Outdoor Summer Activities – Pool, Games, and More!
We spent a good bit of our summer time in the pool when we were home. Last year I got a blow up seesaw for the pool. It was a big hit with the kids! The hardest part was staying on when you were all wet!
Having fun in the pool!
We put crepe paper across the two doors with kids sleeping in them. They thought it was hilarious when they woke up and were barricaded in the room. They had a blast running through it that morning!
Karlie reading the “clues” for the treasure hunt that morning.
Looking for another clue!
The girls came up with a bunch of outdoor games for the whole family to play. One of them was a relay race in the side yard. The Dad’s even participated!
Another game required the teammates to hit the baseball.
Now were ready for the bike and scooter races!
Hula Hoop contest!
Noah thought he was pretty smart doing it on his arm instead of around the waist!
The youngest had the best hula hooping skills! She won hands down as the best hula hooper in both families!
Aunt Mirm braiding the girls hair. The thought that was pretty cool having all the fancy braids!
A lot of girly chitchat, giggles, and silliness going on in the back of the van.
Window Easels
Noelle’s window art
One of our fun summer crafty activities that ended up a big hit with all the kids was Window Easels! Each kid (ages 4 to 12) got to pick their own window as their easel and could draw whatever they wanted on it. I had a stack of window paint (like the ones you put on car windows) and each kid could come grab what colors they needed for their particular artwork. They had a blast doing it. I didn’t get a huge amount of pictures during the activity because I was helping distribute the paint and wiping up any drips as they happened. It has a big hit! I left the painted easels up for the rest of their stay so everyone could enjoy their artwork for several days. You could see the artwork both inside and outside of the house which was pretty neat! Some of the kids choose to paint both the top and bottom windows (while standing on a chair) while others just wanted to do one window.
Brina did both of her windows
Noah’s creatively decorated windows!
Nadia, the youngest one of the group, had a lot of fun doing her window – “All by herself!”
Karlie packed a lot onto her window – Art, Names, Signs, Shapes, Math, and more fun stuff!
Not only was it a lot of fun it gave me a good excuse to scrub down the windows this summer too! It was the perfect summer craft. It kept the kids entertained for quite awhile and there were very little clean up. Plus no one had to wait for turns at the easel because everyone had their own and they all painted at the same time. It was fun watching them paint and hearing them chitchat at the same time.
Fun at the Zoo!
Watching “Joy” the elephant play
We were able to squeeze in a fun trip to the Greenville Zoo with our cousins during summer vacation! A big thanks to our sweet cousin who shared zoo passes with us! Joy the elephant was playing with her tire while we were there. It was the last week Joy was at Greenville Zoo. A couple days later they were transporting her to a new zoo in Colorado.
Sweet girls!
Hanging out in the shade at the Giraffe exhibit. There were 3 giraffes in the pen and the Momma is expecting another one any day now! Great times with the cousins!
The turtles were very fascinating to watch!
A quick picture of the girls on the bear as we worked our way through the zoo!
We spent the morning at the zoo then headed to Cleveland Park to eat a picnic lunch and play on the playgrounds. It is always fun going on special trips with cousins. Thankful for a fun time together with family!
Welcome Family!
We painted “Welcome” on our driveway as we waited for extended family to arrive!
We have had a great summer break with our kids home from school!!! We packed in great adventures, time with our extended families, camps, Vacation Bible School, lots of memories, fun, history, road trips, flights, and much more! So thankful for a wonderful time with our family. Thanks for being patient with me as I enjoyed extra time with my family. It is my intention of getting back on schedule here soon. I will be posting some pictures of our summer fun soon!
Our first big summer adventure was having Jake’s sister and her family come stay with us for a week. They arrived on the same day the girls got out of school. We had a blast! As an added bonus of fun we also got to see Jake’s cousins who live in the area several times throughout the week as well. Thankful for family and fun times together!
The girls enjoying popsicles and ice cream bars!
The guys enjoying their game!
A pool full of fun!
The kids breaking open the pinata!
Playing the Jelly Belly game “Bean Boozled” with extended family! Everyone is waiting with anticipation to see if Aunt Cindy got a good flavor!
Snow cones were a hit with the kids one hot afternoon!
Greenville Drive Baseball Game & Fireworks
Greenville Drive Baseball Game
The other night as we were talking about summer the girls brought up the Greenville Drive and how much fun they had going to the games. There is just something about watching a game in person that makes it extra fun. It’s a great family summer activity too. Plus, if you time it right on certain nights they do fireworks (that is always a big highlight for our kids)! 🙂
We try to go to at least once (maybe more) to a Greenville Drive Baseball game each summer. Also, the past two summers the girls have earned rewards for doing the summer reading program through the local library which includes free tickets to a Greenville Drive game. Way to go girls!
As I was thinking about our conversation I came across some pictures of our last Greenville Drive Game and thought it was a good time to share. If your starting to think about summer break and planning some fun activities for your kids you should check into your local sports teams! For those of you who live near Greenville, SC you can check out the Greenville Drive’s 2013 Schedule online.
Brina and Karlie pausing for a brief moment from watching the game so I could snap a picture.
Fireworks after the Greenville Drive game are always a hit!
Starting to Plan the Kids Summer Break
Even though we have only just hit the Spring Season and entered into the month of April we are already making plans for this summer. I was looking back through our schedule last year. It was packed full of fun, adventures, and a lot of great memories.
As I get ready to plan for this summer I am remembering all the good stuff we were able to do last year. Although, I cannot know for sure what this summer may bring I am moving forward with the planning. The picture above shows the girls brief version of our calendar for July 2012. The calendar was simple but it helped them keep track of the big events and activities that were coming up. We kept it on the fridge so they could see it whenever they wanted, typically they would cross out the days as they ended.
What we would like to do:
- Travel – last summer we visited Charleston, Florida, Kansas, and Colorado. We are not entirely sure what it will look like this summer but we are hoping to go to at least Charleston and Kansas again. Thankful that the girls travel well! 🙂
- VBS – the girls love VBS and have a great time. It also provides great opportunities for learning too. We would like to attend at least one VBS program this summer.
- Camp – last summer the girls attended Swim Camp as well as Horse Camp. We would like for them to go to at least one camp this summer. They are currently signed up for WeDo Robotics Lego Camp at Roper Mountain Science Center and Swim Camp.
- Participate in the Library Summer Reading Program – the past 3 years the girls have participated in the Summer Reading program and have enjoyed it (as a bonus they usually earn rewards & free tickets to special events which help motivate them even more). We plan to participate in the program again this summer!
- Learn & Explore – we went to several educational places over the summer like Roper Mountain Science Center, Battery Park, took a Historical Carriage ride in Charleston and more. We plan to do more educational adventures this summer, some may be the same or similar, but we are hoping to branch out and try some new activities too!
- Relax – all the activities above are important but it is also valuable to have some time built in to rest, free time, play, and relax whether that means swinging, playing in the yard, drawing with chalk, hanging out with family, friends (and pets), riding bikes, roller skating, riding scooters, etc…
It doesn’t seem like a lot of activities but if you figure in the traveling and the fact that we only had two months of summer vacation we really did pack a lot into it. We hope to make the most of our summer break this year by planning some of our adventures in advance. It will be nice to catch up with some family, spend time learning, and make some great memories. What are your summer plans?
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