10 Dates To Take Your Kids On Before School Starts

Now is the season of our discontent.

The kids. They’re home. They’re bored. They’re whining.

We. Are. Going. Crazy!

Summer challenges even the most Pinteresting mom with the long hours and taxing heat. I’m sure we’d all manage just fine if it weren’t for the whining and squabbling that ensues.

If you have more than one kid it’s easy to lump them all in the same crockpot and think of them as a very bad stew. You’re annoyed with them and they are most likely annoyed with you. It’s them against you, and mutiny threatens.

What to do?

I’m busting out the old dating philosophy.  I think both parties need a little wooing. A little reconnecting. A little TLC to alleviate the irritation and tension.

Let’s review. Here is what dating does for a relationship:

1. It puts you on your best behavior.
2. It is generally planned ahead of time and tailored for the enjoyment of both parties.
3. It provides a nice break from reality.
4. It gives you time to consider all the things you love about that person.
5. If the date is successful, both parties walk away happier and closer to each other.

Guys, we need to date our kids. I think we too often take for granted our “unconditional” love we’re supposed to have for them as parents. We rely on the parental bond and hope that it covers the multitude of grievances throughout the day.

Parental love is legit. I think on it’s own, it can go far in benefitting both the child and the parent. But there is a relational love/chemistry/bond that supplements and bolsters the parental bond for greater heights.

When you actually “like” your kid you’re gonna love them better.

Summer is a time where we may or may not have trouble “liking” our kids. It’s ok to admit that. No judgment here, believe me! But I truly think there are things we can do as parents to help us like our kids more.

Yes, I just said that.

If you read my older posts about Mommy-Daughter Dating you’ll remember the strife and tension that existed between my mom and I when I was a little girl. If you missed it, let me catch you up: {Otherwise just scroll down}

• I was a difficult child. You know, that ONE kid who makes the whole family roll their eyes in exasperation? Me.
• I was the middle child of six, and I hardly ever got time alone with my mom.
• At about seven years old, I got to have a full day with my mom all by myself.
• The day transformed our relationship. We talked. We laughed. We shared frozen yogurt. Most importantly, my mom saw me as an individual person and I no longer was the bad meat of a bad stew.
• The time spent with my mom literally inspired me to behave better. Not perfect, but I truly allied myself with my mom and became her right-hand helper from then on out.

I’ve had similar experiences with my own daughter. She’s not nearly as hellish as I was, but she has her moments.  I have found that by singling her out and focusing on quality time we get a lot more out of our relationship.

We’ve got about one and half months left of summer and then the business will arrest every “I’m bored” and “Can we go to the pool again?” I look forward to it. But I don’t want to squander whats left. Therefore, here are a few parent-kid date ideas to try out before school.

1.)  Swim date. Ok, so we all take our kids to the pool a LOT during the summer, but how often do we full on try to participate in the swimming? If your kids can already swim, chances are you are going to let them have the run of the pool while you lounge and ponder the “It’s five o’clock somewhere” rule.

{Date}: Play with them at the pool. Marco polo, Little Mermaid, volleyball, whatever! Just be in the pool with them and engage!

2.)  Movie in the park. I don’t know where you live, but I’m in LA and there are a TON of movie-in-the-park events around here. My favorite idea: go to the Hollywood Forever Cemetery and watch some iconic old movies among the dead.

That was creepy. It’s not creepy! It’s super cool! They even have photo booths so you and your kiddo could take hilarious photos that will stand out in a lifetime of memories. Obviously, this would be recommended for children than my own four and three year olds.

3.) Beach Bucket List: Make your own Beach Bucket List and do one activity with each child individually.

4.) Go Paddle boarding! Ok, again, this is for bigger kids. My little Chaucer thinks he’s really five years old, which is still a little too young.

5.) Blindfolded Makeup Challenge: Have you seen those Youtube videos where one person is blindfolded and they put makeup on the other person? No? They’re funny, so you should get on that right after you read this. Anyways, I was thinking, it would be so fun to do this with my daughter and make a video of it!

My friend Rebecca over at Frugalista Blog did this with her daughter and it was hilarious!

(By the way if you’re not following Frugie–that is, Rebecca, you need to. Me love her long time.)

6.) Do A Pinterest Craft: We see them all the time. How often do we follow through? Now is the time, my friends. Let’s get cracking. I like this little roundup on The Celebration Shoppe for Summer Reading Crafts 

Don’t worry. If your craft is a Pinterest Fail, there’s a place for it. A place where failed crafts go and commiserate and the rest of us laugh. It’s called Craft Fail and it is a goldmine of fun and failure.

7.) Make A Pinterest Feast Together: This is like the craft, but with food. And if you fail, you can still send it to Craft Fail.

8.) Take Them To See Disney Planes! I don’t care what age your kid is, they should like this one. I’m excited about it! Also, you can score a $100 Fandango gift card right here on this blog if you go to this post.

9.) Play A Game: I think the art of board games is kind of falling by the wayside, don’t you? I LOVED when my parents would play board games with me as a kid. Now, thanks to technology, there are tons of ways to play games online–even together like at http://www.weluvbingo.com/”>WeLuvBingo.com  (they even have money prizes!)

Pop some popcorn, snuggle inside, and play a good old fashioned game of bingo or monopoly with your kiddo.

10.) Take One Kid To Disneyland: So, this is like the ultimate, and I don’t know if I’d ever be able to do it. Maybe now that I’m SoCal again and can get the season passes, maybe. But doesn’t it just seem…wrong? Therefore, it will be more fun. Take one kid to Disneyland. Alone.

How fun would that be? Maybe that’s on my new bucket list….

Do you have any grand plans for the remainder of summer? Are you ready for your kids to go back to school?