1. Attend a local family friendly event. Participating in events that are hosted in your area can help to build your sense of community. You’ll probably run into someone you know while you’re there, and possibly make some new friends along the way.
2. Spend a morning at a pick-your-own fruit/vegetable farm. Head out early to avoid the hottest hours of the day, and spend some time picking your own produce. This is a great way to teach the kids about where our food comes from and the work that goes into getting it from the farm to our tables.
3. Volunteer at a local community farm or garden.
4. Take part in a charity run or bike ride. Not only will this motivate your family to be more active, but it will support a great cause and create a more long term goal to work towards together.
5. Spend a day at the beach. Instead of collecting shells, help clean up the beach. Take the initiative on your own, or join in on a project like The Great Canadian Shoreline Cleanup.
6. Help save the monarch butterflies by planting milkweed.
7. Check out a local farmers market. It’s a lot of fun to explore the eclectic collection of goods at a market, and any purchases you make will be supporting local business.
8. Go bird watching. There are many parks that offer free guided tours. Familiarize yourselves with the winged creatures that are native to your area and their natural habitat.
9. Try geocaching. See your surroundings in a new light by participating in this worldwide outdoor treasure hunt.
10. Plant an organic food garden. It may seem a bit late for planting, but there is a variety of produce that you can grow over the summer for a fall harvest. Visit Mother Earth News for a list of the vegetables that will fare well in your climate.
Will you be adding any of these activities to your summer to do list? Can you think of something else we should try? I would love to hear your thoughts!
A great list of ideas! Thank you. I saw a few gardens this weekend with milkweed in them. So great seeing people take this initiative to help save the monarch butterflies!
We are doing a lot of gardening this year and teaching our children how to weed and harvest. They love it! Great ideas – sharing now!
where can we get milkweed to plant? I love the list and a lot of these are on our summer list as well.
A quick google search for a garden centre in your area that sells native plants should help you find a retailer near you. If you’re still having trouble, feel free to leave a comment with the area that you live in and I’d be happy to help you figure it out!