life-without-summer-camp

As a stay at home mom, summer camp is not a necessity for me.  Each summer I'm faced with entertaining my two girls, now six and nine.  I start planning early to have plenty of activities.  The primary goal is to have a fun summer.  The secondary goal is to have a frugal summer!  It is definitely a bonus to have some learning experiences along the way.

Make a list!  The girls and I wrote our activity ideas on color coded paper so we could chose an appropriate activity for the day. We placed the ideas in a bowl.  If it is a rainy day, we would chose yellow, an inside activity.  On a nice day, green for an outside activity.

Find coupons or free activities to do in your community.

* City and State parks

* Library - summer reading programs

* Free bowling days

* Free or discount days at museums, aquariums and zoos

* Free or inexpensive movie days

* Visit a pet or outdoor store

For more summer boredom buster ideas: http://familyfun.go.com/summer/

Themes!!!!

Have a few theme weeks.  Chose an activity, books and outing to go along with your themes. For example, this week could be air & space.  Take a trip to the space museum.  Use free printable worksheets and books from the library to compliment your theme.

Enjoy your summer without breaking the bank!