What are popular summer activities with kids

K.,

Jump rope is an activity that is great and can be done all summer with all kinds of variations.

Plan a dress-up tea for them and their friends, even if it's just teddy bears and dolls. Really plan it: what will we wear; what will we serve; how will we serve it; what do we need to buy for it; make the things together.

Make a different type of cookie, bread or biscuit each week. Make a different food each week. Girls are losing their ability to cook.

Have a neighborhood kids time once or twice a week, where the kids in the neighborhood come and you have stories, snacks, activities, etc. The girls can help you prepare and decide what their favorite stories are to go over.

Have a play. Write your own, or use a favorite story. Use dolls and stuffed critters for extras. You can turn this into a puppet show by standing behind the couch and using the top of the couch as a stage.

Give the girls blankets and chairs and clothes pins and let them build a fort in the living room.

Sleep out in the yard and look at the stars. If it gets rained out, sleep in the living room and tell stories you remember from your grandparents.

Have a sleep-over.

Have a "spend the day outside" day. And, spend the whole day outside, even if it rains. This is kind of like camping, but in your yard.

Write to missionaries or other people who live in foreign lands and make a book about that land.

Organize a bike parade for your neighborhood, church, or town. Or just a kids parade.

Hope this helps,
D. S
Mom to five, but just one little one at home now. Sure miss the crowd. :D

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K., you didn't mention the age of your children, and that makes some difference in the types of activities they might enjoy. Since they are girls, I would suggest watercolor painting for younger or paint by number for older. Most all children love to paint. Puzzles are fun. Books are, too. You can visit your library for free. Take turns letting them read or you can choose a book and read to them. There are excellent chapter books for various ages. Most girls like games, too. You can make your own, if funds are limited. Bingo or memory games can easily be made. Remember the game "I Spy" or...make up silly rhymes together... If you have old magazines or newspapers, you can think of activities using those--search for particular words and circle them or search for pictures of certain things, cut out and glue on paper. Have an indoor treasure hunt. Hide little treasures and let them find them--maybe little individually wrapped candies... The most important thing to remember is- any activity will be fun if you take part with them and show your excitement in doing so. Good luck!

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I know you were requesting indoor activities, but I have an out door activity that is really cheap and fun. So when you and the girls get cabin fever and are ready to get out of the house consider this.

My family enjoys going to Helen Ga and tubing down the chattahoochie river on an inner tube. The cost to rent a tube is $5 a person. Any outfitter you use will pick you up from the exit point and take you back to your car and their post. It is really relaxing just floating through the trees and at some point downtown Helen. The adventure usually last 2-3 hours.

You can take little children because they have tubes with bottoms and you can either rest a small child on your chest or lap or tether them with a cord that they provide. When my daughter was less than a year old or used the tubes with bottoms, we didn't have to pay for her. That was 7 years ago.

It was great fun!! Enjoy your summer!

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If you're trying to come up with craft ideas then there are some great websites:
www.crayola.com
www.dltk.com (I think)
You can also google "craft ideas" or "crafts for kids" (or something of that sort) and find some great ideas that way.

Another thing is let them "scrapbook" with pictures from the past year. They may enjoy coloring and decorating the pages with glitter, etc.

Also... I know dltk has BINGO cards you can print out - that may be a fun game for y'all to play (I'm sure you have a wealth of board games to choose from).

I've also enjoyed painting small terra cota pots with kids and then allowing them to plant some seeds to watch their flowers grow.

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Can you gals set up some outside activities like:

How about a dinosaur dig! Well, really it doesn't have to be dinosaurs.. anything can be fun to find! You or someone else could bury some "artifacts" around the yard. Then the girls could spend the afternoon digging up treasures!

Make a treasure map and then send them out to find whatever it is you have left for them. A new story, or a picnic lunch, or ????

Picnics are always nice! The kids can help make the food which makes it even more special!

How about a slumber party in the back yard with a tent...Well, that is if you have one! You could cook hotdogs and marshmallows over a firepit (our family uses the old one we bought from Home Depot for this all the time) and then tell stories and make shadow puppets. If you are lucky you might live in an area with firefly's!!

I know you said no movies but.... We have an old sears reel-to-reel projector and some times we pull it out and watch old old super 8 movies of us when we were litte!
You can set this up outside really easy with a sheet or onto the side of the house. Again, like the tent, this only works if you already have it!

Best wishes for a great summer!

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Last weekend I was going to take the girls to the local park where they have water fountains they can run through, but there was a concert going on so we went to plan B--Bruster's for ice cream and then to Barnes & Noble to play at the train table. I have two girls ages 14 mos...not just an activity for the boys...one of them cries every time I pull her away from Thomas the Train!

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Here are a few things we love to do (my girls are almost 2 and 3)

-Build forts
-Play catch with beach balls
-Have a marching band
-Bubbles
-Wanamaker - the little kid side stays in the shade all day.
-Bike rides
-Make cookies
-Read books
-Go to Boone Farm and pick strawberries. Then eat at the hot dog stand up the road.
-Celebration Town or a jump house of your liking
-The play place at Chick-fil-a
-Cut paper (my 3 year old is learning to use scissors)
-Finger pait or paint with watercolors (very cheap so you don't care when they all end up looking like the same color) Then mail the pictures to family and friends.
-Have playdates at friends houses
-Parents.com has coloring book pages you can print for something new to color
-Chuck-E-Cheese offers good coupons if you sign up on their website and the kids love it.
-Cypress Gardens is great for the kids. They love the butterflies and other animals. You could also have a picnic there.

Have a fun summer and try to stay cool!

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Here are some good ideas for you to do with your children.
Maybe this will help.
Meaningful Moments



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I'm Sending You My Love
Write your child a letter soon after they are born. Fill it with your thoughts, hopes, dreams and the experience of bringing a new life into the world. Place your note in an envelope and inscribe, "On the day you were born" on it, and tuck it in a journaling-type book. Each year on your child's birthday, write another letter to her—fill it with the memories, milestones, dreams, events, ideas and the life that you and your family have created throughout the year. When your child grows up and has a place of his or her own, present the book and continue to send the letters on your child's birthday. You will have written a book and told the story of two very special people: you and your child.

If we are really lucky, we have a lifetime with our children to help them grow and teach them and to love them. Sadly, some do not get that chance, but this story shares how we can touch a life in positive, deep ways, even if we are no longer here…

A mother dying of cancer gave a gift to her 7-year-old daughter. She took the time to map out and script letters for all of the future milestones she envisioned missing in her daughter's life—birthdays, graduations, her wedding day and the birth of her children. The idea was that her writings would be given to her daughter throughout her life from the most special woman in her life: her mother. Although she was about to physically say goodbye, this devoted mom was ensuring that she'd continue to live in her daughter's life through these precious expressions of love.

A good morning »


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A Good Morning
In soap or lipstick, write, "You're the best!" or "Have a great day!" on the bathroom mirror where your child will see it when brushing his or her teeth. And at breakfast, try spelling out, "I love you" with individual letters from alphabet cereal. Of course, you will have to pick through the box to find eight letters, but the message will then have your personal touch. Surprise your son with his favorite cookies in his lunch box—the sugary ones that he regularly begs for in the grocery aisle, but rarely receives.

Or reach for a banana, like my friend did to keep connected to her boys. "During elementary school, I'd pack their lunches every day and I'd always put a banana in each bag. One day I started writing little notes—jokes and riddles on the banana peel with a permanent pen. The boys loved it and looked forward to their lunchtime surprise. I loved it, too, knowing that as I was thinking about them at lunchtime, they would be thinking of me. Of course, by middle school, they asked me to stop sending notes on their bananas. They were 'too old.' The boys really did get a kick out of it!"

If bananas aren't your thing, simply write a note, a riddle or cut a comic that your child loves from the newspaper. Your child will enjoy getting that extra-special something from you and all his or her classmates will be waiting each day to see what's next.

Birthday pictures »


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Smile, It's Your Birthday
Every year on your child's birthday, take their picture while they hold a sign with the number of how old they are. Find a book or a place in your home to display these wonderful reminders of your child's growth. I recently heard from a 49-year-old man whose mom had done this all his life. Sadly, she had just passed away, but he decided to continue taking pictures to keep the tradition going as a way to honor his mother.

Meaningful Moments



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Walk the Dog
I know a woman who was tired of feeling rushed and frazzled in the mornings. She'd hurriedly walk her four sweet dogs, and then rush back to make sure her 9-year-old son had eaten breakfast. Then she'd race off to drive him to school, but get caught waiting in traffic lines. Then, she got creative. She decided to combine her two activities by walking her son to school with the four dogs in tow. All seven of them—she and her husband, one child and four dogs—became a "walking party." Each morning, they began a lively, new adventure. Cars slowed to view their parade, and they often saw tired-looking commuters glance over in surprise, then break out in wide grins and wave enthusiastically. Once in a while, someone would honk in appreciation.

Kids at the elementary school really loved seeing the family arrive at the drop-off area. After just a few weeks, as many as 40 children would be at the front gate for the arrival of their new furry friends—always telling the family about their own dog companions, waiting for them back at home. It was like a traveling petting zoo. The boy stopped hating mornings (so did his mother) and started looking forward to school. Even the dogs appeared to walk with a newfound pride and purpose.

Meaningful Moments



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Share What Matters
There is no end to the ways in which we can share what's in our hearts. Teach your children at a young age that what they think matters. This is a short and sweet example of a family that created a book for a special celebration. Their beautiful book, Love is, was made to celebrate a 45th wedding anniversary. The children and grandchildren of the love birds each thoughtfully described the lessons they'd learned about love from their mother and father (or grandmother and grandfather). Lessons like: "Love is: Even when Grandpa forgets to pick up Grandma at the hairdressers, she still loves him." And, "Love is: "When Dad sat up all night when Mom got the flu, just to be sure she didn't need anything." And, "Love is: When Grandma lets the dog up on the sofa and lets her lick out of the ice cream bowl, and Grandpa doesn't get mad." And, "Love is: When Mom tells Dad that her favorite room in the house is the one he is in." And, my personal favorite, "Love is: When Grandpa calls Grandma Sweat Pea."

Meaningful Moments



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Celebrate the Firsts, the Lasts and Everything in Between
Every September, sure as clockwork, summer comes to an end and the first morning of school arrives. Lazy days, swimming pools, flip-flops and vacations are exchanged for alarm clocks, book bags, school buses and schedules. In my house, we have a love/hate relationship with the beginning of school. We hate to see summer come to a close, but we love to start a new year, filled with possibilities and friendships.

The moment our daughter started school, we started a tradition. Dressed in her finest first-day outfit, Hannah is photographed with her book bag and gear. She is now in the 12th grade and we have 13 priceless photos (starting with kindergarten) of our baby as she has grown into a young woman. I wish I could say that I started organizing these memories into a photo album 13 years ago, but I did not. Until recently, the images were scattered among hundreds (honestly, thousands) of pictures that I, like many others, kept in shoeboxes. When I started searching to recover all 13 images, I was grateful to discover that some magically appeared in frames behind other pictures, while others rested patiently in their boxes. Excavating them was a wonderful journey through our life, and I was reminded of the people and events that have made it so special. Each of Hannah's pictures reflects a step in her life. The other photographs showed me the road we'd all taken together.

Other ways to stay connected »


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Other Artful Ways to Stay Connected

Make Friday nights game night—relax together with pizza, some healthy snacks and competition. Invite your children's best friends to join you.
Make a family history book using favorite words, photos and souvenirs.
I love a good game of black out: Turn off every light in the house (including night-lights and VCR lights) and play hide-and-seek. Prepare to have a blast tripping all over each other and even getting spooked a time or two.
Plant a garden with butterfly bushes and enjoy the visits of hundreds of butterflies.
Create a revolving art gallery of your kid's work in your home. Show them you think their art is a masterpiece. String wire between two hooks and hang the art with clothespins
Turn off the TV and put on your own plays and musicals, and share stories.
Turn on the soothing sounds of jazz and watch your family relax. Make a CD of your family's favorite tunes to be played on long car rides or rainy Sunday afternoons.
Create new everyday rituals: warm vanilla milk, a story or a kiss on the forehead before bedtime—special touches that will help your child drift off to a peaceful sleep.
Plant a garden together, and then watch as the seeds grow.
Make a video of your grandparents. Interview them about their lives and ask the funny questions that will brighten their faces and make them laugh. This project will become a cherished family heirloom.



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From B.- single mom of 2 boys in Taylors, SC

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