100 Free (or Almost Free) Summer Family Fun Activities

Looking for ideas to make this the best summer ever?  Or maybe you just don't want to hear your kids say "I'm bored."

Either way, here are 100 free or cheap ideas for family fun this summer.

Please add your favorite family activities in the comments.  A mom can never have too many ideas to pick from!!

1. Draw outlines of each other on your driveway with sidewalk chalk.
2. Draw a mural on your backyard fence with sidewalk chalk.
3. Make homemade Kool-aid popsicles.
4. Blow bubbles outside.
5. Run through the sprinklers.
6. Water gun fight!
7. Play Marco Polo with a water hose in the yard.
8. Play backyard baseball with plastic bats, whiffle balls, and plastic lid bases.
9. Shoot some hoops in the driveway (assuming you have a basketball goal, if not, find one at a park).
10. Play Foursquare in your driveway.
11. Play Hopscotch in your driveway.
12. Jump rope.
13. Play backyard kickball.
14. Play dodge ball (with soft balls!).
15. Have a watermelon seed spitting contest.
16. Visit a U-Pick strawberry farm.
17. Visit a U-Pick blueberry farm.
18. Visit a U-Pick blackberry farm.
19. Check out a local Farmer's Market.
20. Go for a bike ride.
21. Take a walk around your neighborhood.
22. Visit each of your local parks and decide which one is best.
23. Play at a school playground.
24. Swim in a nearby lake, river or ocean.
25. Build sand castles on a beach.
26. Roast s'mores!!
27. Camp in your backyard.
28. Camp in your living room.
29. Visit a nursing home and make new friends.
30. Read aloud a classic books series (Chronicles of Narnia, Little House on the Prairie, Lord of the Rings, Trixie Belden, Hardy Boys, Nancy Drew, etc.).
31. Listen to a book on CD.
32. Visit every state park in your city, county or state.
33. Tour a nearby National Monument or park.
34. Find "freebie" nights/days at local attractions.  (Look for the calendar on their websites.  First or Last Saturdays of the month are often free.)
35. Tour your state capitol building.
36. Test some toys at Toys R Us (just be sure your kids know you aren't buying anything).
37. Pet the puppies at PetSmart.
38. Color in a coloring book.
39. Write and illustrate a book together.
40. Let your kids walk through the house taking pictures with your digital camera.
41. Skype with a friend or relative.
42. Make a family newsletter.
43. Eat a picnic in your backyard.
44. Have a family dance.
45. Pillow Fight!!
46. Introduce your child to a classic movie such as Princess Bride.
47. Attend story time at the library.
48. Buy a membership to the Zoo and go once a week throughout the summer.
49. Read all the books written by a favorite author (we're reading Beverly Cleary right now).
50. Read a book aloud and then watch the movie (Ralph S Mouse is a great one!).
51. Check out videos from your library.
52. Create your own family magazine.
53. Visit the Dollar Store and let each person select one item.
54. Bake an apple pie from scratch (peel the apples).
55. Play a classic boardgame: Clue, Candyland, Shoots & Ladders, Sorry.
56. Play a card game:  Old Maid, Go Fish, Uno.
57. Work a puzzle together.
58. Slide down a steep grassy hill on a cardboard box.
59. Dress up in silly costumes for supper.
60. Play cops and robbers in the backyard.
61. Attend a Minor League baseball game.
62. Better yet, attend a local Tball or youth league baseball game.
63. Do yard work for an elderly neighbor.
64. Wash your vehicles by hand.
65. Visit a local lawn and garden center and look at the flowering plants.
66. Pretend to drive the riding lawn mowers at Lowe's or Home Depot.
67. Make and eat strawberry shortcake.
68. Climb a tree.
69. Sing really loud with a CD.
70. Build a Lincoln Log village.
71. Make a sock puppet or paper bag puppet.
72. Make a collage with pictures from catalogs, newspapers, or magazines.
73. Learn some words or phrases in a new language.
74. Draw pictures using Draw. Write. Now.
75. Plan a play date with friends.
76. Volunteer to clean kennels at the Animal Shelter.
77. Volunteer with Habitat for Humanity.
78. Study a new topic together such as birdwatching or robotics.
79. Build and hang a birdhouse.
80. Arrange for a behind-the-scenes tour of a favorite restaurant.
81. Plan an imaginary road trip to a place you'd like to visit some day.
82. Grow sunflowers in your yard.
83. Plant tomato seedlings and watch them grow.
84. Look through old photo albums together.
85. Look through your dating/ wedding album with your kids.
86. Make a family time capsule.
87. Make swords and shields from cardboard and have a sword fight.
88. Write and perform your own skit.
89. Read a joke book out loud together.
90. Look at your high school/ college scrapbooks with your kids.  
91. Lay on the grass and talk about what the clouds look like to you.
92. Read a book or watch a movie and plan a party with the book/movie as the theme.
93. Stargaze after dark or find an observatory to visit.
94. Christmas in July!  Watch the Muppets Christmas Carol, listen to Christmas music and drink hot chocolate.
95. Decorate the outside of Dad's car at work.
96. Use free or discount passes from the library to visit local attractions.
97. Tie-dye a shirt for each family member. (Watch your local craft store for $2-$3 t-shirts.)
98. Conduct experiments using household supplies.
99. Have a checkers tournament complete with brackets to fill out.
100. Learn to make balloon animals together.

Bonus: Make homemade ice cream!!