Create a Family Summer Bucket List

What is a Family Summer Bucket List?

We all know what a bucket list is. But a “family summer bucket list” incorporates family participation in whole or at least in part.

Because our family has two boys and two girls, there are times when we have things on our list that everyone does together and others that the boys and the girls will pair off separately. Often, it was basketball for hours on end for the boys, and for the girls, it might be drawing, crafting, or painting. You get the idea. This post will consider both scenarios.

Why Create a Family Summer Bucket List?

There are many reasons why we create a Family Summer Bucket List every year. Here are some of my favorites:

1. To Learn a New Skill

Does anyone in your family want to learn a new skill? Summer is a great time to take on a delight-directed interest that requires more open-ended time.

Homeschool Mom Tip 🙂

Which reminds me. I want to encourage you not to let your children’s boredom faze you. Because one of the greatest gifts we can give our children is “the gift of time.”

If boredom follows, that is all the more wonderful because that is when remarkable things happen.

When I learned to resist the urge to fix the boredom my children faced, they began to discover what they enjoyed.

And another bonus, they searched for it on their own. Sometimes they tried something new and didn’t like it at all. But other times, they have found things they love and have acquired skills in those areas.

Admittedly, it will be hard to ignore the whining and moaning at first, but ultimately, it is a win-win for all!

Okay, back to our favorite reasons to create a family summer bucket list.

2. To Have Fun

Of course, it doesn’t take a genius to guess that we create family summer bucket lists to have fun with our children. That said, as moms, we often need to be reminded; it is more than okay to slow down and have fun with our family. 

3. To Create Lasting Memories

In addition to a family summer bucket list enabling you to have fun with your children, all those fun activities will create memories that you and your children will cherish forever.

Now that my children are older (we have three teens left), we often look back at pictures of summers gone by and enjoy mentally reliving them over and over again. Talking about them, laughing, sometimes crying happy tears.

What a gift our memories are!

The summers with our children are our “golden opportunity” to make as many good ones as possible.

4. To Create Deep Relationships

Finally, a family summer bucket list is a great way to create deep and lasting relationships with our children. On The Homeschool Advantage podcast a few weeks ago, we discussed the importance of creating relational equity within our family.

It’s so important to remember that deep relationships don’t happen by chance. They are formed from countless hours of thoughtful, intentional investing of time – heart to heart, mind to mind, spirit to spirit. Activities such as what you may enjoy from your family’s summer bucket list are just one of the many, many ways you can make that investment.

How to Create a Family Summer Bucket List

Okay, I hope now you are convinced to give a family summer bucket list a shot, and you may be wondering how to create one. It’s super easy and fun! 

Have a Planning Session and Talk

Toward the end of each school year, before summer begins, we typically take the time to plan for the upcoming summer. I begin with my usual process of asking questions.

• What would you like to do this summer?
• Would you like to learn a new skill? 
• Would you like to try a new hobby?
• What do you enjoy doing the most in the summer?
• What have we done before that you would like to do again?

Write Down Ideas

While we are sharing, I write everything down in no particular order. As the kids share, I write. Usually, we use a whiteboard for this. For us, it seems to add excitement to the moment. Everyone contributing and shouting ideas out while I’m racing to jot them down as fast as possible. 

Google for More Ideas

Together, you will come up with so many ideas that I doubt you will need Google. However, the internet is brimming with helpful suggestions if you ever require them. In our experience, following someone else’s bucket list is not nearly as satisfying as coming up with ideas on your own. Nonetheless, it’s nice to know Google is available if you need it.

Prioritize Your Ideas 

This is where the “family” part of the family bucket list comes into play. You may have some ideas listed that not everyone in the family “is feeling,” so to speak. Not only that but even in the summer, we only have so much time.

As always, we can’t do everything. How you prioritize is up to you and unique to each family. Some possible options are to choose a scaling system by desire from one to ten, a range of difficulty from easy to hard, or a cost range from free to expensive.

• scale by desire, from one to ten
• range of difficulty, from easy to hard
• by how much it costs, from free to expensive

The important thing is that everyone contributes and feels seen and heard.

Have Fun with your Family’s Summer Bucket List

After your planning session, which is fun in and of itself, the only things left to do is display your Family Summer Bucket List in a prominent place, mark your calendars, and enjoy an unforgettable summer adventure with your kiddos.

Some of our Favorite Family Summer Bucket List Activities Over the Years

As I’ve mentioned before, our kids are teens and older now so some of these activities are ones they have since outgrown, but boy was it fun while it lasted! You better believe I’m squeezing every ounce of yummy out of these last few summers I have with them because I know once they’re over, there’s no coming back. These are precious days. Let’s make them count!

• blowing bubbles
• sidewalk chalk
• butterfly garden
• hummingbird watching
• balloon volleyball – not easy, but fun!
• basketball 
• football 
• any sport really
• fireworks
• firecrackers – Sparklers, anyone?
• s’mores
• can’t forget, firepit
• theater movies – reruns for cheap
• at home movies
• explore local museums
• aquariums
• parks
• check out local parks and recreation offerings
• library groups
• LARP – yes, LOTR fans and Featherheads! 
• read for fun
• learn something new
• board games
• cooking
• drawing
• sewing
• crafting
• designing your own T-shirts
• tie-dye

Conclusion

In sum, today we’ve explored the benefits of investing in our children by way of a family summer bucket list. We have learned how easy and fun it is to create memories that will last forever. As simple as sharing ideas and following through with them, summer with the kids doesn’t intimate you. Instead, you make it look easy. Go, Mom!!

Family Summer Bucket List Free Printable PDF

I’ve included a Family Summer Bucket List printable free to download. There are two versions. A simple one (like I use) and an A-Z one. The A-Z one is more of a game for older kids to see how many they can fill in. It’s harder than it sounds, lol. But still fun to try. Enjoy! ~Tammy