With the onset of August comes the real heat of summer. MomSpeaker Trina O'Boyle shares eight backyard water activities she relies on to keep her two boys cool and productively occupied when the temps start to scorch.
As parents we are trying out best to keep everyone happy and cool throughout these hot summer days. Who doesn’t love playing in the water? Water play with kids can be a inexpensive way to stay cool and have fun. With having two very active young boys, I’ve had my challenges in this department. Here is what works for me….
- Pool. Don’t have your own pool? No problem – join a community pool in your area (many have half-season rates) or set up a small store-bought pool in your backyard.
- Sprinkler. This is one of the easiest ways to make the kids happy. Just place a inexpensive sprinkler in the backyard and let them run through it as many times as they would like.
- Water guns. Now I am not a fan of play guns; we don’t have them in the house. But when it comes to water I find it different because the kids are trying to get each other wet, not pretend to kill one another. You can even make a fun squirt-gun game using ping pong balls, wood and golf tees.
- Water table. We had one for years; it was perfect for the kids to use with their cars and animals, You can have just one big tub or get a dual-tub water table and fill one half with sand. You don’t even need to spend a lot of money – you can make your own water table with plastic bins.
- Painting with water. Get some old paintbrushes and fill buckets with water, and let the kids paint the house, sidewalk or even themselves.
- Car washing. Who wouldn’t have fun with a hose and bucket of soapy water?
- Water balloons. This may take a little time to prepare, so I suggest making the balloons the night before so they are ready in the morning. Check out this cool water balloon pinata, which is perfect for a kids' party or even everyday fun.
- Frozen fun. Gather a bunch of your kids' small toys, place them in a large bucket or baggie of water and freeze the toys. Once they are frozen take out the container and let the kids use child-size hammers, salt or warm water to get all the toys out.
Trina O'Boyle is a Drexel Hill, PA mom of two boys. This post is adapted from her blog, O'Boy Organic.
