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Spring has sprung! The sun is out, flowers are blooming, and it’s time to go outside and get some fresh air. Now that winter is over and it’s warming up again, there is endless fun to be enjoyed with the whole family—old and young alike. These 9 activities are all affordable and can be entertaining for kids of any age.
1. Plant a Vegetable Garden
St. Louis University found that kids are more likely to eat vegetables if they are homegrown! Involve your kids in the growing process; let them pick out their favorite colorful veggies, plant the seeds, and help you water them. This process creates a positive food environment and encourages the kids to eat the vegetables that they had a hand in growing; rather than telling them to eat the store-bought veggies that they have no interest in.
2. Go Playground Hopping
Google Maps comes in handy for this one! Find all of the local parks and playgrounds in your area, and write them out in a numbered list. On the sunnier spring days, pick a random number out of a hat and go to that park! If you know you’ll have more time, try visiting a few in one day.
3. Paint Rocks for Your Garden
All you need for this is paint and rocks! No need for fancy paint brushes or anything extreme. Your kids will love finger painting the rocks and making a mess. Make sure you’re painting on a trash bag or table cloth for easier cleanup!
4. Make Your Own Bubble Soap
You can go basic with this one, or you can step your bubble soap game way up. Mix any dish soap with water and use your hands to blow bigger bubbles than your average store-bought bubble wand. To make super-size giant bubbles, you’ll need a lot more ingredients AND time, but it is definitely worth it! You’ll need dish soap, corn starch, baking powder, guar gum, rubbing alcohol, glycerine, and very hot water. You can also make your own super-sized bubble wand with wooden dowels and string! Check out the recipe and instructions here!
5. Go for a Family Bike Ride
If you have bikes, great! Family bike rides are a super fun way to get the kids outside and active and it’s a good workout for the whole family. If you find yourself bike-less, or you don’t have enough for the whole family, simply take a walk and enjoy nature! Quality family time spent in the fresh air is always a good idea!
6. Feed the Ducks
Scope out your nearest duck pond for this one! Feeding ducks is such a fun activity for the whole family, but the excitement on little one’s faces when they see a duck eat the food they dropped is priceless! Contrary to popular belief, ducks actually can’t digest and shouldn’t eat bread, so bring some other foods to the pond and feed them those! Ducks love lettuce, corn, frozen peas, seeds, oats, and rice and those snacks hold lots of nutritional value for the ducks too!
7. Start a Nature Journal
For this one, you’ll need a heavy book, a blank journal or notebook, and lots of flowers and plants. On your family walk, pick some colorful flowers or interesting leaves. Take them back home and press them in between the pages of your heaviest book. You can also keep the book under a heavy pot if you feel like you need more weight. Within a few days, your flowers and leaves will be dry and pressed flat, and you can carefully remove them and tape them into your blank journal! Write a little paragraph about where you found the plant, and as it gets full, you’ll have a book of springtime memories!
8. Build a Bird Feeder
Got spare holiday pinecones still laying around? Turn them into bird feeders! Cover a pinecone in peanut butter to make it sticky, then roll it in birdseed. Hang them from any trees in your yard, and have fun watching the birds come to grab a tasty treat!
9. Have a Picnic for Dinner
Picnics are a classic springtime activity, and you can have one at any time! Make or grab something tasty for dinner, and set a blanket out in your yard. As the seasons change, it starts to stay lighter outside for longer so you can watch a gorgeous spring sunset while you eat dinner and spend time with your family!
Take advantage of the changing seasons and newfound sunshine to spend some quality time with your family. These activities provide great opportunities to bond with your foster kids, or for foster kids to bond with their new siblings. Any of these activities can be modified to meet the size of your family, your budget, or your time constraints! Make sure you take this change of seasons to bring your family together and have a great spring!
