Being that Memorial Day Weekend is the unofficial kick-off to the summer season, I made an exerted effort to finalize our 2014 Summer Bucket List even though my kids still have a couple more weeks of school.  It was a fun process to come up with what I feel is the ultimate summer bucket list.  My list is comprised of items that we did last year along with some items I found on other summer bucket lists.  I went ahead and linked to the original sources in an effort to better explain some of the activities on my list, plus to give credit where credit is due.  I hope this list gets you as excited about summer as it has for me!

1. Visit a waterfall – Hopefully you’re fortunate enough to have one nearby.
2. Find and Follow a YouTube Tutorial – I plan to have my girls look up a YouTube Tutorial on how to do Rainbow Loom bracelets.  However, there seem to be countless tutorials on YouTube to help teach your child any number of skills.
3. Have a Reverse Dinner Night – This is simple enough, just eat dessert first and bask in the glory of being the coolest parent ever (at least for the night).
4. Take a Full Moon Walk – June 13th, July 12th, and August 10th are your dates for this activity!
5. Do a Day of Service – Check out my Service Board on Pinterest, if you’re looking for some ideas.
6. Go Fishing
7. Celebrate a “National” Holiday – I’m using the word “national” loosely.  This one is referring to the sillier national holidays; such as National Doughnut Day on June 6, National Ice Cream Day on July 20, or National Watermelon Day on August 3.
8. Do Letter Boxing or Geocaching – I snagged a couple activities from a post I found on Inner Child Fun’s website titled 20 Favorite Must-Do Activities for Summer.  Geocaching is #13 on her list.  You can also get more information here about Letter Boxing, which is quite similar.
9. Attend a County Fair
10. Watch a Movie Outdoors – This may mean a Drive-In Movie for some.  However, last summer we hosted this activity in our backyard.  Thanks to the help of one friend’s projector and another friend’s sound system, we were able to show Wreck-It Ralph.  The problem though with living in the Northwest is that it stays light so late in to the evening.  Regardless, it sure made for a fun night!
    
11. Participate in a Reading Program – I actually plan to get my kids signed up in a couple summer reading programs this year.  We have one at our local library, but I also learned that Barnes & Noble has a great one for the summer as well!
12. Have a Water Balloon Fight
13. Go on a Picnic
14. Make a Popsicle Stick Puzzle – check out Love and Laundry’s awesome example!
15. Have a Family/Friends Game Night
16. Go Bowling
17. Host a Minute to Win It Night
18. Go Camping in the Backyard
    

19. Have a Spongeball Toss – I’ve seen this called Spongeball Toss, but Inner Child Fun refers to them as Sponge Bombs (#3) on her 20 Favorite Must-Do Activities for Summer.
20. Go on a Bike Ride
21. Wash the Car
22. Stargaze
23. Help in the Yard
24. Have a Lemonade Stand
25. Play Glow Stick Horseshoes – I found this cool activity posted by one of Design Dazzle‘s contributors, Jamie from C.R.A.F.T., titled Summer Camp: Glow In The Dark Ring Toss
26. Do Sidewalk Chalk Drawings
27. Write and Illustrate a Story
28. Host a Talent Show – Check out one of my previous posts, The Power of a Bucket List, to see how much fun this activity was for our friends and family last summer.
29. Complete a Jigsaw Puzzle
30. Get a Manicure and Pedicure
31. Read A Book, Then Watch the Movie – This post on Andrea’s Notebook is perfect to make your search easier for the right book-movie.
32. Pick a Craft to Make and Make It!
33. Go Swimming
    

34. Eat a Snow Cone
35. Have a BBQ with Friends
36. Watch Fireworks on July 4th
37. Attend a Farmer’s Market or Festival
38. Play with Mega-Bubbles – Inner Child Fun’s post 20 Favorite Must-Do Activities for Summer teaches you all about how to make this activity possible.  Check out #7 for the 4-1-1 on Mega Bubbles.
39. Read a Book in the Shade of a Tree
40. Make a Pool Noodle Race Track – Another great source of ideas came from the article on Buzz Feed titled 33 Activities Under $10 That Will Keep Your Kids Busy All Summer.  Number 32 on their list shows you how to make a pool noodle race track.
41. Play Balloon Ping Pong – This activity is #25 on the same Buzz Feed article mentioned above.
42. Make a Backyard Obstacle Course – While this is #33 on the Buzz Feed article, I think this one is best left up to your imagination!
43. Go on a Scavenger Hunt
44. Do a Science Experiment – I have this one on my list since my eldest is a lover of science.  I didn’t have anything particular in mind, but just last night I stumbled across this way cool link on Pinterest from Growing a Jeweled Rose, which shares cool summer science experiments for kids!
45. Make a Painters Tape Spider Web – Here’s the last one I snagged off of the 33 Activities Under $10 That Will Keep Your Kids Busy All Summer.  It’s #26 on their list.
46. Write and Mail a Letter to Someone
47. Play Hide and Go Seek
48. Fly a Kite
    

49. Go on a Date with Dad
50. Play Charades or Pictionary