Ahhhh…summer…
School is out here in the South and that means children are in the house…ALL THE TIME!
Our month of June is filled with softball, softball, softball. Many of our weekends (and then eventually weeks) in June will be at the ballpark. I’ll definitely need a vacation after all that activity!
So what does a budget minded mom do in the summer?
The first few days, I take some time to recover from all the end-of-the-year activities, and just head to the pool and play games at home. Eventually, however, the kids start to bounce off the walls and I have to get them out of the house. Here are some activities we have discovered:
- Sign your child(ren) up for VBS: We have tons of Vacation Bible Schools around here. Many of them offer different themes and activities for the community. This year one of them is offering a soccer camp! It’s a great opportunity to get your kids out of the house with activities geared for their agegroup. If you’re lucky, a few of them will be on different weeks so you can have several weeks of VBS just for your kids!
- Go pick some fruit: Find a local farm that offers produce you can pick and purchase. There is a place called Washington Farms near us where we go in the fall to pick our pumpkins. In the Spring, they offer strawberry picking! I haven’t been, yet, but from what my friends say, the strawberries are phenomenal.
- Visit a dairy farm: We live close to Mayfield Dairy which offers a tour and then $1 ice cream.
- Go to Sonic: Sonic has Happy Hour (1/2 priced drinks) everyday from 2PM-4PM. I will get the kids in the car and we’ll get 3 slushies for about $2.
- Go Geocaching: Last year I kept seeing post from a family about geocaching. I had to Google it to figure out what they were doing. (Originally I thought they were hunting some sort of southern lizard). Basically it’s a high-tech treasure hunt. If you have a GPS on your phone, you can play the game. Go HERE to learn more.
- Check out Library Activities: Your local library may offer fun activities throughout the summer. Bring the kids in and let them explore the world of reading.
- Watch a FREE movie: There are several theaters that offer free kids movies during the week throughout the summer:
- Regal
- AMC offers movies for $1
- The Great Escape
These are just a few ideas to save some money and get the kids out and about. If there is something your family loves to do that is inexpensive, I would LOVE to hear about it! Enjoy your summer!