By Jennifer Anthony | Photography by Nicole Fletcher
In the doldrums of summer – when camps and vacations have come and gone – the charm of summer break can fade with each passing triple-digit day. Now is the perfect time to take advantage of the many hidden treasures of a summer at home in the Big Country – and make some great memories along the way.
Outside Fun
Throw on swimsuits and sunscreen and head to Nelson Splash Pad at East South 11th Street and Loop 322, or check out Abilene Swim Club (325-692-1395) or the Dive Spot (325-673-3483) to find a good fit for your family.
Have an old-time game day! Swing by the dollar store and pick up some packages of jacks and marbles. Watch some YouTube videos explaining the rules if you don’t already know them. Better yet, invite an older friend to play who can show you all the tricks.
Throw the bikes, scooters and skates into the car and drive over to Red Bud Park at South Willis and South 32nd streets to make a couple of loops around the paved trail.
Invite friends over for a cookout and finish the evening with a backyard movie. Borrow a projector from a friend or from a local audio visual company like IN-Focus Digital or Abilene Projector and A/V Rental.
Play it right and you might be able to skip baths today with this activity! Fill a dishpan with six cups water and mix in ½ cup cornstarch. Then add ½ cup Dawn or Joy dish soap, 1 tablespoon baking powder and 1 tablespoon glycerin. Let it sit for several hours before using. Experiment with different kinds of bubble makers using pipe cleaners, drinking straws, wire hangers, and string tied to sticks.
Call a backyard water fight, complete with buckets, water guns, water balloons and a sprinkler.
Make a fun, squishy-soft concoction out of 1 cup cheap hair conditioner and 2 cups cornstarch. Just for fun, throw in some food coloring or glitter.
Walk, jog or stroll around Abilene Christian University’s Lunsford Foundation Trail, an approximately 2-mile concrete trail around the perimeter of the campus. Take a break to rest or reflect at the stone labyrinth outside the Hunter Welcome Center, or the Jacob’s Dream sculpture site.
Make a list of several things you might find in your backyard, neighborhood or nearest park. Give each child a copy of the list (drawn or written, depending on their ages), and a bag or bucket for collecting and let them loose. When the last child has completed the scavenger hunt, it’s time for slushies.
Cover the sidewalk with art. Mix 2 cups cornstarch with food coloring of your choice, then add 2 cups water and stir. Use paintbrushes to bedazzle the front walk.
Learn all about geocaching and give it a try! Visit geocaching.com to get started on this real-world, outdoor treasure hunting game.
Bring buckets, shovels and molds to the Abilene Zoo to build castles in the sand play area behind Caribbean Cove.
Gather flour, newspaper and a plastic bowl for each person to have some fun with paper mache. Mix the flour with water in a 1:1 ratio, tear the newspaper into 1-inch strips and dip into the flour mixture. Smooth the excess paste off, then lay the wet strips across the upside down bowl until the bowl is completely covered. Make several layers. Wait until the next day or until the newspaper layers have dried completely, then pop your paper mache bowl off the plastic one and paint it.
Melt crayons – on purpose this time! Peel and break crayons into a few pieces each, then drop the crayon pieces into cookie cutters on a foil-covered paper plate outside. Cover the pieces with foil. Check on the melting progress after about an hour. Be careful not to touch the wax until the crayons have cooled in the house! When the wax is solid again, pop the shapes out of the cookie cutters.
Camp out in the backyard. Set up a tent, or spread blankets on a trampoline or in a pickup bed. Bring flashlights and plenty of snacks!
Kitchen Fun
Shake it up with homemade ice cream! Each person needs one quart- and one gallon-size freezer bag. Into each gallon-size bag put enough ice cubes to fill halfway and add ½ cup salt. Into each quart-size bag, pour 1 cup half and half, 2 tablespoons sugar and ½ teaspoon vanilla. Seal and place inside the ice-filled bag. Now shake the bag until the mixture hardens. Can be enjoyed straight from the bag – just add a spoon!
What says summer better than s’mores? If you haven’t had a chance to stoke a fire pit yet, try the oven. Take a waffle cone for each person, fill it with marshmallows and chocolate pieces, then wrap each cone individually in aluminum foil. Bake at 350 for just a few minutes until the marshmallow and chocolate melt together.
Time to monkey around in the kitchen! The kids will love these primate cupcakes. Bake a dozen cupcakes of any flavor and top with chocolate frosting. For the monkey faces, place a mini vanilla wafer cookie toward the bottom of each cupcake top and pipe a brown smile on top of it, plus nostrils. Break a wafer in half and give each side of the cupcake an ear. Pipe white icing to make eyes with a black dot in the center. Have fun with different expressions!
Open a can of biscuit dough and let the kids press out their mini pizza crusts and top with their favorites – tomato sauce, pesto, white sauce, cheeses, pepperoni, sausage, onions, peppers. And extra dough means dessert pizzas! Open a can of pie filling, spread it across the top and bake. Drizzle a simple powdered sugar and milk glaze over the top when cooled.
Who hasn’t ever wished for a larger Rice Krispie treat? Buy a cheap plastic funnel and the basics: crisp rice cereal, marshmallows and butter. Follow the recipe for the treats, but instead of pressing them into a 9×13” pan, press them into the lightly greased funnel and let cool, then pop them out of the mold and wrap in foil for a Hershey Kiss-shaped treat. You can even make a paper pull for the top with a message.
Make your own ice cream sandwiches using homemade or purchased cookies. Let ice cream soften for a few minutes on the counter, then spread between two cookies and place on a parchment paper-covered tray. Refreeze and enjoy!
Cut up a watermelon and have a seed-spitting contest in the backyard.
Movie Fun
Cinemark (Century 12) hosts Summer Movie Clubhouse for just $1 a ticket. All shows begin at 10 a.m. “Turbo” shows on July 1 and 2, “Smurfs 2” on July 8 and 9, “Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs 2” on July 15 and 16, “Walking with Dinosaurs “on July 22 and 23, “The Lego Movie” on July 29 and 30, and “Rio 2” on August 5 and 6. Carmike Theaters also hosts a kids summer movie every Thursday at 10 a.m. “Despicable Me 2” shows on July 3, “The Nut Job” on July 10; “The Lego Movie” on July 17; “Rio” on July 24; “Mr. Peabody & Sherman” on July 31; and “Rio 2” on Aug. 7. Admission is $4 and includes a small drink and popcorn.
Town & Country Drive-in Theatre at 2902 Vogel St. shows your choice of two double features that begin at 8:45 p.m. each day. Box office and snack bar open at 7:30. Cost is $8 for adults, $4 for ages 12 and younger, free for children ages 3 and younger. Check facebook.com/TownCountryDriveIn for showings.
Bring a lawn chair and drive over to see Abilene Christian University’s Movies on the Hill: Monsters University at 8:30 p.m. August 5 on the front lawn of the campus off North Judge Ely Boulevard. Organizers are asking for clipboards and baby wipes to benefit Martinez Elementary School.
Bring a blanket or lawn chair to Movies in the Park at 9 p.m. July 12 and August 8 at Rose Park at South 7th and Barrow streets.
Road Trip Fun
Feeling like a trip to another age? In the less than three hours it takes to drive to Glen Rose, the kids could be gazing up at life-size dinosaur replicas at Dinosaur World or walking in ancient tracks in the bed of the Paluxy River at Dinosaur Valley State Park. For details, visit dinosaurworld.com or tpwd.state.tx.us/state-parks/dinosaur-valley.
Plan a day trip to San Angelo. Visit the San Angelo Museum of Fine Arts, Fuentes Café downtown, the newly constructed Tom Green County Library, and walk the trails along the Concho River.
Just under two hours away, the Veldhuizen Family Farm in Dublin offers tours to see hand-crafted Texas artisan cheeses being made on Saturdays at 10:30 a.m. Cost is $3 for adults and $2 for children ages 6 to 12. Tourists will see the cheese aging cave, baby calves and the milking parlor and will also have the chance to sample handmade, artisan cheeses. For details, visit www.veldhuizencheese.com.
Scheduled Fun
Young Audiences of Abilene performs “The Legend of King Arthur” at 10:45 a.m. and 3 p.m. July 8 at the Abilene Public Library, main branch, as part of its free summer show series. Shows are 45 minutes. For details call (325) 677-1161.
Visit the Abilene Farmers Market at North 1st and Mesquite streets across from Frontier Texas and buy something you’ve never tried before! The market runs from 7 a.m. until noon or until sold out on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays.
The City Swimming Pool in Albany at 900 N. Railroad St. has Family Night from 6-8 p.m. each Tuesday. The drive from Abilene is about 45 minutes, and cost is $1 per family. For details visit albanytexas.com/swimming-pool-information/.
Fizz, Boom, Read! is the Abilene Public Library’s Summer Reading Club and continues through July 26. Children who participate in the program and read 10 books (or read for five hours) will receive a yard sign provided by the Friends of the Abilene Public Library to let the world know they are champion readers. The library also hosts special events at its three branches for every age group, including Baby Steps, Lapsit, Toddler Time, Preschool Storytime, Tween Time, Make & Take, Family Fun and Super Storytime. For details visit www.abilenetx.com/apl/summerhome.htm.
Admission into the Buffalo Gap Historic Village is free July 4 for the annual Old Fashioned 4th of July featuring a parade, reading of the Declaration of Independence, kids’ games and music. For details call (325) 572-3974.
Gather the family for ArtWalk from 5-8 p.m. on the second Thursday of each month in downtown Abilene to enjoy restaurants, shops, museums, galleries and entertainment. In July only, ArtWalk will move to Friday, July 11, to include the Hot Abilene Nights car show July 11-13. ArtWalk is presented by the Center for Contemporary Arts.
Let the kids get back to nature and learn about where their food comes from. The Open Door Community Garden at South 19th and Amarillo streets hosts a workday on the second Saturday of each month. All are welcome to come and work in the garden, and all are welcome to pick what is ripe. For information, email Amy Wilson Feltz at amywilsonfeltz@aldersgateabilene.org.
The Abilene Zoo hosts an evening Spots and Stripes concert on July 17 featuring Abilene Christian University’s Faculty Jazz Quartet and a classic car exhibit. For details, visit abilenezoo.org.
The National Center for Children’s Illustrated Literature hosts Family Fun Saturdays from 1-4 p.m. at 102 Cedar St. This come-and-go family program helps you and your little ones create a work of art.
Bring your favorite stuffed-with-fluff friend to Teddy Bear Day on July 19 at the Abilene Zoo.
The Grace Museum at 102 Cypress St. offers free admission on Thursday nights until 8 p.m.
August 18 is the last Monday of summer break! Celebrate with a day of relaxation. Wear fun pajamas, watch a movie in the middle of the day, have a favorite-foods lunch, take a long nap and stay up late playing games.
With the last drops of fun squeezed from August like a twisted beach towel, here’s to a summer that ends in a peaceful, welcome transition back to packing school lunches and evening homework sessions.
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