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Summer Bucket List

21 May 2018

By: Susan Hickey
Well, it’s here:  summer break, something that is long awaited for many – a chance to loosen up schedules and no longer worry about homework assignments.  However, sometimes it only takes a few days before parents hear, “Mommy!  I’m bored!”  So, now what?


While summer is a great time for families to vacation together and make memories, sometimes the travel requirements are just too much to handle financially or logistically.  There are a multitude of reasons why travel outside the local area isn’t a possibility for people, or even if it is, it only lasts a week or so.  Those people need other options to help keep kids busy and entertained on hot summer days when those kids just want to sit and play on their iPads.  Enter the “Summer Bucket List.”


For the past few years, I have created our own Summer Bucket List of local places to go that are typically inexpensive or even free and require very little pre-planning.  The benefit of having a list ready is that at that moment when the kids start complaining, you can pull it out and pick a location you haven’t yet visited, pack a lunch, and go.   My list grows every year as I learn of new places to visit we haven’t yet seen.  There are also some old favorites that make the list and get checked off every year. 


So what’s on the list?  My kids are all under 10 so keep that in mind.  This year’s list has 35 items on it (though typically we only manage to get through about 15).  Here’s just a few:


• Original Pancake House.  We go once a year on the first day of summer vacation.
• Air Force Museum.  Free, and this year there is a new exhibit featuring the Memphis Belle.
• A county fair.  We aren’t picky but the Greene and Warren Co. fairs are really cheap to get into, especially if you go early in the day prior to rides opening.  We go see the animals, watch the 4-H shows, and grab a lemon shake-up before we leave.
• A hike at a local metropark.
• Any of the local spraygrounds:  Activity Center, the Greene, Kennedy Park – all free
• Bowling (through the kidsbowlfree.com program, kids can get 2 free games daily!)
• Berry picking (our favorite is blueberries at Once in a Blue Moon Farm in Waynesville, but there are several more places)
• As YMCA members, we use our reciprocal benefits to visit the Countryside outdoor pool for free (check the schedule for reciprocal members open times)
• Cox Arboretum’s Tree Tower.  Again, free admission.  We climb to the top and take a family picture each year and see how we’ve changed.


To document the experience we are sure to take a selfie at each location and number it so we keep track for later use in scrapbooks.  It’s fun to look back at each year’s list and look at the things we did.
A summer staycation doesn’t have to be boring.  It also doesn’t have to require a museum membership or a lot of planning.  My kids are already looking forward to our summer bucket list and keep adding places to it.  Make this the summer to truly discover all that Southwest Ohio has to offer!