Summer Hacks

When you live in an area that has triple digit weather in the Summer, you learn a thing or two when it comes to making life a little less miserable in the heat.

Being out and about with kids, there are some things I always try to keep handy to help keep our Summer adventures fun, comfortable and memorable!

Number 1 is hydration. When you’re in the heat for long periods of time you need to keep hydrated. During the Summer months, I always have my kids bring a water bottle with them when we go anywhere.

Firstly, I don’t want to be purchasing drinks at every stop because they’re whining that they’re thirsty. Secondly, I hate the waste plastic water bottles create and many places now have convenient water bottle refill stations that are free!

Number 2 is cool treats. Hanging by the pool and craving a nice cold popsicle? Another little hack with reusable water bottles is packing cold treats. I store frozen popsicles in a stainless steel water bottle and they keep frozen for a few hours. Of course, my kids never wait that long to enjoy them, but it’s an easy way to pack along a yummy treat to enjoy in the sun.

Along with keeping things cool, I try to keep a cooler in the car with extra snacks. We’ve been stuck on the road sometimes longer than anticipated because of an accident on the highway or unforeseen road construction. Keeping kids happy and fed is always good in my book. And let’s face it, even shelf stable items can get gross in a hot vehicle… So keep them in a cooler. Nobody likes sticky fruit snacks in the back seat!

Number 3 is busy minds means less boredom. During the Summer, and frankly year round, we enjoy going on road trips to new destinations. Spending hours in a vehicle can create a lot of “are we there yet?” questions from the back seat. To keep kids occupied, my hack is to always have books and car games handy. I keep a pencil bag handy filled with colored pencils, markers and pencils so they can play games or create. Tablets, portable DVD players and gaming devices we allow on longer road trips, but for shorter distances, we tend to keep the activity bag in the vehicle. It’s also great to grab some of the books and card games to bring when eating at a restaurant or for a medical appointment and there’s a wait.

Number 4 is be bugged less. Summer always means more unwanted pests wrecking havoc on our outdoor plans. To help keep everyone itching and scratching less, I use a few drops of Lemongrass essential oil on wool dryer balls in the dryer to help our laundry smell great and give an extra layer of protection from the bugs.

Number 5 is backup. There’s been a few times we’ve made a sporadic stop at the beach to dip our toes in the water or the kids decided to run through the splash pad fully clothed at the park. Nothing to fret over, but it’s nice to be prepared with some towels in the trunk just in case. I also like to keep a large rolled up picnic blanket in there for a park picnic on a whim which has happened more than I ever thought would. If you have littles, here’s a blog post I did almost a decade ago going over what helped us with our road trips and adventures out and about.

Number 6 is keeping cool affordably. A bandana is a cheap way to keep cool. They can be found for around $1 at many stores or even less in a multipack. I like to soak a few in the sink then put them in a zipper bag in the freezer. I toss them in the cooler before we head out, giving the cooler extra chill and they’re ready to throw around our necks when we’re out hiking and exploring in the sun.

Number 7… If all else fails, add water. Discomfort and irritability tend to go hand in hand with scorching days. Whether it’s running through the sprinkler or jumping in a lake, pool, river or stream… water ALWAYS seems to help! I keep a swim bag ready with extra goggles and pool toys so we aren’t scrambling to get things together when we just want to cool down already.