Fun things to do now the weather is getting warmer

GET ARTY
Get arty with some chalk on the footpath. The kids will love it (and so will the neighbourhood walkers). Draw a maze for your child to walk through. Draw a road alongside some houses, a church, a police station, a school - your own town - your little one will spend ages driving through the town and creating their own stories of who they visit! If you have a big concrete space draw a bigger 'road' for them to ride their trike on. There’s a multitude of inspiring ideas to be found on Pinterest. 

WATER BOMBS
Cut coloured sponges into strips. Gather nine strips together and tie in the middle with string. Soak in a bucket and let the water war begin! No picking up the hundreds of little balloons, and reusable! So simple, so much fun!
Photo: thechicsite.com

MAKE A SPLASH
If you phone isn't waterproof buy an underwater case for it and take a dive! Kids will be keen to make a splash for this great photo opportunity.

USE YOUR NOODLE
Noodles aren’t just for swimming. Cut one in half and it’s an instant race track. On your marks, get set... GO!
Photo: ramblingsfromutopia.com

SAND DUSTER
Fill a sock with baby powder, tie it off with a ribbon, and you have a duster that’ll wipe sand off the kids before they get back in the car. Thanks to Rachel Hollis of thechicsite.com for that stroke of genius!

TOY BAG
And here’s another of Rachel’s tips – store your kids’ beach toys in a mesh laundry bag so you can shake out the sand before you head home. Also great for storing the toys as the air can pass through the mesh allowing the toys to dry out between uses.

GIANT ICE CUBES
An ice-cream container filled with water, a few drops of food-colouring and some plastic dinosaurs turns into an excavation for budding palentologists on a hot day.
TIP: freeze it in layers to get the animals floating all the way through the block.
Photo: crumbbums.com