6 Ways to Get Your Kids Outside This Summer

Every parent has it happen to them at least once in their lives - you're a week into summer vacation and your kids are already begging you to let them watch TV all day. And you're tempted to give in because you've totally run out of ideas. To keep this from happening to you this summer, here are a few ideas for when the TV seems like it's the only viable option.

Lemonade Stand

One of the best childhood memories that many people have is running a lemonade stand with their friends during the summer. Whether you want to use a powdered mix or squeeze the lemons by hand, lemonade stands make for a low-cost, low-stress option to keep your kids occupied for a few hours. Your kids could use Venmo Paypal or just accept cash from their neighbors, and you could help them decide what to do with that cash as a bonus additional activity. 

Sidewalk Art

Chalk is one of the best inventions of the last hundred years, especially for kids. A pack of washable sidewalk chalk and some painter's tape can make for hours of fun in the summer. Use the tape to create fun shapes and then color them in with the chalk, or just freestyle! If your driveways or sidewalks tend to heat up a lot in the sun, get out some gardening pads for the kids to kneel on as they create their art. Neighbors will love to see what the kids come up with, and the kids will get to do it all over again after the next rainfall.

Picnic Excursions

If you plan an entire excursion around eating, chances are you won't have kids grumbling about how hungry they are an hour into it. Picnics are an opportunity to eat fun new foods in a fun new environment, where kids are free to get messier than usual and the lines between playtime and mealtime are delightfully blurry. Even if you just take your picnic to your own backyard, the change of scenery eating on a fleece fabric picnic blanket might be more exciting for your kids than you anticipated. 

Scavenger Hunts

Sure, scavenger hunts usually take a lot of time to plan and prepare for, but it doesn't have to be that way. Try creating or just printing a pre-written scavenger hunt built around items that you already have around your area. Plants, garden hoses, and toys all make for easy items to check off the list. This is a great way to get your kids to engage with nature, work off some of that energy, and have fun all at the same time.

Camping Out

What could be more exciting for a kid than the prospect of spending a night in a tent outside? Camping can be a hassle, but there's no rule that says you can't just set up a tent in the backyard and make a day of it. Bonus points for roasting marshmallows over a fire and telling scary ghost stories with flashlights. Kids can try sleeping the whole night outside, or they could just come inside when they're ready for bed if that idea is a little too scary for them.

Paint Rocks

For kids who love drawing, painting, and all kinds of artistic pursuits, painting rocks is a great pastime. Rocks are a canvass that is abundant and cheap, and kids can put their newly painted art pieces in the garden when they're finished. And painted rocks can be reused for their own scavenger hunt later on - another bonus activity. With a little creativity, summertime fun doesn't have to be exhausting or expensive.