Happy Friday and welcome to June! I seriously can’t believe it is here. I am not quite sure I am ready for it, but what I am ready for is Summer. I am so excited for long warm days, lake swims, pool side hangs, and lots of family and friend time. Because I am so excited for summer I thought I would share an amazingggggg tip for all my families out there with kiddos. I honestly can’t believe I haven’t shared this before, because it is so good, but it is probably because I hadn’t thought about it up until now….
Growing up, when school would come to an end and summer would roll around, my mom would take all of me and my sisters to a few different toy stores and we would make what is called our “Summer Box.” Essentially, this is a box that is full of summer essentials to keep us busy and having fun all summer long and I remember having such fond memories of this box.
I remember specifically where we would keep it in the house (in the den under this olddddd tv cutout) so that we could easily access it…I remember going shopping with my mom figuring out what we would put in it and picking out all of these fun summer things…I remember her telling me when I was bored to “Go look in the Summer Box” to see what I could find to play with…I remember having friends over and going through it figuring out what we wanted to play with…it is a beautiful memory of Summer for me, and I thought it would be so much fun to share with all of you!
I actually got to thinking about it because I was thinking about all the fun things we were going to do with Arabella and all of the fun stuff I wanted to pick up and then I remembered the Summer Box and was like YES. We must start this tradition!
So let’s break it down.
First, set a budget. Make this work within your home, lifestyle and financial means. It really doesn’t need to be a crazy amount and I like to take it as the only time over the next few months that I will only be buying toys for Arabella.
Next, pick out your box. If you have school age children, they will probably love picking out the box (I know I use to), so let them help and get involved. Otherwise, your standard storage container will work just fine. This will probably be around $9-$12 of your budget, but what I love is that after Summer you can use it for other storage needs.
Next, fill it up. Fill it with outside activities and things that will keep your kiddos busy. Water activities are always great ideas, various books, art supplies, chalk, bubbles, games, etc. If you only have one kiddo, cater this to them, but with the idea that these are toys we want them coming back to all Summer long and that can keep them occupied over time. You really get to decide how big or small these items will be, but keep in mind longevity.
Lastly, find a space within your home where this box is easily accessible for loads of Summer activities!
SOME IDEAS TO INCLUDE:
- Games – Indoor and Outdoor
- Pool toys
- Blocks, legos, magnetic tiles
- Art supplies – crayons, markers, paint, coloring books, sticker books
- Activity books – object finds, word search, crosswords, maze books
- Playdoh
- Kinetic sand
- Books
- Water toys
- Chalk
- Bubbles
- Gardening tools
- Puzzles
If you make your own, please tag me. I would love to see them and I will be sure to share ours over on Instagram!
xoxo,
Melissa
