“Rest is not idleness, and to lie sometimes on the grass under trees on a summer’s day, listening to the murmur of the water, or watching the clouds float across the sky, is by no means a waste of time.”
John Lubbock, The Use of Life
Ah summer, with your long days and bouncy children, free to fill their days with….what exactly? After so much structure during the school year, it takes my kids a few weeks of boredom to rediscover their imaginations. It seems to me one of the very best way to fill those hours is undirected play. Sometimes I watch and listen to my kids, inventing games involving bad guys (basically, the primary ingredient for any worthwhile game), climbing like mountain goats, composing songs. One wanders around the yard whacking random rocks and logs with a baseball bat. This is legit fun for him.
When we are ready to go adventuring in the wide world, there are tons of cheap options we’ve found over the years:
- Dollar Movies: Beat the heat and loaf away a hot afternoon in air conditioned comfort. Theater chains like Regal offer showtimes for just a $1.00 on certain days of the week. Also check out Cinemark here. Score!
- Farmers Markers: Free fruit and veggie samples, fresh baked goodies, locally made body products, honey, grass fed meat….what’s not to love?!? My boys LOVE visiting local farmers markets. Often there is live music and little programs for kids or even food trucks. Bring cash and a large handled bag, or even better, a wagon to haul all your loot and kiddos.
- Kids Bowl Free: Tons of bowling alleys participate in this program offering free bowling for kids during the summer. There may be a small charge to rent shoes but still a great deal!
- Free Pool Days: Our local pool has several free days during the summer. Check the summer calendar at the beginning of the season and hit the pool early before it gets too crowded.
- Outdoor Concerts: University of Nevada Reno hosts smaller scale outdoor concerts during the summer featuring local bands, bouncy houses and snacks like popcorn, watermelon and lemonade. These are always fun and work well for kids of all ages. Pack a picnic and let the littles run around while you enjoy some tunes and support local talent. It’s an easy way to meet up with friends too. Bonus: these are often at beautiful venues!
- State Passport Programs: Several states like ours (Nevada) , Idaho, North Carolina and Oklahoma offer passport programs. Kids can get fun, free passport books that get stamped at each state park. Nevada provides free park admission once the passport is full. Other states give rewards or admission discounts and they all give lots of great photos and information on all the state parks.
Sometimes you just want to stay home, or your tiny’s nap schedule makes it hard to get out. We are in that season this year juggling infant and toddler naps. A few ideas that have worked for us:
- Surprise the kids and eat breakfast outside. Food outside always tastes better but breakfast is especially fun because it’s unexpected.
- Hit up the dollar store for sidewalk chalk, bubbles, sand toys, jump rope, balls and water guns. Dollar Tree actually has lots of activity ideas on their website like this one with pool noodles.
- Water balloon wars.
- Library Reading Programs. These offer lots of little rewards and incentives to keep those kiddos reading over the summer.
- Gardening! Give your kids their own little plot to grow kid friendly plants like sunflowers, pumpkins and tomatoes.
What are some of your favorite budget friendly activities in the summer?
