Things to do at home in the summer with your family

Giant bubbles are fun for people of all ages. To have a family bubble-a-thon, you can work together as a family to make your own bubble solution and craft your own giant bubble want using this tutorial. Then you can have a contest to see who can make the biggest or longest or most interesting looking bubbles.

It's one thing to tell your kids to exercise because it’s good for them, and it's another thing to practice what you preach with them, like Jessica Alba does with her kids. Exercising together is fun. Pick any kind of workout that makes you all smile.

Yes, we're all trying to get kids off their screens, but what if when you give in and tell them that they can play a video game, you join them and play something that makes you move and groove? Use Roselyn Sánchez and her daughter as inspiration.

Crafting with kids can be so much fun as you can see from the smile on Jacqie Rivera's face, and it can also be one of the best things to do in the summer with teenagers. You can make all sorts of things. Also, you don't have to spend a lot of money on crafting supplies, especially if you make crafts out of recycled materials.

If you have a record player and vinyl records, then by all means bust them out. You could have everyone take a turn playing DJ as you sit outdoors and enjoy the tunes while sipping on a cold beverage. If you don't have a record player, use your phone.

If you have a backyard, there are so many things to do for the summer outdoors at home. For starters, you can have a backyard camping excursion. It's like all the fun of camping, but you can run inside to use the bathroom!

If you don't have a backyard or just don't want to camp outdoors, there are still fun things to do at home in the summer. You can set up camp inside your home near a window so you can look out and peep the stars. Younger kids might want you to leave the camp set up for days because it's just fun to have a tent indoors.

It's hot in the summer, and one of the best and most fun ways to cool down is by running through the sprinklers. We recommend you run through the sprinklers as often as possible. You can even run through them if you are fully dressed—just make sure to take any electronics out of your pockets. Keep the fun going by yelling, "Last one through the sprinklers is a rotten egg!"

Have hopscotch tournaments. Everyone in the family has to play. You could up the ante and play for high stakes, like whoever wins gets to pick dessert. Or you could just play to play, because that's still super fun.

Eating outdoors is one of the things to do in the summer for teenagers that they will love. The warm summer weather cools down in the evenings and the sun goes down later, which makes the outdoors a perfect place to enjoy dinners together. Hang out afterward and play cards or tell stories.

Have water balloons at the ready so you can have spontaneous water balloon fights or play water balloon tag or have kids go cool down real quick. You could turn cleanup into a game, too, by rewarding whoever picks up the most burst balloon remnants with some kind of a treat or their pick of dessert that day.

Buy a few games that can be played outdoors, and have them set up all summer long or at least in a spot where they are easy to grab. Make having fun with the games easy. No one is going to play with them if they are stored away and hard to get to and then have to be put away every single time they are used.

Birdwatching is something you can do in your backyard, porch, or through a window. Set up a birdfeeder and start taking pictures of all the birds you spot. You can print the pictures out and do research to identify each bird and create an album of all the birds you spot as a family over the summer.

Glow sticks are magic no matter how old you are. It's like, "How do they glow so brightly?" Why not make use of that magic to play some glow-stick ring toss? It is one of the best things to do in the summer for kids and will make them very competitive.

Grab some plastic bottles out of the recycling bin and put some glow sticks in them. Then set up an outdoor bowling alley and have some glowy fun knocking down your glow-in-the-dark bowling pins with whatever ball you have on hand.

Have every family member learn a simple or not-so-simple magic trick on their own. Once everyone has perfected a trick, come together and wow one another during a family magic show. And no, putting dirty dishes in the dishwasher, running it, and then pulling out clean dishes does not count as a magic trick.

Buy some new games or swap games with another family and have lots and lots of family game nights all summer long. Kids learn a lot about being good losers and good winners in the process. Remember, you can take the games outside, too; you don't have to play indoors.

You can set up a mini-golf course outdoors or indoors. Get creative and use items from your recycling bin to create new obstacles and keep the game interesting. If you have little kids, part of the fun can be letting them set up the course.

If you haven't seen the movie Yes Day, you can start off by watching the movie together and then set a date for your own Yes Day. Your Yes Day will have different rules if you want everything to take place at home, but it's totally doable.

Cooking and eating together is such a great way to bond. It's shocking how many families don't sit down to eat together, much less cook together. So it's no wonder that this is one of the most gratifying things to do in the summer for teenagers. Find new recipes you can all make as a family, and have fun spending time together in the kitchen.

Here's one recipe you'll all enjoy making together: ice cream cone smores. Every family member can build their own, and they can be cooked on an outdoor grill or in your oven.