15 Wonderful and Fun Things for Your Family To Do This Summer
Are you ready to enjoy your summer? Are you at a loss for what you fun things your family should do this summer? Sometimes when there is no routine like during summer the kids can get a bit bored and as a parent, you’ll need some ideas of fun things for your family to do this summer.
I wanted to come up with some fun ideas that your family can do throughout this summer. My daughter is going into 7th grade so I tried to come up with activities that elementary or middle school-aged kids would enjoy. Though these ideas could be done with younger children as well
Most of these ideas are also budget friendly because having fun doesn’t need to cost a lot. There are plenty of ways for your family to do this summer that doesn’t cost much and might even be free. Hopefully, a few of these fifteen ideas will be a good plan for you to give a try for you and your kids.
1 Find some summer festivals or events
Check out the local events in your town or a nearby city. Many of these festivals are free or low cost. It’s a great opportunity to visit new places and have new experiences.
2. Visit the library and check out their events
The library is a great resource for parents in the summer. I am a huge believer in the benefit of reading and encouraging kids to read. So even just visiting the library to pick up some new books is a way to get out of the house into the air conditioning. Plus during the summer many libraries offer events like arts and crafts where kids can be creative and have fun.
3. plan a BBQ
Make plans for a BBQ with family or friends. You can go big or keep it simple. Check out my Father’s Day BBQ food ideas that are great for any time of summer. You’ll want to stay hydrated, especially the kids while you eat outdoors.
4. Get your kids in the kitchen
My daughter and nieces and nephews have always enjoyed getting in the kitchen and helping with meals and baking. It’s a great activity to do with kids and since it’s my favorite type of food here are some summer dessert recipes to try out.
5. make some time for arts and crafts
This is something that can be done with kids of all different ages. This is also a great idea to do outdoors when you can. My daughter loves chalk and has enjoyed painting outside. I like finding different ways to get her outside more during the day.
6. Hit the lake or beach
Hitting a lake or beach has been a pretty well-known idea for fun things for your family to do this summer. We use to live in California so I have been to the Pacific ocean countless times. This summer I’m visiting my parents in North Carolina and hope to get a chance to go to the beach there.
7. Family game nigh
One of my families favorite things to do together is play board games. We have built up quite the collection of games to play and enjoy fun nights of competing against each other.
There are quite a few favorites that we have. We love this Monopoly Ultimate Banking game. The good thing about this version is that it goes a bit faster than the original version.
8. Spend time with nature
This will depend on where you live. In California, it was mostly pool or occasionally the beach. Here in Colorado where we now live, we have more opportunities to go on hikes or go fishing. So where you live to find some outdoor things to do out in nature.
9. Visit the zoo
10. Go bowling or play mini golf
Visit their website ahead of time and see if they have any special deal days or coupons. This is a great way to save money on outings. A little planning ahead can save you money. You can also check out Groupon to find great deals on tickets. We have saved a lot by using Groupon deals.
11. Go camping even if just in your home or backyard
When we first moved to Colorado Isabella got a tent from her grandpa. I’m not much of a camper but she had fun “camping” in her tent in our living room a couple of times over the summer.
If you have the option to go camping or to do an at home camping this can be a great summer activity. I want to get one of these for us to use inside this summer. How fun is this? Bring a bit of outdoor camping magic inside.
12. Visit an aquarium
We have always loved visiting aquariums. Especially when Isabella and her cousins were younger. In California, I loved going to them more than the zoo because they are indoors and the zoo is outside and it was so hot in the summer.
Check out Groupon for ticket deals for aquariums as well. I often see our local one on there. If you are going to go somewhere and buy tickets you might as well get them at the best price.
13. have a pool day
Going swimming is always a big part of our summer activities. My husband use to swim a lot in high school as part of the team. So he got Isabella swimming pretty early. She still loves swimming and it’s one of her favorite things to do in the summer.
If you don’t have a pool of your own or a close family member or a friend with a pool you can check out and see if there is a public pool near you to go swimming at.
Another option, especially with young kids is to get a water pad or blow up pool for your yard.
14. Movie night
Whether you go out to the movies in a theater or do a movie night at home. Movie night or day is a fun way to spend time together inside when the weather is hot.
We try to find a discount theater if we can to go for the lowest price. If not we go to the first showing of the day which is usually the cheapest ticket.
15. Set up a picnic
Let the kids invite some friends over and throw a picnic. Load up lunch into a picnic basket and head outside for a fun lunch that feels more special because it’s not inside like usual.
