20+ Summer Fun Activities for Less than $20

Thank you Pinterest! When it comes to finding stuff, Pinterest is my go-to! This summer, I want to do some awesome outdoors-y type of stuff but drew a blank when thinking about what to do with my varying in age babies (we currently have an 8 year old, 21 month old, and a 3 month old)! Two searches and one click later, I’ve come up with some amazing things we ALL will enjoy!! Best part is majority (if not all) of the supplies can be found at our local Dollar Tree (or Dollar Store)! Instead of just pinning a bunch of pins that I rarely go back to check, let alone really attempt to do – I made my “get list” and went to the store!

Here’s what was on my shopping list:

• bubbles
• bubble tray with wand
• styrofoam letters and numbers (puzzle foams)
• buckets
• shovels
• hoola hoops
• kiddie watering cans
• aqua splash balls
• shower liner
• sponges
• badminton (wasn’t on the list but saw it and had to have it)
• bag of sea shells

Here’s a list of things I already have and plan to incorporate with summer play:

• drinking straws
• muffin pan
• cotton balls
• paint
• dry erase markers
• sidewalk chalk
• storage containers
• bucket (for storing bigger items)

Now here’s what’s on the to-do list with all these goodies:

Bubbles & Bubble wand
We all know what’s up when it comes to bubbles! Every kiddo LOVES them, and so do us adults, right?! There are lots of games we’ll play with bubbles, like: follow the bubbles, catch the bubbles, pop the bubbles, and so on. I just have to remember to make sure I take a few “natural” breaths between all the bubble blowing so I don’t get light headed! LOL

Sensory bins
With one of my containers, I cut up straws in different sizes (nothing too small for choking hazard purposes). This becomes an awesome sensory bin that can hold the styrofoam letters and numbers, as well as the magnetic ones that are usually
on the refrigerator. Other small items can go in here too. The kiddos will use the shovels (really made for sand) to sift through the straws and dig out hidden objects! The other container will become a nature sensory bin. We will use water, grass, and straw (thanks Daddo) to help hide and find things like sticks, flowers, the sea shells, rocks and more! Sand is also a great idea for a sensory bin!

Water fun
Water is so much fun to play in, especially on hot and humid days! The buckets, watering can, splash balls, and sponges will turn into hours of fun! From playing catch (with the splash balls) to sponge bulls eye, we are sure to stay cool with water flying everywhere! I eventually would like to do the pool noodle sprinkler too! Another sensory bin idea is to put water in a container (or two) and let the littles use the watering can to move water from one container to the next, fill it with flowers, or other water proof toys.

Hoola hoop croquet
I think this is going to be one of my favorites! We bought three hoola hoops which will be cut into halves and then stuck down in the ground. This becomes a nice croquet course for a soccer and/or kick ball! It also turns into an obstacle course for the littles who can crawl under the hoops and for the bigs who can jump over the hoops! Pair this with the buckets, splash balls, and shower liner (more about that next) for tons of fun!

Shower liner fun
I am excited to see how this turns out! I have come across so many things to do with a shower liner and I can’t believe I didn’t think of this before! So, I purchased a shower liner with the following ideas in mind:

• dry-erase marker doodling
• tic tac toe with frisbees (which I may just use sponges dipped in water)
• homemade slip-and-slide
• cotton ball painting

Ball fun
Badminton, soccer, kick ball, splash balls, and any other fun activities you can think of with balls is a great way to incorporate all ages for lots of fun for everyone! Whether we take turns tossing, kicking, rolling, or swatting – there will be something to play with for all the kiddos (even the baby).

Sidewalk fun
It wouldn’t even be summer if we didn’t have some type of sidewalk fun right? We already have two buckets of sidewalk chalk and will surely be picking up more! I believe the Dollar Tree has some stencils for sidewalk chalk too! Water play is also fun to do on the sidewalk as well. Grab a bucket, fill it with some water and let the toddler go at at!

Share your ideas for summer fun! I’d love to hear from you!