10 Frugal Summer Activities

Summer is here!!! As a frugal family we are always looking for low cost and free activies to do. The summer seems long, especially when you have to work while the kids are home. This is our first summer as a family with an elementary school kid. Brooklyn and I will both be attending and working summer school and we still have 3 nice weeks before and after for fun. 

1. Free reading programs and summer school: Schools and libraries plan all year for summer. There are so many free programs with flexible hours, attendance and categories to choose from.   

2. Get Outdoors: This goes without saying, this summer we will hike, be beach bums, and spend as much time in the backyard and at parks as possible. Not sure where to go? Get online and head to your county's park and recreation website. You'll be surprised with the hidden gems your area offers. 

3. Arts, Crafts, and Summer Toys: After all the rain we had this year, most of Brooklyn's beach buckets were ruined. I found some on sale at the beginning of Spring. This was also when I stocked up on chalk, bubbles, jump ropes, and more. We have a bin of art and craft supplies. I am never shy about how great the Dollar Tree's art and craft section has gotten. I go in there with about $10.00 and leave with a handful of really cool items to add to our bin. 

4. Baking, Cooking and Food Bars: Baking is something we love to do as a family. I have been collecting summer recipes for months now. Food bars are a hit when we have friends and family over. I don't always serve a meal, but I do popcorn bars, ice cream bars, and snack bars (with mostly items we already have) while entertaining. When we are home on breaks food seems to fly out the house so I strictly buy and cook what is on sale. 3 meals and a million snacks is a lot, every single day, so I prep pb&j sandwiches, waffles, fruit trays and more. I also do a weekly restock of a dry snack bin and a refrigerated snack bin so that we all have quick and easy snacks to grab. As a frugal family we don't buy preportion snacks, freezer meals, or bottles drinks. I spend about 2 hours a week (in 20-45 minute blocks) and prep things like lemonades, snacks, breakfast and lunch items. 

5. Look Locally: Not sure what to do? Get on Facebook events,  the Next Door app and sign up for notifications from your local parks and recreations. 

6. Contribute to your neighborhood and community: We are fortunate to live next to a lush green park that has a fully loaded recreation center and a cute little community flower garden. We have made friends with the neighbor who runs the garden and meet up with her on her gardening days. Community is not a thing of the past! Kevin and I often grab extra items on sale at the grocery store and take Brooklyn to donate them. Like everywhere else, our city has a huge housing crisis which has left many people homeless. We do what we can to help in the form of food donations. 

7. Clean, Purge, and Donate: Cleaning and purging is not only good for your home but it's good for your mind and soul as well. If you are anything like me, once you start purging, you find so many things not being used around your home. Bag those items up and donate them. Rehoming items is a great way to connect with neighbors and organize your home. 

8. Learn a new skill: Thank God for Youtube! There is almost nothing that you can't learn online nowadays. Learning a new skill can help save money, turn into a hobby and possibly even help you make money. From cooking to sewing, yoga, meditating, and more... there are so many people sharing valuable  information on Youtube. 

9. Make a vision board for next school year: Planning is something that I enjoy doing. So much so that I plan things well, wellllll in advance. Making a vision board for yourself, or with your kids can help you identify and strategically plan for things that do not go so smoothly this school year. 

10. Gatherings: Family and friend gatherings do not have to be over the top or expensive. There is something special about the focus of a gathering being on connections and love instead of stress and materialistic things. A gathering can still be nice with just the people and a few food items. Do what you can with what you got, is my motto. When people leave your gathering they'll remember the love that was shared, not the plates, settings, and decorations.

I hope this list has inspired you to plan some frugal fun for the family this summer. Follow us on instagram @40acrefamily. I'll be sharing frugal activities we do, recipes, sales and more. 

Excited about Summer? Our summer home fragrance collection drops Saturday June 17th!