Growing up, I loved summer! Not just because it meant school was out, summer was full of magic. The tan lines from a long day in the sun, the mason jar full of lightning bugs, the brain freeze from eating our melting popsicles and the way coca-cola tasted better on a boat. All those things still ring true, just now there's 3 littles in tow creating their summer magic.
Our summer isn't filled with vacays to new places or unlimited days off from work - so we are constantly looking for simple ways to have fun at home. Below I've rounded up a few activities we love and new things we plan to try out with our littles to create our own type of magic this summer.
Water Fun
- Bounce House: Hear me out, I know they can be a bit of an investment (and pain to store), but we love the bounce houses we have acquired over the years. These are perfect to get out those pre nap time/bed time sillies. Little Tikes has one that is great for itty bitty littles for indoor or outdoor play all year long! Recently, we invested in this super fun water bounce house that keeps the girls entertained and cooled off for hours!
- Water Table: Water tables are a summer must have at our house. We have this two tier water table which allows all three girls to play together. If your littles get tired of the same 'ole same 'ole, add sponges or toothbrushes with soap to let them clean the table and toys! Finished with cleaning those? Add in some rocks!
- Concrete Painting: No time or energy for tables and bounce houses? I got you! Grab a cup of water and a few paint brushes, then head to the sidewalk and let your littles get creative!
Other Outdoor Play
- Nature Scavenger Hunt: Create a list of things you commonly find in nature and help your toddlers find them. You can search for rocks, flowers, and different types of leaves. You can easily change it up by making a list of colors and finding things in nature to collect by color!
- Bird Watching: Take a walk and look for different types of birds. We love this bird book for toddlers and reading about commonly known birds. We recently purchased a bird feeder and some seed to hang off of our back porch for the girls to see birds visit our home!
- Make an Outside Fort: Our girls LOVE to make forts inside and sometimes I really don't want my living destroyed - feel me?! So grab blankets, towels and your outdoor cushions and let them make a fort (or at least some tunnels to crawl through) outside! This will also be super fun for a few games of hide and seek too!
- Obstacle Course: When the littles are over the fort, tear it down and make an obstacle course for them! You can also, lay the towels out from each other and play the floor is lava!
- Chalk Games: If you're like our family, your corn hole bags may be looking for a second life! Grab those and some sidewalk chalk for a new game for littles. Create a few circles (each with a different point value), then draw a starting line. Take turns using the bags to score into the circles and count up your points! Add in an extra layer of fun with some hopscotch before the bag toss to time and score it!
WHEW! Hopefully this will keep y'all busy for at least a day - HA!
But seriously, I hope this helps you and your littles create some magical memories this summer!
Not sure where to start first? Create an activity jar! Write each of these activities (and a few of your family favorites) on a popsicle stick, then place into a jar. Stir the sticks around and without looking, pull out a stick and enjoy your activity!
Let me know which idea was your favorite!
Have the best summer EVER and until next week, cheers friends!
