Hi everybody, it’s Babs.
I hope you are enjoying the long weekend. Here in the Northeast, my grandkids will be in school for another few weeks and the calendar doesn’t officially flip to summer until June 20, but in my mind Memorial Day has always been the official start to summer.
So this week, I’m offering something a little different than my usual newsletter. I’ve pulled together a list of 98 ideas for summer fun. Why 98 and not 100? That’s how many days we have between tomorrow and Labor Day, which for me is the “end” of summer (and my least favorite holiday!). The list below is not meant to be some bucket list to check off, but rather, a loose source of inspiration. You can turn to it on days when you’ve run out of ideas for how to entertain the kids or grandkids–or when you need some fun yourself. And even if there aren’t any children in your life (or your little ones are far away), there’s plenty of grown-up fun on the list below.
What are you waiting for: The fun starts now!
XO, Babs
Pick one day of the week to eat dinner outside—in your own backyard or at a park–and stick to it for the entire summer (weather permitting).
Plan a beach day.
Host an ice-cream social with my favorite hack for serving cones to a crowd.
Plant a pot with all your favorite herbs (basil is a must!). Then snip them for all your summer meals.
Organize a lemonade stand – or just make lemonade for yourself.
6 & 7. Cut a watermelon up into sticks (easier for the kids to eat!) or make my famous watermelon mojito salad.
Make fruit kabobs: Cut your favorite fruits into cubes and serve them on skewers.
Take a trip to the farmer’s market and find a fruit, vegetable, or herb you’ve never tried.
Plan an outing to an outdoor movie screening or the closest drive-in movie theater.
Visit a pick-your-own farm. My personal favorite is blueberry picking. (Then make muffins with them!)
Books! Go to the library and pick a book to borrow from the new books table. Or head to the bookstore to treat yourself to a “beach read.” Personally, I love a historical fiction or a nonfiction book that has the power to uplift me.
Read something out loud to someone you love: We often read to children, but there’s also so much pleasure in reading an article or a short story to another adult.
Make yourself a summer to-cook list now, so you’ll have recipes at the ready when you’re short of inspiration. (I’ve got your holidays covered in Celebrate With Babs and daily dinners in Every Day With Babs.)
Host a cookbook club for your friends (and may I humbly suggest, one of mine?)
Try keeping a journal for the summer – you don't need to write much, just a sentence a day. It’ll help you remember all the fun you had.
Make sun tea: Fill a jar with water and tea bags and place it in the hot sun for a couple hours and the tea will have brewed itself.
Press flowers between parchment paper in the pages of a heavy book.
Go fly a kite. (Pocket kites are especially easy for amateur kite flyers.)
Play a round of mini-golf–truly fun for all ages.
Take a nature walk, but do this early in the day before it gets too hot and buggy.
Ride a bike!
Head into town to get an ice cream cone after dinner on a random weeknight.
Swap out your living room accessories for lighter, summer-y ones. Think white cotton pillow covers. You could even roll away a heavy rug or take down drapery for the season.
Freeze your leftover coffee in an ice cube tray for iced coffee that won’t get watered down.
Skip stones.
Look for fireflies at dusk and let the kids try to catch them.
28-31. Cook a minimal-mess dinner (so you can relax!), like any of these from Every Day With Babs. Baked Shrimp With Feta & Tomatoes (p. 38), Zesty Chili-Lime Shrimp & Corn Salad (p. 42), Salsa Verde Fish Tostadas (p. 88), and Hoisin Turkey Lettuce Cups (p. 92) are all great for a summer night.
Grill the entire meal: Think steaks, a grill basket of summer veggies, and corn grilled in its husks (soak the corn first!) or try my Italian-inspired spin on grilled pizzas.
Make paper airplane.
Play board games on rainy days. My favorite is Five Crowns, but the kids love Spot It, Clue, and Monopoly Jr.
Buy farmstand flowers or cut some from your own garden.
Plant sunflower seeds.
Attend a concert outdoors.
Visit a flea market or rummage sale.
Indulge the kids in a squirt gun fight or break out the water balloons.
Take a nap!
Plan a perfect pool day. No pool? No problem. You can rent one for an afternoon through Swimply.
32-34. Or make way for other water play: Buy a sprinkler, an inflatable pool, or if you’re brave, a Slip ‘N Slide.
35. Make a no-bake dessert like Lemonade Pie No-Bake Banana Split Cake, or Strawberry Shortcake Trifle.
Get a pedicure in a fun color a little outside your comfort zone.
Two words: Wiffle ball.
Makeover your patio in 10 minutes flat.
39 & 40. Use store-bought pie crust for a quick and easy galette – it can be sweet or savory.
Get tickets to your closest minor league baseball game – tickets are cheap and the games move quickly.
Attend a small-town parade.
Buy a pad of watercolor paper and a tin of basic paints and just paint something.
Attempt the Sunday crossword puzzle (but give up when it gets hard).
Teach the kids a card game. This is a surefire way to connect with grandkids.
Find a way to get yourself out on a boat–any boat.
Get outside after dark and spend an hour star gazing.
Visit a local historic site, you know, the one you’ve been meaning to go to forever.
Buy all the flavors of seltzer and canned mocktail and host a tasting to find your favorite.
Embrace rosé season.
Do a jigsaw puzzle, but keep it to 500 pieces of less so it doesn’t take days and days.
Visit a public garden or one of The Garden Conservancy’s Open Day tours of private gardens.
Plan a picnic. If you’re getting on in years like me, pick a park with picnic tables as your location.
Stop and get a soft-serve cone from an ice cream truck.
Make homemade popsicles.
Go outside on a day with white fluffy clouds and look for shapes in the clouds.
70-73. Get yourself a lawn game; think horseshoes, a giant Jenga game, cornhole, croquet.
Escape the heat with an afternoon at a local museum.
Reread a book you remember loving as a young person. You might be surprised by how much you still love those formative books like Anne of Green Gables or My Side of the Mountain. If you have a grandkid the right age, get two copies and read it together.
Compile a summer playlist.
Climb a tree (or watch someone young do it!).
Do something tourist-y in your hometown.
Make “spa water.” Slice up a cucumber and a lemon and put them in a large pitcher of water with a few sprigs of fresh mint. Let it rest in the fridge for several hours. The produce will flavor the water with the most refreshing way.
Buy the actual paper and read it over iced coffees outdoors.
Invite friends over for a low-lift, but totally classic backyard barbecue: Burgers and dogs, coleslaw, potato chips, and cut-up watermelon. Go head, serve on paper plates to make it even easier.
Do a tour of all the yard sales and hunt for “treasure.” If you bring the kids, give them each a small amount of money, say $5 to spend as they please.
Take a long drive with the windows down. Scenic America can help you find a scenic byway.
Make reservations at a waterfront restaurant – this could be riverside, on a lake, or by saltwater.
Get some coloring books – both for the kids and adults.
Have your own yard sale to clear out some space in your cabinets and closets. Let the kids help out and keep the money.
Call an old friend and catch up for an hour.
Find some postcards and send them to far-flung friends just to say hi. Promise they will be pleasantly surprised by the snail mail.
Sneak off to catch a matinee on an extra hot day.
Get your feet wet – whether that’s in a pool, a stream, or just a cool basin of water, it’s a guaranteed way to cool off at the end of a long, hot day.
Swing! Whether it’s on a swing set, a porch swing, or a hammock, there is nothing like the feeling of swinging with the breeze.
Purchase as many different colored heirloom tomatoes as you can find for one epic caprese salad.
Wear head-to-toe summer whites.
Buy solar-sensitive paper and make sun-prints.
Go to a local carnival and eat all that carnival food.
Roll down a hill.
Break out the sidewalk chalk – either for drawing or for games like hopscotch and four square.
Go out to brunch!