Watermelon and Leaves

July 6, 2023

"Remember that time," I said casually to my daughters sometime during the summer when they were 7 and 9, "when we made this awesome fort in the backyard out of branches and leaves and leftover cardboard from boxes? And then we sat in there and ate lunch?"

They stared at me over their watermelon, bewildered. We were, at that very moment, sitting in the fort we had just finished making out of branches and leaves and leftover cardboard. Then Madison understood. "Oh," she said, "I get it. You want us to remember this."

"Right now, and always," I said. "This is summer."

Here at KidsOutAndAbout.com, we do our best to take the stress out of finding great ways to create summer memories with your family by giving you both a jam-packed calendar of events and a Master Guide to Local Summer Fun, which has links to parks, amusement parks, festivals, places to swim, and lots more.

One of our most popular summer lists, though, is 50 Ways to Love Your Summer... without Technology. It has 50 free things to do with kids to create great summer memories, things you probably did when you were young. Because as fun as the pricey experiences can be—and we're glad to connect you with those, too, of course—it's the connection between you that will stick for a lifetime. And all it really takes is some watermelon and leaves.

—Deb