Get Out!

  I hope you have enjoyed our summer series on Outdoor Activities.  It has been a BLAST to write.  It reminded me just how many answers there are when my kids say: ‘I’m bored, there’s nothing to do…”  Usually my answer to this is to put them to work around the house, but there are so many ways to put them to ‘play’ too! 

If you have missed any of our posts on this series, do a search in the search box for Outdoor Activities, you should see all of the posts.  If you haven’t done so yet, please leave a comment here: https://sprigtoys.wordpress.com/2010/06/29/low-cost-summer-activities-good-clean-fun-with-giveaway/.  Our friends at Wham-O have thoughtfully provided one of their Slip N Slides with boogie boards as a giveaway prize.  All you have to do is comment with your best water activity to enter! (Submit your entries by July 15th, please!)

We recently held a picnic at our house for some of my husband’s co-workers and put squirt guns on the tables.  Little did we know this innocent gesture would turn into an all out war!  A couple of the participants moved from squirt guns to hoses, and some of us were more than a bit surprised to get wet!  The photo here is from our party… It just serves to remind us all that adults need play in their lives as much as kids do.  Too often we give up play as adults in exchange for work, chores and other responsibilities.  Play is as important for us as it is for our children.  For adults, it helps remind us of why we work so hard, helps relieve stress and helps us manage negative emotions. 

Just this week, I would challenge you to add in at least one ‘play session.’  This is a challenge I am taking myself, so I expect to hear your comments below next week letting me know of your success or failure!  If you have forgotten how to play, you may want to start by adding in one of the activities we listed in our blog for kids.  Sometimes just getting out and playing with our kids gives us the play time we need and reconnects us to those little ones we value so much.  Or consider breaking out a board game, splashing in a puddle, or grabbing some crayons or craft supplies…Any of these work!  I can’t wait to hear what you have been up to.

So your task this week: Get Out! and have some fun!

On a side note, we have another suggestion for summer activities.  We love what Jamie Oliver has been doing with his Food Revolution.  Healthy food and active lifestyles go hand in hand in preventing childhood obesity.  We CAN transform this generation! Here is Jamie’s website: http://www.jamieoliver.com/about.  Join his Food Revolution, he has guides to learning how to cook and cooking with your kids.  I regularly get kid-friendly recipes that are both fun and easy to make.

Want to ask a designer a question?  Curious about something?  Let me know, it could be our next blog topic!  Comment below or tweet me: @kimatsprig