I’m very much a homebody. Most days, I would be fine staying at home all day long. However, my kids are not. I’ve found that they are much better behaved when they can get out and have a change of scenery, even if only for a short time. So we try to leave the house almost EVERY DAY.
Most of the time when you leave the house, it’s going to cost you money. Whether you head for Target (now how many times have you walked out without buying something…REALLY?!) or go for the McDonalds play land, you are probably going to spend at least a few dollars. If you do this day in and day out throughout the entire month, those $3-$5 a day can really start adding up!
Let’s go for a conservative estimate and say you spend $3, 3 days a week for an entire month. That’s $36 a month on extras. While this might not seem like much, add that up over an entire year. That’s $432 on McDonald’s ice cream cones and Target Dollar Spot items! I don’t know about you, but I can think of a much better way to spend $432!
Here is a list of things we do to try to get out of the house without spending money.
NOTE: From time to time, we do participate in things that cost money. I just try to make those trips few and far between and include them in our monthly budgeted items so we know how much we are spending on those little “extras.”
1. PARK
We go to the park A LOT! We have a fantastic park only a few blocks from our house that we visit several times a week. There is a mile long walking path around it and a fantastic playground. Sometimes Caleb will take his bicycle and I will push Ben in the stroller so we can go for a walk. Other times Caleb will play at the playground and I will wear Ben in the Tula. There is also a large field where we have flown kites, played tag, or kicked a ball around. It’s really a fantastic way to get out some of that toddler energy and enjoy some fresh air. I highly recommend taking advantage of parks and outdoor spaces around you!
2. SPLASH PAD/PARK
In the summer, we will drive to the next town where they have a splash pad to play in the water on really hot days. Caleb LOVES this and it’s completely free. I know some splash pads/parks cost money, but I recommend looking to see if there is one around you that is free. For us, it’s worth the 20 minute drive to the next town! Invite some friends, bring along a picnic lunch, and make a day of it!
3. LOCAL KIDS MUSEUMS
We live in a pretty rural area. However, we have still found 2 smaller kids museums that are awesome and offer FREE days once a week! On Thursdays, our local Science Center offers free admission. We try to go once or twice a month. It’s about a 20 minute drive, but so worth it. Caleb loves it and they are always adding new things to keep kids engaged.
4. THE LIBRARY
Our local library offers two story hour times each week as well as a great kids section in the library with toys, games, and of course books. We attended story hour weekly until Caleb started morning pre-K. It was one of the highlights of our week! I look forward to taking Ben again in the near future.
5. MOPS
I cannot express enough how happy I am I got involved in a local MOPS group in my area. MOPS stands for Mothers of Preschoolers. Our group meets twice a month on Thursday mornings from 9:30-11:30am. Your children gets to play with other children their own age and the moms get together to socialize, listen to a speaker on a variety of topics, and do a craft or activity. Our group costs around $30 for the entire year. (Note: This fee fluctuates from group to group.) However, for me, this is a fee I’m willing to pay for the socialization I get as well as for my kids. If you are trying to find fellow moms of young children, see if there is a MOPS group that meets near you here: https://www.mops.org/groupsearch/
6. LOCAL CHURCH GROUPS
Our home church offers a Fine Arts program for young children. They usually read a story, do a craft, listen to music, and have a snack. It’s once a week on Thursday mornings from 10-11:30. We loved attending this when Caleb wasn’t in pre-K. I look forward to taking Ben next year when he is a little older! I encourage you to check into the local churches around you to see if they offer any activities for young children throughout the week.
7. STATE PARKS
We live in the Midwest and have two fairly large state parks within 30 minutes from our house. We enjoy going exploring, taking short hikes, playing in the creeks, or having picnics at their playgrounds. Some are educational, while others are more for outdoor enjoyment. When the weather is nice in the spring and fall, we take advantage of these state parks quite often! See if there is a state park near you here: http://www.americasstateparks.org/Find-A-Park
I hope you find some of these ideas helpful. Over the past four years, I have gone outside of my comfort zone to get my kids out of the house to enjoy all that our area has to offer. It’s not always easy to pack up all the kids to get somewhere, but it’s almost always worth it! Don’t forget your camera!
Other free places we have liked, especially for toddlers:
- Construction sites: in summer, we would have a picnic across the street from a construction site in the city; in colder weather, I,d sit in the car with a cup of tea and my son would look from inside the car (window opened or closed depending on weather).
- the Pet store: we don’t own pets so the urge to buy something was nil. However, my little ones learned all types of stuff from the pet shop
- A garden center: same idea, but looking at plants and trees.
- A ride in the country side; in nice weather, we’d stop on the side of the road to look at farm animals. If you have a friend who has a farm, even better, you can visit!
- wading pools: in the summer, my town has a couple of wading pools available for free to all toddlers
- a stream: any small stream or river is fascinating for little kids. Just throwing stones and seeing them disappear or throwing sticks to see them float and move on the water
- farmer’s market: yes, I end up buying something, but I needed it anyway for groceries…!
- lake shore: if you can find one in your area, surely there are ducks you can feed with crusts of bread - lots of fun!
Geocaching. The kids love it!
We created a list on our whiteboard of all the things we could do in our local area such as the museum, park, city tour, markets (ours have weekly themes with various entertainment), the beach, a tram ride (free in the CBD), the library etc. There is so much free stuff to do that is fun for the whole family.
I am now a Grandma, but I still need to do neat things with my Grandchildren which don’t cost a lot, so here are a few…
Paper plane competitions in the local park (pick up your rubbish after you!)
Free concerts at the band rotunda in our park, put on by the local councils- usually in Summer.
Cooking stuff to send home for the family to eat.
Singing at Old Folks Homes as a family- great if one of you plays guitar or piano, particularly carols at Christmas.
Making boats out of recycled and/ or found objects and sailng them in a local pond or pool.
“Borrowing” a friendly dog and taking him/ her for a walk. (bigger kids who are not allowed dogs often love this, but make sure the dogs are not too big/ excitable!)
making a date to watch something special on TV, a game of fave movie, complete with snuggle blankets and home-made popcorn.
enjoy!
Thanks for sharing, Lee! Those are wonderful suggestions!