Natural Summer Fun For Little Ones

Outdoor social time has been so important for so many of us over the past year. But fresh air and green spaces can always be super beneficial for anyone, on so many levels, and kids are certainly no exception to this rule. It can be a real struggle to tear kids away from devices, but sometimes if you can just get them out the door and provide a few cool ideas and fun snacks, it’s surprising how quickly they can get carried away and forget that they are supposed to be begging for screen time. Here are a few tips that could come in handy.

Gaming… In Real Life

It’s kind of ironic that so many video games are so full of action, but can leave kids so lacking in exercise. It can be fun to remind kids that they can play versions of their favourite games in real life. Pro sports games are of course based on real life, and if necessary you could always make an agreement, for example, that an hour with a real hoop and ball earns an hour of NBA2k21. Want some help and company working in the garden? Try comparing planting and weeding to playing Animal Crossing! Have lots of empty boxes kicking around? How about a bit of real life Roblox? A Roblox inspired block-y, boxy costume or stacked up structure can involve tons of creativity and action. And so many traditional kids games like Hopscotch, Red Rover, and Capture The Flag actually involve loads of physical activity. It may be a bit difficult to get things going, but there’s a reason that these games have been around for decades—once kids get into them, they’re really fun!  

The Beauty of Natural Snack Time

As a general rule, kids like colours, which makes the neon pinks and electric blues of today’s mass produced candies extra enticing—but we all know it's not good stuff making those goodies glow.  Fruit may seem boring in comparison but presentation is everything and there are a lot of fun ways to bring a variety of fresh fruits together to create fun and beautiful rainbow-y snacks. A fruit salad is an obvious classic and depending on their age, kids can get involved with anything from the chopping to the tossing, to spooning on an awesome topping like their favourite yogurt or a scoop of all-natural ice cream. Also, a fun bowl can go a long way in raising enthusiasm. And it may be easier than you’d think to get away with homemade fruit slushies in lieu of 7-11 Slurpies. A good rule of thumb is 4 cups of frozen fruit to 1/2 cup of juice or milk/milk substitute, and use honey to sweeten to taste. You can even get fancy and blend up two or more flavours separately, say, strawberry, blueberry AND mango, so that kids can mix colours to create tasty swirls in their glasses! And for even more hands on fun, there’s always DIY fruit kabobs that allow kids to create their own sliced-fruit rainbows on sticks, or they can even create edible necklaces with grapes for beads—a simple darning needle and some string will to the trick here.

Fun In The Sun

And last but not least, every parent has likely heard approximately one million times about how important it is to protect kids from the sun. And it's true. It is really important. So keep the hats big and the sunscreen flowing. At both Poco and Nanaimo, we have a selection of beautiful natural sunscreens that offer protection without the nasty chemicals. ❤️