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Personal Finance from the Broke Perspective

8 Free and Cheap Things to Do with Kids This Summer

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Summertime is here, and if your kids aren’t already out of school, they will be soon.  Summer is the perfect time to make memories with your kids, but if your plans include the local theme park, shopping at the mall, and meals out, plan to spend a lot of money entertaining the kids.  While you can enjoy summer that way, there are plenty of ways to enjoy the summer without spending a lot of money.

Here are some of our family’s favorite low-cost or free summer activities:

Have a Picnic

Pack some sandwiches, chips and some fruit, and take a drive out of town.  Find a nice, rustic place to have a picnic and spend the afternoon.  Kids will appreciate the adventure and change of scenery.

Go to Summer Movies

Several movie theaters, including Harkins and Regal, offer discounted movies for kids during the summer.  For 10 weeks, my kids and I go to Harkins theaters once a week to see a movie.  The best part?  We buy a pass for each of us for $5 apiece.  Yep, if you see all ten movies throughout the summer, you pay just .50 a movie.  The four of us can see a movie for $2 total every week.  Can’t beat that.

Attend Free Concerts

Many cities offer free evening concerts and movie showings.  Just check out the happenings in your town every weekend.  You may be surprised how many free events you can find.

Enjoy Summer Bowling

There is also a summer bowling program, Kids Bowl Free, that you can sign up for.  While the bowling is free, you do have to pay for shoe rental.

Attend Library Programs

Every week, our local library has at least one free program for kids.  This week, my son will be taking a one hour art class.  Next week, my daughters will be taking a free science class where they will be erupting mini-volcanoes.  While you’re there, don’t forget to check out a few books, DVDs, and CDs.

Camp in the Backyard

If your kids want the adventure of camping but you don’t want to pay the camp site fee, why not camp in the backyard?  Kids get the adventure, and if they get scared during the night, the house is only a few steps away.

Go to the Beach

Is there anything better than visiting the beach on a hot summer day?  Bring your sun screen and a lunch and spend the whole day playing in the water, reading a book, and getting a tan.

Have a Movie Marathon

Feeling nostalgic?  Why not watch the Star Wars movies with your kids or the Back to the Future trilogy?  Watch a movie a night until you finish.  Enjoy popcorn and reminiscing about watching these movies in your own childhood.

Summer can be expensive, but it doesn’t have to if you know where to look to find free and cheap activities to keep the kids entertained.

What are your favorite free or cheap activities to do with the kids during the summer?

 

5 Best Subscription Gifts for Kids

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It’s Christmas morning.  Your kids excitedly rip open their presents, and all day long, you can barely pull them away from their new toys.  If you’re lucky, the excitement lasts a week or two.  But then, unfortunately, the new toys lose their appeal and luster.

Does this sound familiar?

If you want to avoid the kind of gifts that quickly lose their luster, consider giving your child a monthly subscription present.  Then, the joy of Christmas lasts all year long as each month your child will get a new surprise gift!

Here are some you may want to consider:

Surprise Ride

best subscription gifts for kids
Subscription Gifts for Kids

If you have kids who love books and crafts, this may be the subscription service for you (and them)!  Each Surprise Ride box includes two activities, a book and a snack, and extras.  A recent Surprise Ride with a polar bears theme included the supplies to make a polar bear habitat and a polar bear coaster, a Magic Treehouse polar bear book and ice cream snack, and polar bear bracelet and snowflake game. All activities are designed for kids 5 and up.  You can get the monthly subscription or pay for 6 months upfront for a $40 savings, or 12 months upfront for a $60 savings.

Foodstirs

Perfect for your little food enthusiast, aged 5 to 12 years.  Each month, Foodstirs will send a kit to bake a sweet treat.  The ingredients are organic and do not contain artificial dyes or flavors.  Some kits available at the holiday season include the Very Merry Gingerbread Cookie Kit and Holiday Tree Brownie Kit.  Kits are shipped for free, and when you subscribe for a 3, 6, or 12 month box, you can receive up to 28% off the retail price.

Pley

How much fun would it be to get a new toy to play with every month?  That’s the premise behind Pley.  You choose a toy for your child from 500+ toys available for children from 0-12 years old.  Your child plays with the toy for a month; then you send it back and get a new one!  Avoid toy clutter in your home, and your child won’t bore of his toys!

Little Passports

Little Passports offers four different subscriptions: Early Explorers (ages 3 to 5), World Edition (ages 6 to 10), USA Edition (ages 7 to 12), and Science Expeditions (ages 9+).  The first three subscriptions focus on geography, and the latter on science.  The geography subscriptions include stickers for your child’s passport, souvenirs, photos, letters from the travelers, and online games.  Subscriptions are available for a variety of months and are cheaper when you commit to a 12 month subscription.

Kiwi Crate

Kiwi Crate offers monthly subscriptions for five levels, from ages 0 to 16.  Choose the crate that you would like.  For instance, in the Doodle Crate, for ages 9 to 16, your child can learn how and build their own clock with the supplies given!  A Tinker Crate for ages 9 to 16 offers a STEM project like creating a hydraulic claw.  Kiwi Crate offers subscriptions monthly, for 3 months, for 6 months, and for 12 months again, with the biggest discount going to the longest subscription.

Do your kids subscribe to any subscription services?  If so, which one is your favorite?

Celebrate a Frugal Valentine’s Day with Kids

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Valentine’s Day is typically an adult holiday, but kids like to get in on the action by exchanging Valentine’s Day cards and candy with friends.  As their parent, you can also make Valentine’s Day a special holiday for kids.  Best of all, having a fun, memorable Valentine’s Day doesn’t have to cost a lot with these strategies.

Make Valentine’s Day Food

There is so much fun you could have with this one!  For a sophisticated experience, you could melt chocolate and let your kids enjoy chocolate fondue.  Even better if you have the melting pot and metal skewers.  They’ll have fun dipping soft bread and fruits in the chocolate.

Another option is to make Valentine’s Day food.  One year, the kids and I made a heart-shaped cake.  Other ideas might be making heart-shaped pancakes or cookies.  Be creative, and with the help of Pinterest, you won’t be lacking for ideas.

Frugal Valentine's Day with Kids

Make Valentine’s Day Decorations

A few days before Valentine’s Day, prepare your house.  Cut out hearts from construction paper and string them together to make garland.  Drape them around your mantle, your windows, or your door way.

Another simple idea is to get gel clings at the 99 Cent Store or the discount section of Target and decorate the windows with those.  Or, take pink, white, and red pieces of tissue paper and cut them out in heart shapes to tape to your window.

Pamper Your Girls

If you have younger girls, they’ll love getting a spa-like experience from mom.  Paint their toenails and their fingernails.  Do their hair in a pretty, elaborate style.  Go all out.  They’ll definitely remember the day.

Watch a Movie Together

There are plenty of cute Valentine’s Day shows for kids.  Take the time to watch one together.  Some fun selections could be Lady and the Tramp, Beauty and the Beast, Shrek, Enchanted, WALL-E, Be My Valentine, Charlie Brown, or The Princess Bride.

Have a Fancy Dinner Together at Home

Too often we’re busy, so meals simply become whatever we can throw together quickly.  For Valentine’s Day, take the time to make something your kids love but don’t get very often.  I used to love lasagna, but my mom thought it was too much work and would only make it for my birthday.  I would have been thrilled to get it for Valentine’s Day.  Get your kids’ input for a meal that they would love to have you prepare.  What better way to show your love for them?

Give Them a Little Goody Basket

You don’t have to go overboard with the sweets on Valentine’s Day, but give them a little goody bag of their favorite treats, like candy hearts, and Hershey’s kisses.  Even more fun, turn the search for the goody bag into a scavenger hunt complete with clues.

Make Valentine’s Day Crafts Together

Pinterest to the rescue again!  Some fun ideas include making Valentine’s Day book-markers.  Simply get a paint sample strip in shades of red or pink and cut out a heart in each color.  Add a string at the top, and voila, you have a book marker.

Another cute idea is making a heart-shaped bird feeder to hang in the tree.

With a little creativity, you can design a Valentine’s Day your children will love.  Even better, it doesn’t have to cost a fortune!

What are your favorite ways to celebrate Valentine’s Day with your kids?