Write something!

Need a little summer distraction? Try writing something with your boys. Here’s a novel idea – dig out the pencil and paper! Send a note to someone via snail mail, with stamps and all!

Here are some fun spins on the writing idea:

Choose a different relative or friend who lives far away. Make a trip to the dollar store for cards or stationery – or make your own! If your boys are too young to write, they can dictate and illustrate. Show them how to address a letter and take a special trip to the post office to drop your special deliveries in.

Choose someone in town who needs cheering up, and do the same. Or draw names of immediate family members and write “surprise” letters to family right there at home.

Write a family story. One member begins the story and passes it to the next one, and so on. Have a special premiere night with popcorn to read the entire masterpiece to the whole family.

If you have older sons, encourage them to begin writing in journals or even blogging. Help them set up blogs on which they can write and post photos.

So, pull out the pens, pencils, paper, and crayons and write something with your boys.

For the love of boys,
Laura

Another Summer Fun Idea – Host Something!

Here’s a way to teach your sons organizational skills and have fun at the same time. Host something in your neighborhood.

Each July 4th, a family in our neighborhood organizes a block party. Everyone comes – kids, parents, teens, you name it. Everyone brings something, including lawn chairs, and a good time is had by all.

What can you do? First, decide on an event. It can be as large or as small as you’d like. Here are some ideas:

A block cookout or potluck supper
An activity for the kids with games, lemonade, popcorn, pictures, and crafts.
A simple cookout with one or two other neighboring families.

What can the boys do?

First, let them help decide on the event.
Let them prepare invitations or flyers, either by hand or using the computer.
Let them deliver flyers and invitations.
Get their input for the menu and activities.
Assign duties to each family member. (setup, cleanup, games, etc.)

If you have other willing families in the neighborhood, let them share the load. But whatever part your family plays, be sure your boys see what it takes to organize an event from setup to cleanup.

They’ll learn important lessons about responsibility and serving others, and they’ll have a great time, too! So, host something!

For the love of boys,
Laura

Volunteer Somewhere!

Looking for another way to pass the long summer hours?
Get out and help someone!

Volunteer somewhere and take the boys along. It’s a great way to do something different and help others at the same time. And there are all kinds of volunteer opportunities from actual physical labor to providing transportation, to shopping for someone, to simply donating to your local soup kitchen or food pantry.

What does volunteering teach your sons?

Respect for others. Volunteering often puts you and your sons in different situations with different types of people. Kids quickly learn that people we label as “different” are not so different after all. We all have the same human need to be loved and accepted, no matter what our age or color.

That it’s not “all about me.” As bad as things are, there’s always someone who has life a bit harder than you.

To count their blessings. We learn to be thankful for what we so often take for granted – just simple physical abilities – when we see others who lack those.

Don’t know how to get started?

Call your church or a local church, if you don’t have one. Ask if they have any need for an able-bodied family that would like to volunteer.

Check the community calendar in your local newspaper.

Just look around your neighborhood. Is there an elderly neighbor who has a need? Maybe a new mom with sons you could host for an afternoon? Explain to your sons how volunteering like this helps others.

Go to http://www.dosomething.org/volunteer and plug in your zip code. They’ll provide you with volunteer opportunities in your area.

So, use the summer to get out with your boys and help someone.

For the love of boys,
Laura

Summer Fun - Play Something!

Too hot to go outside? Break out the board games inside where it’s cool. It’s time to play something!

Dig out the checkers.
Dust off the Chutes and Ladders.
Pull out the Monopoly and Scrabble.

“We haven’t done that in years,” say the parents of middle schoolers and teens. What better time than now to revisit some of the favorite games (and rivalries) of the earlier years? We were once without power for about 14 days, and people still talk about rediscovering simpler joys then – enjoying cards, board games, reading, and just really seeing the starry sky.

“My boys hate the games we have,” exclaims another mom. Arrange a trade! Clean out the game cabinet and visit a friend who has done the same. Take home the games they don’t want and try them out.

Don’t have any (or many) board games? Invest in a new one, or borrow one from another family.

Get together with another family and “board game it” together.

If you’re really creative, make your own board game! Check out http://www.wikihow.com/%20Make-Your-Own-Board-Game. Also, look at http://jc-schools.net/tutorials/gameboard.htm for downloadable templates and step-by-step instructions. If you google "Make your own board game," you'll find more sites. Some even list books and other sites that will help you.

So play something together – in the sun, in the shade, in the cool AC, at the beach, on the floor after dinner.

For the love of boys,

Laura

Boy Survives 8 Mile River Ride on Toy Truck

Visit msnbc.com for Breaking News, World News, and News about the Economy

This little guy was definitely looking for a bit of summer adventure. I couldn't resist posting this video -- boy moms everywhere will gasp, then laugh, all the while shaking their heads!

If you're interested in more ideas for Summer Fun with Your Sons, be sure to read below. And watch this spot -- more ideas for the end of summer are coming.

For the love of boys,

Laura

More Summer Fun

Let's put a new spin on summer reading. You may already take weekly trips to the local library. If you don't, give that a try. Yes, there are DVDs there, but encourage the boys to come home with at least one or two great books.

Let them browse in the fiction and nonfiction areas. Many times a boy who isn't interested in fiction will find a "how-to" book that fascinates him.

Some will find their own books and other boys will need your help and guidance, so be ready to guide.

You're already a regular library patron? Try these ideas.

Arrange a "book trade" with a friend and her kids. Let the boys choose a book to share, go visit your friend, and make a week-long trade.

Go buy a magazine for your boys. Or visit your pediatrician's office and see if they're discarding any old magazines and take home an armload.

Write your own book -- a family book. One can write, one can illustrate, everyone can contribute.

Drive across town to a different library. Book selection and programs can vary and maybe you'll find something new your boys love.

If you don't have this book, borrow or buy it!

It's chockfull of GREAT ideas for summer activities
and summer reading.

Every boy needs one!


So put a new spin on summer reading. Read something with your boys.


For the love of boys,
Laura

Helpful Summer Fun

Today's suggestion is to fix something.
(Preferably with tools, not a kitchen knife.)

This one may require some assistance from Dad, and then again, it may not. I'm sure there's something that needs fixing around your house. We actually have a "Fix-it Box" at our house. Find something to fix, dig out the tools, and get to work with your boys.

Fixing things is fun for boys, and it teaches a number of great lessons:

• Don't toss what you can fix.
• Learn how to use tools, and remember to be careful and safe.
• You can help others by fixing things.

In fact, if you or your husband is a good "fixer," why not take the boys along to help someone in the neighborhood? Visit an elderly neighbor and see if he or she has anything that needs to be fixed.

If you're not a master fixer, just offer to change light bulbs or install new batteries in the smoke alarm. If you're not great with hammer and nails, you can still find a way to fix something with your boys, have a good time, and teach them some valuable lessons.

Give it a try -- fix something with your boys.

For the love of boys,
Laura

Outside Summer Fun

What's the latest Summer Fun with the Boys idea?

Exercise something.

Yes, it's hot outside, so you don't have to hike or run...but do something outside. My boys used to rise at the crack of dawn, so if that's the case at your house, a run might be possible. After all, it's a bit cooler in the morning.

Get out with the guys and so something outside. Here are some ideas:

• Hit tennis balls across the yard with racquets.
• Set up a sprinkler or Slip 'n Slide and you slip right along with them.
• Looking for something a little slower and calmer? Take a nature hike and collect nature items.
• Wait till Dad gets home, have dinner together, and take a flashlight hike around the neighborhood.

Do something different outside -- enjoy your boys.

For the love of boys,
Laura

More Summer Fun Ideas

Need something fun to do with your boys this summer?

Cook something!

Not you, by yourself. You do that every day. Come up with a way for your boys to cook. Now, of course, this will vary with age, but there are lots of ways to approach this. Set a date and make a plan. You could:

• Let the boys grill with Dad.
• Let the boys cook something easy with you or Dad.
• If they're old enough, give them a little guidance and let them cook by themselves.

If you're not that brave, try a few of these ideas:

• Proclaim it "red" day. Everyone wears something red to the table and you fit as many red foods as you can into the menu.
• Try something new that the kids have never had before.
• Have a picnic in the yard -- by candlelight!

Just change things up a little. Get creative. Get cookin'!

For the love of boys,
Laura