I’ve spent a bit of time the last few days looking over our summer calendar and it is chock full of sports camps and sports in general.  We kicked it off yesterday with Golf camp for Salesman, and this is just the first full week of my kiddos’ summer vacation.

Other than the sports camps though, the calendar is shockingly empty.  Since I am the kind of mom that purposely doesn’t fill up my calendar with daily activities that take us away from home, I am still thinking that finding one other activity per week – a fun day trip for instance is definitely a great idea!

What do you do for the summer?  Do you always go away on a family vacation? Do day trips?

We may plan a weekend away for the family, and I hope next year to plan a full week long vacation (have to find places that can accomodate a family of 8 first).   In the meantime though, I’m sure that we’ll be taking a trip to the beach and to the Zoo.  I am looking for a few other ideas along the way, so I look forward to seeing what all of you have planned for the summer!!!

It’s hard to believe, but the 4th of July is quickly approching.  We throw a huge bash here on our property for …well… any family and friends who want to pop in throughout the day.   We have been doing this for at least 6 years now and each year it just gets crazier.

There are always tons of fireworks of every shape and size around here.  During the day there are a lot of kiddie works that they enjoy watching, but I always like to have other activities and lots of fun food for the day!  So I was excited to find out about some great resources available on Better Homes and Gardens’ website.

For some great Craft ideas check out their 4th Of July/Memorial Day Craft pages.  This year, I think the kiddos may be trying out the Candy Flag, the Patriotic Candy Display (looks like a great pre-4th project),  and I’m lovin’ the star spangled Bubble Wands.  What’s funny is that the main ones I want to do this year would also be great for decorating.

If you want to go all out and decorate your entire home in patriotic fashion, be sure to check out their 4th of July/Memorial Day Decorating page.

One last thing though that I cannot resist mentioning is their great Outdoor Summer Crafts for Kids. I know I’m not the only mom looking for fantastic projects to keep my kiddos busy through the summer with projects that are specifically summerish.  I first stumbled on BHG’s summer crafts page last year, and as I looked through this year’s lineup, I was VERY excited and honestly think my kids would enjoy almost all of the activities they listed.

When I was contacted about the USTA and their great Jr. Team Tennis programs I have to admit that I was absolutely shocked that until that moment I had no idea there was a national team tennis association for children!  My hubby played tennis all through high school and he loved it.

May is tennis month and I’m so happy to introduce you to Jr. Team Tennis!   If the cost of most sports has been keeping you from putting your children in sports, tennis may be the perfect fit for your family.  When compared to the cost of other sports with equipment, tennis is about 50% less expensive because all that’s needed is a racquet and a ball.

Children ages 6 to 18 can participate in Jr. Team Tennis through USTA. Want to find a team in your area, make sure you visit their website for all that information.  If you find that there isn’t a team in your area, you can even find out how to start one!  They have all the information you need right there to get your kids playing and learning!

More than 80,000 kids participated in Jr. Team Tennis in 2008, and tennis is currently the fastest growing traditional sport in the country with 27 million participants this year (according to the 2008 USTA/Tennis Industry Association study conducted by the Taylor Research Group).

Their site also offers great information for your family to start playing!  When they sent us a racquet and balls for our ENTIRE family (yes, including the three year old twins), I was thrilled and thought it was very fun that my husband was also very excited.  First chance we got we headed out to the nearest park with some great tennis courts and the kids loved it.

Our 9 and 10 year olds played with the 5 year old on one court and our 13 year old played against dad (and did shockingly well I might add) on the other court.  They are all BEGGING me to go again…”but can we find someone to watch the little kids next time please mom”.  They don’t want to be limited to just a half hour of play time.

Since my husband has so much experience in the tecniques of playing tennis, he’s the perfect teacher for all the boys and they are picking it up very fast, but even if you aren’t well versed in the ins and outs of tennis, USTA’s Jr. Team Tennis website offers great information for you to read through and begin to teach your children.

It is so fun to just keep our huge box of tennis stuff ready in the back of our Yukon so that anytime it’s nice we can just pack everyone up and hop on over to the tennis courts that are easily accessible at the park in town.  When they say that it’s affordable I wholeheartedly agree.

And Yes, the photo to the left IS what it looks like to have racquets for a family of 8 (Hubby’s racquet isn’t pictured here though – we still have to get it out of storage).

Want to get started too?  Well, I’m thrilled to tell you that the USTA is offering one VERY lucky commenter the opportunity to win tennis racquets and balls for your family!

To enter, just go to their Jr. Team Tennis Website and take a look around…maybe even check to see if there are any teams in your area.  Then when you’re done, come back here and leave a comment telling us the ages of the little “would-be” tennis players in your home, or if there’s a team near you.

To gain extra entries remember to tweet, stumble, kirtsy or post and leave a comment for each extra thing you do.  You can read about all the extra entry opportunities here as well as my giveaway policies.

This giveaway will end on June 4th and is void where prohibited.  Open for US entries.

Thomas & Friends Live on Stage: A Circus Comes to Town recently did come to a town near me and MomSelect sent me to check out the show!  Although I was thrilled to have the opportunity to go to this great event, I was also very afraid LOL.

Taking our twin 3 year olds out anywhere is always an event, but to take them to a live show … well, I feared I could be taking my life into my own hands.  Add to that one more almost-3 year old cousin and my 36 week pregnant sister and our event is complete.  Not to mention the fact that my twins have only seen Thomas & Friends on TV about … oh … ONCE.  This could have gone very very badly.

We showed up early and found our great seats, got the kiddos settled in and before we knew it the show had begun.  I am VERY happy to tell you that it was AMAZING!   My Twinkies were in heaven.  They loved every single second that there was a train or a helicopter on stage and they even loved the tractor.

My sister and I were very impressed that the acting was so lively and upbeat.  We were all very entertained.  In fact, the only thing I can think of that would have made it a little better would be if they offered the patrons in “floor” seats little boosters for toddler/preschoolers to sit on (like they have at movie theaters).  There were very few children sitting in their own seats in that section … almost all of them were in a parent’s lap (or in my case two of them were in my lap LOL).  I didn’t mind though and the Twinkies definitely didn’t.

They loved participating throughout the event and asked me several questions throughout.  The intermission came at just the right time for their little legs to get up and stretch a bit.  Then, it was just the right length afterward and the boys were all so smitten with it.

I’m so excited that I can tell all of you that it doesn’t matter if your child is even remotely familiar with Thomas and Friends, they will still love it and you will know that you have created a great memory and a fun experience for your child!

Be sure to stop by their website to see when the show is coming to your area!

It’s been several years, but we still remember taking our sons to a Disney on Ice performance!  It was very fun and the one we went to appealed to both boys and girls.  They offer such a great variety!

Disney On Ice shows get the audience totally involved. They feature exciting action, romance, comedy, athletic world-class skating, beloved Disney characters, and favorite Disney songs to which kids can sing and dance along. The whole atmosphere creates childhood and family memories that will last for years to come.

Well, many of you will be very excited to know that Disney on Ice is coming to a town near you and I have a code that will save you some SERIOUS money on tickets!!! Mom Central has teamed up with Disney on Ice to offer you some great values!

The code to remember in order to take advantage of any of these great discounts is: MOM.   Read the rest of this post for all the details on discounts for certain cities and events.  Also, please feel free to let others know about this great deal!

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