“Moooom, I’m soooo booorred!!!”
It’s a sentence that every Mom dreads and is bound to hear more than once while their kids are out of school for the summer. Beat summer break boredom with this list of 50 fun things to do with your kids. They range from free to frugal to a little more costly, but they all involve extra quality time with your kids – something we can all afford to spend more on!
1) Take advantage of Franks Theatres Summer Kids Movie Series. Each week on Tuesday and Thursday at 10 AM, a family-friendly movie plays for just $1.00 admission. Next weeks movie is Despicable Me. Visit Franks Theatre online for a complete listing for the summer or call 609.889.4799.
2) Throw a Very Merry UN-Birthday Party! You more than likely have streamers and a few decorations stashed away somewhere from birthdays past and if not you can easily and inexpensively grab some from the dollar store. Throw up some decorations, bake and decorate a cake together and have yourselves an un-birthday party for your entire family! You can sing, make un-birthday cards for each other and play traditional birthday party games like Pin the Tail on the Donkey.
3) Visit the zoo. We’re fortunate to have an awesome, free zoo here in Cape May County. Go early, pack a picnic lunch and make a day of it. You can head home after lunch and beat the heat and the bulk of the crowds. Be sure to check out the Albino Alligator who’s making her home in Cape May County until the end of the summer.
4) Get on your suits, set up the sprinklers and go wild! This means you too, Mom! You’re never too old to run through a sprinkler. Your kids will have a blast, your lawn will get watered and when it’s time to turn the water off, you can give your kids a quick lessen in water conservation and reducing energy costs. Talk to your kids about other ways to save water too, like turning off the faucet while they’re brushing their teeth and taking shorter showers.
5) Make “Mini-Me’s”. Use big pieces of cardboard (long and wide enough for your kids to lie down on) and trace your child from head to toe. Let them decorate their “mini-me” to look like them – hair color, eye color, etc. After they do, you can cut them out and let them dress their “mini-me” in their own clothes.
6) Take a ride on the Dark Star Pirate Ship, located in Wildwood Crest. The cost is $23pp, use promo code: DrkStrWeb when ordering to save $2 off each ticket (under 30” ride for free). This authentic Pirate Cruise includes face painting, an eye patch, a pirate cup (which your pirate will use to drink “grog” aboard the ship) and a ride at “sea” where you and your family become members of the crew. The cruise includes a story plot. It’s like going to a dinner theater, without the dinner, while on a boat. You’ll be thoroughly entertained, learn to talk like a pirate, hunt for sunken treasure and much, much more!
7) Enjoy a morning or afternoon at your closest branch of the Cape May County Library. The library has books for every member of your family – plus it’s air conditioned! Studies have shown that reading as few as 5 books over summer vacation can improve literacy and test scores in the next school year. Visit the library’s Kids Page for information on their events, kids programs, family programs, story times and summer reading clubs.
8 ) Save the planet – one street at a time. Arm yourselves with bags and hit the streets collecting trash and recyclables. Enlist other kids in your neighborhood to help too. This may not be an activity that excites older kids, but you’ll be sending them an important message. If you’re kids are particularly opposed to it, you could use it as punishment for poor behavior. My kids are pre-school age and collecting trash from our neighborhood is actually one of their favorite things to do.
9) Hold a Cooking Class in your kitchen. Kids love helping in the kitchen! Teach your kids how to make a complete meal. It could be a family favorite dish, an old family recipe or a brand-new recipe you’ve never tried that you can learn to prepare together.
10) Go camping…in your own backyard! Pitch a tent and sleep in your backyard for the night. Make sure you’ve got the fixings for s’mores in stock. You can’t very well go camping without making s’mores…even if you’re only in your own backyard.
11) Have a water balloon fight! Nothing says “summer fun” like a good old fashioned water balloon fight! For smaller kids, a water balloon toss and water balloon relay races might be a bit less threatening.
12) Make home made lemonade or sun tea. Rely on your trusty friend Google for directions.
13) Visit Historic Cold Spring Village. HCSV is a non-profit 30-acre Early American open-air living history museum. It is dedicated to historic education and preservation. Your family will be transported back in time to the 1800’s as you roam the village and visit each of the 26 restored historic buildings on site. There are historical guides throughout the village dressed in the clothing of the era. There are demonstrations of the trade and crafts of the time period including basketweaving, blacksmithing and woodworking. There’s also an ice cream parlor and country store! Single-day admission is as follows: adults $10, kids 3-12 $8, kids under 3 are free. A family membership for two adults and up to 6 kids is just $55 for the season.
14) Get a big, juicy watermelon. Slice it up, sit outside and enjoy! How about a watermelon seed spitting contest? Fun!
15) After dinner have your kids decorate old jars with lids, use a hammer and nail to make holes in the lids, then head outside at twilight and catch fireflies.
16) Make a trip to one of the many Farmer’s Markets in Cape May County and pick out some locally grown fresh fruits and veggies. The new Ferry Fresh Farmer’s Market will take place every Saturday 9 AM – 3 PM from July 2nd – September 3rd at the Cape May-Lewes Ferry Terminal.
17) Get ice cream from the Ice Cream Man. Sure the truck is loud and obnoxious, sure the ice cream and Popsicles are ridiculously overpriced… but you have to let your kids get ice cream from the Ice Cream Man ATLEAST once this summer!
18) Like creepy crawlies? Visit the new Wildwood Insectarium, located on the Boardwalk at Hildreth Ave. See, touch and experience some of the smallest, yet amazing creatures on Earth. They’re open daily from 10-10, admission is $10 for adults and $8 for kids. There’s also a café and gift shop.
19) Check out these cool ideas to make your backyard more fun!
20) Go for regular walks. In the evening after dinner and before bed and first thing in the morning are both good times. Taking a walk with your kids is not only great exercise, it’s also more quality time together. You can take in the scenery, block out the concerns of the day and just enjoy each other’s company.
21) Go park hopping. With the help of your kids, make a list of all the local parks you can think of. Pick a day each week that you will visit a park on the list. Playing at the park is a great way to have fun (for free) with your kids. Knowing they’ll be going to a different park each week will give your kids something to look forward to.
22) Take a mini-road trip and visit Lucy the Elephant in Margate. Your kids are sure to be fascinated as they climb the six-story elephant and then reach the top to over look the ocean. Lucy is an impressive 129 years old, 65 feet tall and 60 feet wide! Lucy is open 7 days a week, admission is $6 for adults, $3 for kids under 12 and free for kids 2 and under.
(For more ideas and information on family fun in and around Atlantic City, visit FamilyFriendlyAC.com.)
23) This may seem a little obvious, living in Cape May County and having so many of them available to us, but spend a day at the beach! Living at the shore, we sometimes take the magic of the beach for granted. There’s an unlimited supply of family fun available at the beach! Make sure you’ve got your Mom’s Beach Bag Essentials packed!
(Be sure to visit Cape May County Mom’s The Buzz on the Beach to ask and answer beach questions!)
24) Have a Kids Choice Day. Your kids choose what your family eats for breakfast, lunch, dinner and snacks. Your kids pick the activities of the day. It’s a special day where the kids make the decisions and the kids are in charge! Not only will your kids think it’s awesome, they’ll feel valued and important too.
25) Be sure to take plenty of photos of your summer fun! Each week work on a scrapbook page of the prior week. At the end of the summer you’ll have a special memory book of Summer 2011 to look back on.
ENJOY YOUR KIDS. ENJOY YOUR SUMMER.
*Photo credits to: dailyclipart.net, health.learninginfo.org, realbollywood.com & allstaractivities.com*
