outing of course in Hawaii is the beach. Everyone, any age group enjoys the beach.
Camping is also great. Get a group of friends and go. The hardest part is setting up and breaking down. But for 3-4 day, sharing the meals, was awesome. I would only cook 1 meal for the entire weekend!! The kids loved it. All the friends, family, crab hunting, swimming, playing in the sand etc,
It doesn't have to cost a fortune for a family to spend time together.