summer bucket list | 2018

//visit the splash park//

Heritage Park just opened up a beautiful splash pad that we will for sure be frequenting this summer! its large with plenty of comfortable seating for the adults! we tend to hit the splash pads around 12:30pm when most have gone home for lunch and nap times. we eat an early lunch before going and push nap time a little later for Brady. it tends to be less crowded this way! when I posted our time at the splash pad last week I got a ton of questions about Brady’s super cute suit, hat, and water shoes! hat is from George Hats! trunks are Kortni Jeane and shoes are Native knockoffs from Target! //blow bubbles//
I just bought one of those enormous bottles (I mean h u g e) of bubbles and plan to use them all up before the summer is through.  it is the most favorite thing for the babes to do!

// sidewalk chalk ////visit story time at the library//
Barnes and Noble has story time during the week (it is on Tuesday morning where we go) as well as our public library.  there is a splash pad right next to our B+N, so its like knocking two birds with one stone before nap time.  thats a win!

//attend open gym//
we have several churches in our area with ‘open gym’ that allow, during certain hours, the public to come and play.  its free and provides some great indoor playtime when it feels like it eight hundred degrees outside. a couple local that are our favorite: The Ark at Grace Pointe Church, The Treefort at Watermark Church, The Tubes at Irving Bible Church. there is also places like Jump Street ($4 for under 4 years) and Pump It Up that the girls will wear themselves out in. of course the indoor mall areas are always a win (and free) but the twins are at an age that they are too old to really play so I opt for the indoor play areas at our church, first.

//see a movie in a theater//

we’ve done this a couple times with Parker and Jolie but Baker has yet to see a movie in a theater. I think she will do great! Brady can have a date with BB and Papa 🙂

//have a park picnic//

we love to do this on weeknights during the summer at Market Street– easy to run inside for dinner and eat on the playground as the kids play. there is usually live music and its a full house. not to mention, a glass of wine from their bar for like $2.

//make homemade s’mores//

this is sort of like the homemade ice cream and swimming until dark.  its summer.  you just have to.

//visit the water park//

we missed this last year since Brady was so young but I think this year we could get away with it! we love NRH2O and Hawaiian Falls of course. Denton Waterworks is another option and there is The Core in Coppell which is a smaller outdoor park space (way cheap, even for non-residents!) and Dove Waterpark in grapevine is open on the weekends, only.

//go to a baseball game//

my favorite part of summer.  I LOVE going to baseball games. we have season tickets to the Texas Rangers and go as often as we can! we need to take the big girls again- they have such a blast! a visit out to see the Rough Riders (our minor league team) is also a lot of fun for kids.// visit as many sno cone stands we can find //

this time of year they pop up on every street corner!

// road trip to magnolia market //

we are lucky to live just a couple hours from the Magnolia Silos. I’ve been several times but we’ve never taken the kids, and its very kid friendly! we are for sure taking them this summer! we would love to eat at their new restaurant, too!

// picnic at the dallas arboretum //

we always go in the fall but have et t make it out for the spring/summer. its BOGO admission on Wednesdays! the children’s adventure garden is great for the babes!

//stay in our pj’s all day//
I’m thinking PJ’s + movie marathons + living room fort. we do this once a week anyways, so this is an easy one to mark off the list!

//go to the zoo//
we’ve been a couple times to the Fort Worth Zoo as well as the Dallas zoo, but not yet this summer!  a couple summers ago the FW Zoo opened a splash pad so we can go for the day to see the animals, eat a picnic lunch, and hit up the splash pad before heading home!  we are SO there.

//swimming until the sun goes down//mama + mini matching swimmies are from Albion Fit! use code MASSEYA15 for 15% off your purchase!

// visit a children’s museum //

we always have a BLAST at Peek n Play and can easily spend a few hours there during the hottest part of the day. we might also like to make a trip to the Perot Museum in Dallas and then spend the rest of the afternoon at Klyde Warren Park! there is a small splash/spray fountain area for the kids to play in and usually there are Food Trucks parked from 11am-3pm!

//go bowling as a family//
pull out the bumpers and order a pizza for the table to share.  this one would is super easy and affordable to do with young kiddos.

//build a living room fort + watch movies//

// watch fireworks + play with sparklers //

//paint with water//

plastic buckets full of water  + a package of $6 paintbrushes and let them go to town on the sidewalk outside.

//make homemade ice cream//
Jordan’s favorite thing to do in the summer. which has turned into the twins’ favorite thing to do in the summer, too.

// get our faces painted ////go to the farmer’s market//
there are TONS of small markets in and around the cities we live.  you can easily find a local farmer’s market through googling your own city.  I love the idea of walking around the market and letting the girls pick out their own piece of fruit or veggie to take home to ‘prepare’ or eat right away!

//mom + daughter mani/pedi date//

paint our toes the perfect shade of watermelon pink!

//chase the ice cream truck//
the ice cream lady always makes her rounds in our cul de sac! there are 12 kinds among the houses and the moment we hear the music the twins are digging through their purses searching for change to buy a bomb pop!// complete a jigsaw puzzle on a rainy day //

puzzles are Parker’s love language! we especially love the large Melissa and Doug floor puzzles

// pick wildflowers and make flower crowns //

something I used to do as a kid and I think this would be so fun for us to do together.

whats on your Summer Bucket List??

May 22, 2018

  1. Shawn says:

    Thank you so much for this post! We are fairly new to the Richardson area (from the East coast). So this is a wealth of information. We will definitely make the short trip to Heritage Park for the splash pad. Thank you! You have a beautiful family.

  2. Lanay says:

    Love this post! We live in plano so this helps me find things to do i didnt know about!

  3. Kelly says:

    LOVE this list! How lucky are you to live near the Magnolia silos! It’s on my bucket list but we have a 14 hour drive. Maybe in a few years lol! XO

  4. Jill says:

    Another fun option in Coppell is their Splish Splash Storytime at The Core! It’s every Friday at 11am June-August i think! They read a couple of books and sing some songs in the pool then you can swim and play for free until 12:45! Trietsch Methodist church in Flower Mound also just opened a free play area, not as big as The Ark but still something fun and new!