Mindfulness was a pretty foreign concept to me until I started therapy after Taylor’s birth. The experience changed me in a lot of ways, but I feel like it forced me to take a step back and reevaluate everything, and that may not be such a bad thing. I keep hearing about living “intentionally” and I think blogging makes me focus on it even more because I don’t want my family to feel like I’m living in my phone. So, this bucket list emcompasses both some of our family’s favorite summer traditions as well as some we haven’t tried and I would love to try this year! The idea is making memories, not spending tons of money on fancy trips… although those are fun, too! So, don’t aim to check them all off… just try to have as much fun as you can while you’re doing them! And feel free to tag me in your pics!!
- Trip to the Beach. For us, this is a given. My grandparents bought a summer home in a beach community for about $17k long before I was born. It eventually became my grandmother’s permanent home, and our family’s hub… especially in the summer. Slowly but surely, other relatives have bought homes in the same community, and we continue making memories at the beach with our little ones the same way we did as kids!
2. Visit your local ice cream shop — Again, this isn’t something we really need to do “intentionally”… we pretty much stop once a week from the time our local shop opens, because they are the bomb.com. BUT, bonus for inviting friends and enjoying a messy cone together!
3. Drive in Movie – There is actually a theater not too far from us, and I’ve never been! And… now that we have a pickup truck I feel like that is #summernightgoals to watch a drive in movie in the back of a pickup! This might even be a sweet date night idea, depending on what movies are showing this summer!
4. Go crabbing – This is actually one of our family’s favorite summer activities since I was a kid. My dad and cousins taught me growing up, and we taught our kids a couple summers ago.. along with some of their cousins… so now it is one of their favorite beach activities, too! Crabbing is SO EASY! All it takes is a string, a close pin, and a bucket. You tie one end of the string to the close pin, crack a mussel in half, and clamp it onto the close pin. Then hold the other end of the string and lower the mussel between the rocks and watch the crabs grab on! The kids really LOVE this activity… we catch them all, put them in a big bucket, count them, name them, and then set them free!
5. Ride a ferris wheel. – Whether you visit a local fair, a carnival, or an amusement park… hop on the ferris wheel! Mason swears he is going to be brave and ride one with me this year lol!
6. Go Camping! – I touched on this in a previous instapic… we went to a KOA last summer in Hershey Pennsylvania and we are headed back again because we loved it so much! With young kids, I definitely recommend getting a cabin… and the one at this KOA site are SO cute and perfect. They are still minimalist enough that you are really camping… but also have enough to store the staples with kids. We are going with another fire family this year, and I can’t wait, it should be a blast!
7. Make SMORES! – better yet… loaded smores! Last time we smushed our marshmallows & chocolate in between chocolate chip cookies! What ideas can you come up with?!
8. Visit the Zoo.
9. Have a picnic! – We love visiting state parks around us for both hiking and picnics!
10. Make a Dessert Pizza on the Grill! – We LOVE grilling all summer. Russ has a grill and two smokers… so it’s kind of his jam… and I LOVE to try anything he makes lol. BUT one of my favorite summer night snacks… desert pizza on the grill! We get pretty creative and I’ll be sure to share what he comes up with this summer!
11. See FIREWORKS! – this is a little iffy for us… Russ doesn’t love fireworks (he’s a USMC veteran and doesn’t care for loud explosive noises)… BUT as long as we are going to a show and he is prepared, he’s alright… and they are one of my favorite summer activities. I think they’re something really nostalgic for me. We went down to the beach by my grandmother’s every year and watched them on 4th of July when I was young. But more than that… I used to look at all the cute couples cuddled up watching them together and hope that someday I would get to do that, too… so I drag him with me to fulfill my own childhood fantasy haha. And Mason wears noise cancelling headphones lol.
12. Visit a farmers market. Buy local! Local fruits and veggies are my favorite!
13. Visit a winery or brewery – This sounds a little funny as a family activity.. but a lot of the ones around us are very family-friendly! Plus, they often have really nice, relaxing outdoor spaces and many are bring-your-own snacks! (Which is a win with my kids because they’re so frikken picky anyways lol)
14. Take a hike! BONUS: Find a waterfall or another cool spot!
15. Go to a baseball game.
16. Make smoothies. – This is one of our favorite breakfast or lunch snacks in the summer! I use crystal light lemonade, yogurt, and frozen fruit… so simple and so yummy!
17. Eat a lobster roll.
18. Have a water gun or water balloon fight.
19. Fly a kite.
20. Build a fort. Inside or outside, boxes, blankets, sticks, tarps – whatever works!
21. Wash your car.. you know, the old fashion way!
22. Make a birdhouse, or bird feeder. Russ was actually talking about bat houses to combat the mosquitos this year… I’ll have to research this a little more to see if I can make a craft out of it lol!
23. Catch an outdoor concert.
24. Visit a sunflower field or maze.
25. Go fishing. Mason’s first time fishing he caught a fishing pole. Gonna be hard to live up to that one, lol.
26. Catch fireflies.
27. Have a cookout – I already mentioned Russ’s smoking habit 😉 … he has a small smoker and a bigger one that his parent’s bought us last year. I’m not complaining at all. It’s a delicious habit.
28. Collect shells and seaglass. FRIENDS – I could use a little inspo on this one – what do you do with them once you have collected?? We collected such pretty ones on vacation last year and I still have no idea what to do with them!
29. Visit a yardsale or better yet… go antiquing!
30. Build a sandcastle.
31. Plant a tree. or a bush. or a flower. Just plant SOMETHING!
32. Check out a new town nearby!
33. Go to a museum.
34. Meet friends at the playground!
35. Rainy day library trip!
36. HOT ROCKS – My mom used to make these with use when we were little and it was one of my favorite crafts. Now, as a mom, I am working on landscaping, and would love some personalized rocks for my dry creek beds… so I am excited to try it with the boys! Taylor would absolutely burn herself… NOT a toddler activity lol.. she could probably paint some though!
37. Pick wildflowers. Make them into a bouquet and gift them to someone special!
38. Visit your local fire station. This is an easy one, and a given for us… we visit Russ at work all the time. But did you know that anyone can visit the fire station? Call ahead as a courtesy, but people drop in all the time! They are usually more than happy to show the kids all the trucks!
39. Set up an obstacle course… indoor or out!
40. Play catch.
41. Eat fair food – Fried oreos and the bloomin onion are my fav!
42. Visit a local farm or petting zoo. Any 4H Fairs around you? Have I mentioned we live in the country? Have I mentioned I love it? lol
43. Eat at a food truck.
44. Pick fresh fruit at a local orchard.
45. Dance in the Rain.
46. Hit some balls at the driving range.
47. Play a round of mini golf. (Mason started golf lessons this year… so golf had to make the list a couple times 😉 )
48. Tie-dye tshirts – This was actually Logan’s request!
49. Skip rocks. The boys always like to see if they can get more skips than Russ… so far they haven’t.
50. Go stargazing.
And most important of all… spend time with family. Slow down the pace. Enjoy each other. Make memories.
Have an amazing summer.
Love,
Mrs Quick