Memorial Day ushers in the lazy, hazy days of summer. Parents who work outside the home can make summer bright for children even if you don’t have a lot of time. A little planning is needed.
One fun way to enjoy the summer together is to plan a weekly adventure. This adventure can be in the neighborhood or surrounding area and does not have to cost a lot of money. Plan an evening picnic at one of our beautiful state parks—Canoe Creek, Glendale, and the Lemon House Park are within 45 minutes and can make for a beautiful family evening.
Young children have short attention spans so baseball games are often tough for them. You can, instead, visit a little league field and let them see a neighbor or another child close to their age have fun with the sport. It may encourage them to try T-Ball and baseball in coming years. You can leave at any time and the snack bars do have some healthy treats now.
Arts and crafts can be fun and simple after work. Set up an outdoor picnic table and decorate frames for vacation pictures or decorate a photo album for those summer adventures.
Pick a charity and sell lemonade and cookies for a few hours after school. Kids can have fun and learn about charitable giving.
Have an after-work backyard party. Have a luau and make hot dogs and pineapple. Do the Limbo. Make leis with tissue paper. There are a myriad of summer party ideas you can do very simply after work.
Remember that children do not do well on long drives so while children are young vacation within 3-5 hours of home or take the trip in two days. As my dad always said, “The journey is half the fun.” When vacationing, pick up the guide books, and make teachable moments at museums, conservation and rescue areas, and historical sites.
Don’t wait for vacation for that game of miniature golf. Try the Meadows or Glow Golf in Johnstown.
In short, don’t wait until you can do something big—try small fun things with your child. Make each day of summer a happy memory. Back yard camp-out anyone????]]>
