50 Awesome Ways To Have Fun This Summer

The late afternoon sun is beating down on my face. I am soaking up the warmth, taking in the sounds all around me. The kids are playing nicely (not quietly) in the backyard, while I am relaxing after a full day of memory-making fun. This is my first summer as a stay-at-home mom. The magnitude of being with my kids for the entire summer vacation isn’t lost on me.

It is exciting and slightly frightening (truth be told). I don’t want the days, weeks and months to slip away from us. I want the kids to go to bed on August 14th with their backpacks ready to go, uniforms laid out, blonde streaks in their hair, freckles on their noses, a full heart and overflowing memory bank filled with adventures, experiences and good times to last them until next summer.

I lean back in my chair, lazily reach for my chilled glass of wine, while I smile at the constant bickering between the three oldest kids. They argue, disagree and annoy each other for hours on end. At times, I am convinced that I will lose my sanity – until all of a sudden the noise levels drop. It’s when I can’t hear them that I worry… I sit back and say to myself “wait for it… wait for it…” in anticipation of an expected wail followed by an appearance by a crocodile-tear-covered little boy. It’s normally Jansen who is on the receiving end of his older brothers’ “you are not worthy to play with us” mentality.

50 awesome ways to have #fun this #summer! #SummerBucketList from a mother of 4 boys. Click To Tweet

But nothing… no wailing, no tears – no little boy appears. As it turns out, the kids… our boys are actually playing a board game – TOGETHER. No one is cheating, no one is disagreeing, everyone is following the same rules – playing the same game – together.

THIS is shaping up to be an awesome summer… It will be a summer of many “firsts”, some “once-in-a-life-times”, hopefully not too many “never-agains” and lots of “when-can-we-do-that-agains”!

The 50 Awesome Ways We Will Have Fun This Summer:

Pool
Beach
Science Museum
Play with neighbors
Learn how to swim
Water balloon fight
Make a Wish trip
S’mores with grandma and grandpa
Busch Wild Life Center
Loggerhead Marinelife Center
Boca Museum of Art
Library
Meet a LEGO Master Builder
Ride bikes and scooters
Nerf wars
Make our own pizza
Video game day
Pajama day
Breakfast for dinner
Minecraft game night
Clean and organize rooms
Play board games
Playdates with friends
San Diego Zoo
LEGOLAND
LEGOLAND Waterpark
Ice cream party
LEGO building contest
Go to the movies
Lunch with dada
Be bored
Explore an unfamiliar place
Build blanket forts
Play Doh
Write
Read
Ride the carousel
Go on a plane ride
Road trip
Be lazy
Exercise
Sleep in
Go to camp
Learn about coding
Do science projects
Collect sea glass
Play soccer
Blow bubbles
Color with chalk
Take pictures

I sit down with the kids after their game and we put together this fair and balanced bucket list for our summer. We will have lots of family time, unstructured time, but also a few structured activities. There is something for everyone on the list to look forward to. Together we will make this a summer to remember!

What would YOU like to accomplish with your family this summer?