Summer bucket lists give Chicago kids goals to accomplish

We were driving to Wisconsin Dells this weekend when my seven-year old son said from the backseat, “Yay, I can cross Wisconsin Dells off my bucket list!”

At first, I was surprised to hear my seven-year old talking about a bucket list. Did he even know what that meant?! Then he explained to me that he made a summer “sand bucket” list on his last day of school and was excited about crossing off each item he completed throughout the summer.

The more I thought about, the more I realized that his teacher was on to something. What a great idea to have a summer bucket list – not just for children, but for adults too. I stay home with my kids in the summer and although we do activities, there’s also a lot of down time. Having activities to do and look forward to would get us out of the house to try new things and keep us busy!

My son’s bucket list reminded me of a summer a few years ago when the kids and I decided to do something we called “50 Parks Summer.” Our goal was to go to 50 different parks throughout the summer. We wrote each one down in a notebook and put stars by our favorite ones so that we could return at a later time.

It kept us busy all summer, gave the kids something to look forward to, and was really fun exploring different parks. It did end up taking us all summer to complete and we went to park #50 on the very last day of summer. The kids had a great time doing it and we found a bunch of great parks that we didn’t even know existed!

Now, with his summer bucket list, my son has goals to meet and things to accomplish. They might be the ideas of a child, but they are still important things for him to accomplish. And he got to cross the first item off the list on the second day of summer – Wisconsin Dells!

Some of the other items on his list include: mining for rocks in Wisconsin Dells, swimming, fishing, going to the beach, planting a garden, going to his friend’s house, and going to Starved Rock.

There are a few things that I would like to include on my own bucket list for my family to do. These include: going on family walks after dinner a few nights every week, catching fire flies with the kids, going on picnics, exploring new walking trails and forest preserves, going to the library once a week and trying out new summer fruits and veggies.

I’ll admit that I was really impressed with my son’s list. So, this summer, our plan is to complete every item on my son’s summer bucket list and make memories doing it.

What’s on your summer bucket list?

- Advertisement -

LATEST STORIES

Warm Up Your Winter with Holiday Tea Experiences in Chicagoland

Pinkies up and enjoy some festive treats at these afternoon teas.

What Makes a Global Education So Special?

Brought to you by Lycée Français de Chicago

Top 5 Family-Friendly Attractions You Have to See in Toronto

Experience Toronto’s top family activities with CN Tower views, Little Canada exhibits, theater shows, Ripley and more.


- Advertisement -