Fun Activities To Get The Kids Outdoors
Candy Olivares
Spring is here and it’s time to get the kids outdoors! Staying indoors is an overly common thing during the winter (depending on where you live). When spring rolls around, we are pretty much ready to break the door down ourselves as adults; so you and I both know the kids are ready as well. Here are some great tips and ideas to enjoy the outdoors this spring as a family.
Participate in Organized Outdoor activities in Your Community
I am all about getting to know the local community. A lot of organizations plan outdoor commemorative walks or run events in the spring. Check your local listings for those great events. If the event type doesn’t appeal to you as a participant, it’s a great opportunity to teach your kids about volunteering.
Be a helping hand and you’ll also get to enjoy the event. You’ll be doing good by doing your part to help the community and showing your kids it’s cool to help out. If you enjoy music and movies, check local listings for outdoor music and movies in the park. Great events that are always so much fun and your kids will think it’s great to do something different!
Plan Weekly Park Dates
Set up a family calendar and mark days where you can take the family out and enjoy a park in your area.
There’s nothing like a note on the calendar for “Family Fun,” to get the kids excited. Pick up a treat on the way and enjoy it in the sunlight. One of the things that many kids enjoy is being in a routine; making the park dates a weekly event sets them in a routine and gives them something to look forward to.
Try to go to a different park in your area each time or if you are lucky to have one near you, check out the state park. Many state parks offer great hiking trails. The things a child can learn on a hike about terrain, vegetation and being safe in the outdoors are invaluable. Some of my favorite memories are in the woods with my dad.
Purchase a New Toy to Use Outdoors
There’s nothing like looking forward to enjoying time outdoors when you’ve got a new toy to try out! Be it new dump trucks for the sandbox or a new ball to kick around, it’s always nice to have something to look forward to. We love taking our remote control trucks or helicopters outside.
My boys love making trails for the trucks to get thru; it’s so much fun. Or it can be as simple as purchasing a bottle of bubbles. The boys could chase bubbles for hours! The minutes turn into hours very quickly and they won’t want to come back inside.
Go Way Back
Teach your kids games you played outdoors during your youth. Grab the chalk—we are doing some hop-scotch! With kids, there’s a high chance you already have some sidewalk chalk around. Draw in the blocks, number them and grab a rock to mark off the number. You and your family will be getting fancy with your hops enjoying this classic favorite. Pull out the jump rope! Another oldie but goodie that the kids will enjoy. Jumping through the rope is half the battle right?
Plant a Garden
Do your kids like to play in the dirt like mine? One of the things we do as parents is constantly teach; our children learn from us every day. A beautiful lesson in life is to watch something grow. Even if it’s a small garden, cultivating something from a seed might not seem significant to an adult, but to a child, it’s like magic. Growing their own food might also entice a picky eater in your family to try new things. This is definitely a win-win!
Did I come up with a few ideas you hadn’t thought of? I sure hope so! The important thing is that you are enjoying the outdoors as a family. Being together is the most important factor while you build a closer relationship to your children. Not to mention you will be making amazing memories as well. Now get out there and enjoy.
Candy Olivares is the mother of two boys and the wife of a soldier. She’s a writer, wanna be runner-chef-television critic, traveler and just lover of all things family-life and fun.
