Moving and Shaking

Fitness & Food

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These ideas for keeping kids active in the summer have been compensated by Collective Bias, Inc. and its advertiser.
All opinions are mine alone. #CollectiveBias #BlueLizardSummer

 

Remember back when you were a kid and you were outside like, ALL the time?? Riding bikes and building snowmen and jumping in leaves and playing in the sprinkler? It makes me sad that so much of my kids’ childhood is spent zoning out in front of screens. I mean, sure, I could forbid screen time altogether…but then when would I shower??

We’ve had to get creative to make sure our kids get outdoor time everyday, especially since we homeschool and are home ALL day. This is why I send them to a Maine summer camp at times too so they’re able to take advantage of the outdoors even more, and play some of their favorite games and participate in some other exciting activities. What a great place for them to socialise too! When they’re not there, one of our favorite things to do together is to head to our local park and just run crazy! I’m sharing a couple of fun outside games that we like to play below. Hopefully they’ll help you make sure your kids stay active this summer which will in turn keep you sane 🙂

The only problem with being outside for us here in Arizona, is the ridiculously brutal sun. I’ve never experienced sunshine like they have here anywhere in the world…it’s SO intense. I worry nonstop about my fair little redheads and their poor skin. Whenever we’re outside I make sure that I slather sunscreen on everyone like it’s going out of style; I also keep baby Alice protected in the shade or inside since a pediatrician’s approval is recommended before using sunscreen on a baby under 6 months.

Not all sunscreens are created equally, as we’ve found out over our 12 years of buying bucketloads of the stuff. Blue Lizard Australian Sunscreen® is one that I just recently discovered and love! They have 4 different formulas: Sensitive, Sport, Face & Baby and they’re all designed specifically for their unique purpose. I love that the Baby formula is formulated with baby’s sensitive skin in mind. There’s nothing sadder than seeing my poor little baby’s skin all irritated.

Blue Lizard® Baby sunscreen has an SPF of 30+, is free of fragrances and parabens and it even has a cool bottle that changes color in harmful UVB light! A great reminder for us busy moms who forget everything. Blue Lizard® was originally created in Australia (hence the name), where sunscreen standards are the strictest in the world (although it’s now made exclusively in the U.S.) It’s unique zinc oxide formula has been recommended by dermatologists for 15 years!

Click here for a $4.00 Ibotta offer when you purchase a 5 oz bottle of Blue Lizard® Baby! You can find it at your local Walmart, in the seasonal display in a center aisle.

Ok, you ready for the activities?! Here they are! And of course, you can try your own spin on these. I’m sure your kids will tell you exactly which one is their favorite…

  1. Mother May I – Speed Racer Edition!
    In case you’re unfamiliar with the classic “Mother May I” game, this is how it goes: the “mother” stands at one end of a room or field and everyone else stands at the other end. The goal of the game is for one of the kids to reach the “mother” before anyone else. One by one, each child asks “mother” if he or she can do something that brings them closer to her. For example, “Mother may I take 5 giant steps?” or “Mother may I take 3 ballerina twirls?” Our version goes the same way except everyone does the action together and as fast as they can! The game ends much quicker but they get more exercise and there are lots of giggles. In fact, each “mother” can have several turns since it ends so quickly!
  2. Rolling Along
    Like every other kid on the planet, my kids LOVE rolling down hills, even teeny little slopes. Since our local park doesn’t have any good hills, I decided it’d be fun to try to roll across a flat field! To play this one, everyone lays on the grass, end to end. On Mom’s count, everyone starts rolling their bodies towards her, trying to be the first one there. It’s much harder to keep rolling when there’s no hill and it’s a great workout. Just make sure everyone wears clothes you don’t mind getting grass-stained 🙂
  3. Copy Cat
    One child stands in front of the others and makes a single movement with his body (hops up and down, circles his arms, spins around quickly, etc) and all the other kids try to copy him. Then, the child in charge adds a second movement to the first and everyone tries to copy both movements; he keeps adding new movements to the series until someone makes a mistake in copying him and that person is out. The game continues until there is only one child left and he becomes “it” for the next round! So, it’s sort of like Simon Says, only with a series of movements. This can also be a lot of fun to play in the pool!And that’s it!If you come up with any other great made-up outdoor games, comment with your idea, we’d love to have more things to do to keep us active and healthy outside this year. And don’t forget to grab your Blue Lizard Australian Sunscreen® at Walmart (with this great offer!) to keep those cute kids safe!

Photos by Let Me See You Sparkle

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