1. Go to the park. Not the one down the street that you go to every day. Find a park that you don't normally go to with playground equipment that your kids are bored with. Pack snacks and stay a while.
2. Walk by the water. Any body of water will do. Is there a beach close enough? A pond with ducks? (Bring bread!) A creek or waterfall near a hiking trail? Do you have an old remote control boat that's been forgotten about in the corner of the closet for years? Is it time to teach your kids to skip rocks? Does the lake rent out paddle boats for a buck?
3. Go hiking. You don't have to be a teenage Boy Scout with backpacking experience. Pick a hike that fits the abilities of your family. Maybe it's hike in the less tame areas of a local park. Maybe it's parking half a mile from Grandma's house and walking the rest of the way.
4. Play in the sprinklers. This requires a warm day, but what a blast. Even more fun that predictable sprinklers is parents with a hose. Who knows where the water will go next? If it's warm and raining at the same time, playing in the rain is hilarious! Or try the water balloon variation of playing in the water.
5. Go on a scavenger hunt. This takes some prep time on the parents' part. Put together a list of items to get and let the kids go door to door. Make it simple and all the neighbors will want to help. Have them get items like a Q-Tip, a gum wrapper or a piece of unpopped popcorn.
6. Go on a bike ride. If the kids are too young to ride on the street, get one of those trailers or a kid seat for your bike.
7. Go to the library. Apply for a library card if you don't have one. Get library cards for your kids if they're old enough. Get a book for everyone, including parents.
8. Invite friends over for a play date. Better yet, do the whole dinner thing with the kids and they can invite one or two friends for each. Let the kids play together, then serve a fancy meal of pizza or macaroni and cheese.Maybe the friends' parents will reciprocate and you can sneak off for a dinner sans kids sometime.
9. Play ball in the street or at the local park. By this I mean parents play too. Baseball, basketball, soccer, anything. It's just for fun, though. Don't get too serious or competitive. And don't forget the girls. They need to get out there too.
10. Bake cookies. Kids love to make something yummy. Just resign yourself to the fact that the kitchen is going to get messy. It's worth it.
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