*This is the 22nd day of the One Month Spending Freeze Challenge. Please click here to see all of the posts in this series.*
My parents took me to Disneyland for the first time when I was five. They told me it was my birthday present, but now that I’m older, I know that was a lie. We didn’t actually go to Disneyland until a couple weeks after my birthday, and my brothers and sisters tagged along.
© Sunny studio / Dollar Photo Club
Ok, Mom and Dad, I’m onto you.
Here’s the truth. My parents could not spend a fortune on me for my birthday and take me to Disneyland. That was our first family trip together since before I was born. We didn’t go on a family trip again until I was a teenager.
Apparently, we lived an unhappy life, devoid of anything fun to do.
Eh! Wrong.
I had a wonderful childhood, and my parents rarely spent money to give me a good time.
I remember running across the street and putting on a fabulous production of Beauty and the Beast in our neighbor’s backyard with all the other neighbor kids.
I spent plenty of Friday nights at my friends’ houses for sleepovers. We would stay up late, playing MASH and eating lots of popcorn.
There was a time when my younger brother and I would make tons of silly videos. The kind that I would be utterly embarrassed to show even my husband. We had a blast making them!
Our kids’ lives do not need to be filled with fun, but when you want them to have fun, it doesn’t need to cost much. A lot of the best things in this life are free, and a good time can be had with the right people even if you aren’t spending any money.
35+ Free Activities to Do with Kids
Check out this awesome list of free things to do and pick one or two to try with your kids today or this weekend. I know that it depends on the weather where you are for some of these, but there is always something fun to do no matter what the season.
Outdoors/Not at Home
Explore the natural beauty in your hometown – beaches, mountains, lakes, etc.
Pack a lunch and head to the park. Better yet, walk instead of drive.
Go to a local museum on a free day.
Go to the library to see a free movie (some libraries do this and others don’t; call your library to see if they do).
Take a tour of a factory or a landmark near your house.
Attend free concerts.
Go to a splash pad or free water park.
Spend some time at the library, browsing and reading.
Star gaze or cloud watch.
Bird watch.
Attend free days at the zoo, aquarium, or other place for kids.
Volunteer.
Feed the ducks.
Make a leaf pile in your yard and jump in!
Watch a child’s soccer game or baseball game (or any sport).
Participate in a sports game.
Watch a sunrise or sunset.
Indoors/At Home
Color.
Build a fort.
Have a pillow fight.
Blow bubbles (if you have them, or make your own).
Go outside after a good snowfall and sled or make a snowman.
Dress up in mommy’s or daddy’s clothes.
Make believe.
Read.
Bake bread or cookies.
Exercise.
Journal (for younger kids, let them doodle).
Turn on some music and have a dance party.
Decorate a cardboard box and turn it into a cardboard castle (ask for an appliance box at Lowe’s or Home Depot).
Tell stories, and let each person take a turn adding onto them.
Visit Grandma or another relative.
Have a play date.
Everyone choose their favorite song and have a sing-a-thon.
Tickle each other.
Tell jokes.
Make paper airplanes.
That trip we took to Disneyland when I was five was a lot of fun, but, honestly? I don’t even remember it too well. I think I remember the parts that we caught on video the most because I’ve watched them so many times.
When your kids know how to have fun with whatever activity they are doing, they won’t even miss the grand and expensive activities they couldn’t go to. Laugh, enjoy, and let your kids be kids!
What free activities have you done with your kids?
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