Summer Fun List 2013 (+ Free Printable)

I have been mentioning this for the past 3 years and it is that time once again!

One of my favorite things to do with the kids every summer is kick things off by making a summer fun list.  Some people call this a bucket list but for some reason bucket list sounds morbid to me so I just go with Summer Fun List.

Basically you can outline a list of things for the family to do together this summer.  It can be as much or as little as you like and there are several ways to go about it.

We tend to like to fit a lot in during summer so my list is a little long.  I know some of you might really enjoy a super laid back and relaxed summer so you might have just a handful of things.

Regardless it is a great way to outline things for the kiddos to do once that “Mom I’m bored” stuff gets going.   I really like to make lists as well so that our summer is very intentional.  My little girls are growing up so fast I really want to make sure we are enjoying each moment to the fullest and most importantly making memories that will last.

So anyway- here is how I did my list this year- we tend to have a mix of crafts, trips, cooking and activities.

I like to recommend that people play tourist in your own town- are there area attractions that you might take for granted?  We live in an area that is right by a major city, beaches, farms etc… so I have lots of little trips planned for this summer.  Are there certain things your kids love to do?  My big girl (below) loves craft projects so I try to think of fun things for her- this year we are going to make bouncy balls, do salt dough footprints, sand painting, making our own 4th of July t-shirts etc…

I also have some community activities like the outdoor movies (these are free at a local park), putt putt golf (we have never done that!), Vacation Bible School and this year we added a day of service to our list.  I wanted to get the kiddos involved in giving back in some way so we decided to participate in sending care packages to the troops stationed overseas.

And a lot of things don’t have to be a great big fancy pinterest worthy deal.  One of the things we already crossed off the list was perfecting a homemade lemonade recipe. Last year one of the biggest hits of the entire summer was the drive thru car wash :).  My girls had never done that and they still LOVE it more then anything.  I actually go through the car wash every few months as a treat for really good behavior from them. You might take a picnic to the park- and again that doesn’t have to be a big deal.  Grab a pizza on the way home or just fill a few mason jars with ice cream and take a 2L of root beer to the park for root beer floats.  I bet the kids love that.  Sometimes we even have picnics right on the front lawn of our house.

I also include some things that are just big projects I want to tackle- like cleaning the garage, redoing the chore charts and redecorating the playroom (aka disaster area).  Oh and both my girls have really become stinkers about eating food so as a family we are going to try a 5 Day Real Food Challenge.

And here are two ideas for you to get started.  I like printable lists myself that can be put up anywhere so here is one list with 100 different things to do this summer.  You can see our list above- I put ours on a chalkboard that I made and it is hanging right in the kitchen.

There are little boxes so you can check off what you do as the summer progresses.  There are all sorts of activities from picking blueberries to making root beer floats.

And as another option, here is the same list but blank so you can totally customize your own activities.

This year I did something a little different.  In addition to making a list of things for the kids this year I printed the blank summer list for myself.

I included some things I personally have been wanting to do and always seem to get bumped down to the bottom of my to- do list (like finally finishing Maya’s Baby Book- ahem… she is 4), organizing closets etc…  Just stuff I hope to finally get done once and for all- so not really “fun” per se but fun for me to finally not have to think about.

If the lists are not your thing, another option would be to write out all of your activities on a slip of paper and pop them into a jar.  Pick them out at random and there is your activity for the day.

And here are the free printables- please note these are for personal use only.  I would LOVE it if you decide to share these but please link back to this post and not directly to the printable.

Free Printable Summer Fun List with Activities

Free Printable Summer Fun List- Make Your Own

 Last but not least, I will be posting some of the recipes and crafts that work out for us but if you want to check out some of the things we did last summer:

Exploding Diet Coke Geysers 

Homemade Puffy Paint 

Homemade Playdoh 

Freezer Pop Painting

DIY Moon Sand 

DIY Bath Jellies (these are really fun for the tub) 

Make Giant Bubbles (so easy and way better then the stuff you buy) 

Easy colored rice (instead of sand for a sandbox) 

Have a fun summer!