Our weather is warming up, making it much easier for our family to get outside and enjoy the sunshine. We have several things for our kids to do in the backyard: a trampoline, a salmon ladder for the older two; a play house; a mud kitchen; and a pirate ship with a tree house. And yet, all of those things get old after only a few days! The trampoline is the exception to this rule though—that thing gets used a lot! So, even with all of these backyard options, it’s still necessary to come up with some fun, backyard activities for the kids. Of course, now, more than ever, they need to be inexpensive and a little more extraordinary than our usual bonfires.
Five Inexpensive, Fun Outdoor Activities to do With Your Kids This Weekend:
- Build a clubhouse—
My kids love to build forts in the woods at their grandparents’ house. One of our sons has built the most amazing fort I’ve ever seen! With two rooms, stump chairs, and an old satellite dish he found in my parents’ trash that he strung up in a tree, it is a serious fort!
In town, it’s a little more difficult, but the secret motivating ingredient is paint. Give your kids some scrap wood and some scrap paint and set them free to do whatever they want. You will have memories for a long time! Better yet, be available to help cut pieces if necessary and if they’d like your help, get in touch with your inner child and go for it!
If you’re just not feeling up to that right now, cut some pieces and help your child make and paint a birdhouse. Honestly, it will take more help from you than setting them free to build a fort, but it might be less of a mess in the long run.
- Have a Color War—
This is one of the most fun backyard activities for kids! Each family member gets his own color of chalk (or for a less expensive route, you can have only two or three colors and play as teams instead). When we did this last, I looked up a recipe and made my own color chalk powder, but it was pretty unsuccessful for the amount of work it took. This is one DIY that I don’t recommend! You can buy colored chalk powder online just for this purpose, but it gets pretty pricey. I recommend going to the hardware store and buying some chalk powder for snapping lines. You can get a big bottle and it comes in a few different colors.
Each family member can don an old, white shirt and have at it—chasing and spraying each other with different colors. Do wear eye protection and make a rule not to aim at faces because if inhaled, the chalk dust could probably cause some respiratory issues. Just be mindful and it will be fine.
If you have someone available who could take pictures for you, you will love them! Or, if you can at least take a self-timed family picture at the end, you won’t be sorry!
- Make Stepping Stones—
There’s no need to buy a full kit if you have a few things at home. All you need is a mold, (it can be as simple as a small plastic container) and some patching concrete. (Available at your “Essential” hardware store) This will give you all the details on making stepping stones at home. Even older kids will probably still be willing to put their handprints in a stone!
- Treasure Hunt—
A couple of years ago, my oldest son and my husband were gone for twelve days. Our younger kids were getting antsy for them to get home so I wanted to do something special and fun for them. I made clues and hid them at various places around town (i.e. a couple different parks; a friend’s yard; inside a car in our driveway; various places in the backyard, etc.) The final clue had the prize, which was to rent a movie from the Redbox. At first, it seemed really daunting and I was kind of dreading it.
But once I got the clues made and hidden around town, which took less than 30 minutes, the whole treasure hunt took about 20- 30 minutes from start to finish. I had planned to let my two older kids do this on their bikes together, but it got really cold and windy right when we were about to start, so I drove them around town instead. It was way more fun!
I can still remember all the giggling coming from the backseat as they tried to figure out the next clue! The kids still talk about it! And it took less than an hour of my time! We haven’t done this for a while, so this should definitely go into this week’s plans.
- Backyard Camping—
Maybe you can’t go anywhere right now, but some of the best camping memories can be made right in the backyard. Pitch a tent and make it a family affair! Roast marshmallows and hot dogs, tell funny stories and jokes, and wake up feeling refreshed (okay, just kidding! We all know what sleeping on the ground does to parents’ bodies, but it’s just one night!)
Pro-tip: A friend of mine bought a thick, foam, king-size mattress topper to put on the floor of the tent for all of them to sleep on. It’s way easier with no air mattresses to blow up; there is more space to sleep; and it prevents kids from falling off air mattresses and the ever-dreaded waking to a deflated mattress.
When it’s warmer, my kids like to sleep in hammocks outside. We typically only allow them to do that at their grandparents’ home in the country because our backyard is visible to passersby. Safety first!
I don’t think it’s quite warm enough for us to camp all night yet here, but that’s something I’m looking forward to doing in the next couple of weeks! Remember what I said before? Your kids won’t remember the places you went as much as they will remember what you did! You don’t have to go anywhere to make memories that will last a lifetime! What are your go-to fun, backyard activities for kids?
Weather not cooperating? See these five fun indoor activities!
