Water Hose Limbo
Grab your hose and get ready to limbo! All you have to do is shoot a steady stream of water from the hose, put on some dance music, and have your little ones try to pass beneath the water while limboing underneath. Just like using a limbo stick, lower the hose every time someone makes it through! And get ready to splash anyone who doesn’t quite make it under the water! 

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Water Bucket Race

On your marks, get set, go! Set up a quick race course in your yard or at a nearby park. Give each contestant a small bucket or a large cup and fill each container with water. Challenge your runners to race from the starting line to the finish line and see who has the most water left in their bucket or cup at the end. To mix things up, tell racers to run, hop, skip or hula hoop towards the finish line. They’ll have a blast and will most definitely get wet. 

Slip N’ Slide

Whether you spring for a fancy slip n’ slide from a store or make your own with a giant tarp, you’re bound to have a good time! We recommend setting up your slip n’ slide on some kind of hill, ensuring the funnest ride as you let gravity do all the work. No hose? Bring buckets and buckets of water to throw down your slip n’ slide and throw bubbles into the mix to keep things nice and slippery. All in all, sounds like a good time!

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Local Splash Pad

Local parks are starting to put in seasonal splash pads and we’re here for it! When you don’t have access to a pool or don’t have the energy for a pool visit, simply take the fun over to a splash pad. That way your littles can cool off in the water, run around freely, and still be in sight from wherever you’re relaxing. You can also join in on the fun to make great summer memories!

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Stand Up Paddleboarding

Whether you go for a fiberglass or inflatable board, it may be time to take up Stand Up Paddleboarding! Whether you’ve got a river, lake, pond, or ocean nearby, this is a great way to play on the water when you don’t have access to a pool. Double check that you’re allowed to use recreational toys in your area, suit up with your life jacket, and get ready for a fun, full-body workout! If you’ve got little life jackets, have your little one sit on the front of the board while you paddle around the water. You’ll both love it!

Water Balloon Volleyball

This classic summer twist on volleyball is a great way to stay cool outside of a pool. All you need is two towels, four people, and lots of water balloons. Then, have two people grab each corner of the towel and toss the water balloon back and forth over the net… if you can! It’s a lot harder than it sounds so get ready to get wet from dropping the water balloons. Make it a competition and whoever catches the most water balloons wins a shave ice at the end of your day!

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Sunken Treasure

It’s time to invest in a kiddie pool for a fun treasure hunt! Fill the pool with water, and line the bottom with small toys, marbles, coins, or anything fun that will sink. Then have your littles, or pirates, remove the sunken treasure with tools, toes, or simply with their hands. You can even have your pirates work in pairs to see who can find the most treasure in a minute. Winners get first pick of the popsicles! 

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Water Tag

Time to put a summer twist on a classic game of tag. In this game of freeze tag, you are only frozen in place if you get sprayed with a water gun! That’s right, whoever is “it” wields the awesome water weapon and tries to get everyone out before they unfreeze! You’ll have kiddos trying to be “it” with that water gun in the mix! 

Sponge Line

This water activity works best with a large group, so invite all your friends over for Sponge Line! Have your participants sit on the ground in two single-file lines, everyone face forward. At the front of the line, you’ll need a bucket of water and a large sponge – at the back, you’ll need an empty bucket. The point of the game is to get as much of the water from the front bucket to the back bucket. So, when you say go, the first person in line will soak up as much water as possible, and pass the sponge backward down the line until it gets to the last person, who will wring it out in the empty bucket! Once they’re done, they’ll run the sponge back to the front and become the first person in line! If you don’t have sponges, cups also work great and if you need a real challenge, have everyone stand up and pass the sponge alternating under their legs and over their heads! 
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Ice Blocking

So you don’t have a pool but you have a great hill for sledding – it’s time for a summer ice blocking session! All you need is a block of ice from your local grocery store, a towel to sit on, and a steep grassy hill. Place the block of ice at the top of the hill, fold the towel on top of it so you don't slide off, and then enjoy your ride down the hill! You may not get soaked from this activity, but the ice will slowly melt the longer you slide down the hill. And if you get enough speed, that wind is sure to cool you right off!