5 Summer Activities to Do with Your Grandkids
Key Points – 5 Summer Activities to Do with Your Grandkids
- Parks, Waterparks, and Ballparks, Oh My!
- There Are Other Ways to Stay Cool Other Than Going to the Pool
- What About a Last-Minute Summer Getaway Before School Starts?
- 6 Minutes to Read
What Are Some of Your Favorite Summer Activities to Do with Your Grandkids?
More often than not, spending more time with family is the number one goal for both spouses in retirement. We know this from taking clients through our Guided Retirement System, which has them do a prioritization exercise to figure out the most important things to them and their spouse as they prepare for retirement. Family is going to be the focus of this article, as we share five fun summer activities that you can do with your grandkids.
We decided to go with more of a generic approach by making a list of fun summer activities with your grandkids that can be done in many cities nationwide. However, we still provided a few specific examples of those summer activities with your grandkids in the Kansas City and Detroit metropolitan areas where our offices are located. We hope this is helpful as you try to make the most of what’s left of summertime with your grandchildren.
1. A Day at the Park
Number one on our list of fun summer activities to do with your grandkids can really be about five activities in one. It’s spending a day at the park. You can hang out with them at the playground—helping them slide down the slide, give them a push start on the swing set, or even building a sandcastle with them. If there’s a basketball court at the park, you can shoot some hoops with them. Or maybe you can play some catch—with a baseball or football—or play a game of pickleball or tennis if there’s are courts for that. And if the park is somewhat close by, maybe you and your grandkids can bike to the park. The options for fun summer activities with your grandkids at the park are just about endless.
Even some of the smaller local parks can have plenty of fun things to do for you and your grandkids. We’re guessing that you and your grandkids already have a favorite park(s). If you live in the Kansas City or Detroit areas, here are a few cool parks that are worth visiting.
Kansas City Area Parks
Detroit Area Parks
2. Soaking up the Sun at the Waterpark
Few summer activities with your grandkids are more fun for kids than going to the pool. There’s just a special thrill about watching them learn how to swim, jump up the diving board for the first time, or go down a water slide. Hopefully you and your grandchildren have already spent a few days this summer at your favorite public pool.
Public pools can be a very fun and affordable way to spend summer days, especially if you and your grandkids have pool passes. But every once in a while, it can be nice to make an even bigger splash by going to a water park. Here are a few of the most popular waterparks in Kansas City and Detroit.
Kansas City Area Waterparks
- Oceans of Fun
- Splash Cove at the Jim Allen Aquatic Center
- Great Wolf Lodge
- Adventure Oasis
- Summit Waves
Detroit Area Water Parks
- Red Oaks Waterpark
- Troy Family Aquatic Center
- Waterford Oaks Wave Pool
- Kensington Metropark
- Wayne County Family Aquatic Center
3. Take Your Grandkids Out to the Ball Game
Whether you’re watching your favorite MLB team, a minor league game, a semi-pro league matchup, or a local summer league game, going to the ballpark with your grandkids can be the home run of fun summer activities. That can even be the case if your hometown team is at the bottom of the standings (just ask me or the other Kansas City Royals fans at our Kansas City area offices). Here are a few local baseball teams (including the Royals and Tigers) that you can watch with your grandkids this summer.
Kansas City Area Baseball Teams
Detroit Area Baseball Teams
4. Checking Out the Newest Exhibits at Your Favorite Museum
We’ve mentioned a few fun summer activities that involve enjoying the outdoors, but on scorching hot or rainy days, it’s nice to have some indoor summer activities to enjoy as well. Hopefully, the last two summer activities with your grandkids on our list will have you covered.
Number four on our list is visiting a museum. There might be some museums that won’t interest your grandkids at all, but there are still so many museums that people of all ages tend to enjoy. Here are a few of the most popular museums in Kansas City and Detroit that you and your grandkids can either enjoy or find a museum that’s similar to them where you live.
Kansas City Area Museums
- Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art
- Negro Leagues Baseball Museum & American Jazz Museum
- The National Museum of Toys/Miniatures
- Science City
- The National WWI Museum
Detroit Area Museums
- The Henry Ford Museum of American Innovation®
- Detroit Institute of Arts
- Motown Museum
- Michigan Science Center
- Detroit Historical Museum
5. Staying Cool at Your Local Library
Do your grandkids enjoy reading or enjoy you reading to them? Well, your local library should have a wealth of books that you and your grandchildren can read during the dog days of summer. There are countless libraries in Kansas City, Detroit, and other mid-sized to larger cities, so we’re not going to rattle of short lists like we did with the other summer activities. Even if you live in a smaller town that doesn’t have a library, you can visit a library in a town nearby or find some eBooks to listen to. And if your grandkids really like to read, check out what summer reading programs that can let them challenge themselves a bit too.
A Bonus Summer Activity with Your Grandkids– An End-of-Summer Getaway Trip
Hopefully, our list of fun summer activities can spark some ideas of some fun things to do with your grandkids. If you’re still searching for some ideas, here’s one more fun summer activity that you and your grandkids might enjoy. One of the other things that people usually say is very important to them when they’re going through the prioritization exercise is traveling. So, why not take an impromptu trip with your grandchildren before they need to go back to school?
You don’t necessarily need to book a flight and go somewhere far away. If you live in Kansas City and have a lake house in the Lake of the Ozarks, Table Rock Lake, or on another lake that’s within a reasonable driving distance, take a late summer getaway to the lake with your grandkids. Or maybe visit a small town that’s on the outskirts of Kansas City or just beyond like Lawrence, Columbia, Manhattan, Omaha, or Wichita.
The same thing goes for the Detroit area. There are many beautiful lakes to spend time around with Lake Saint Clair and all the Great Lakes. And you can take some easy day or weekend trips to Ann Arbor, Lansing, Grand Rapids, Traverse City, Toledo, Cleveland, or somewhere in Canada. Hopefully, you have a good idea of some other quick getaway trips with your grandchildren if you live outside of Kansas City or Detroit.
Finding Out What’s Important to You
If you’re a Modern Wealth Management client, think back to going through the prioritization exercise with your advisor for the first time. That list of things that are important to you has probably changed a little bit over time, hasn’t it? Your goals are one of many things about the financial planning process that is fluid. If our list of fun summer activities with your grandkids has made you reflect on what’s important to you, take some time to connect with your advisor and make sure that your current goals are incorporated into your financial plan. We want to make sure that your plan is allowing you to accomplish your objectives.
Taking a Trip with the Guided Retirement System
If you’re not a Modern Wealth Management client, let us take you through the prioritization exercise to find out what’s truly important to you and your spouse. We believe that you’ll find that going through the Guided Retirement System as a whole is truly an eye-opening experience. It’s geared to help give you more confidence to do the right things with your money, freedom from financial stress, and time to spend doing the things that you love.
You can begin to get a feel for our Guided Retirement System by using our industry-leading financial planning tool. We’re giving you the opportunity to use it to build a plan that’s unique to you from the comfort from your own home. You can access our tool at no cost or obligation by clicking “Start Planning” button below.
Making the Most of Your Retirement
If you have any questions about building your goals-based plan, get a conversation started with one of our CFP® Professionals. We can screen share with you while using our tool to help you better understand all how all the core components work within your financial plan. To schedule a 20-minute “ask anything” session or complimentary consultation with one of our CFP® Professionals, click here. We hope to meet with you soon—whether that’s in person, virtually, or by phone—to build a plan that allows you to spend more time with your family and do all the things that are important to you in retirement.
Investment advisory services offered through Modern Wealth Management, LLC, an SEC Registered Investment Adviser.
The views expressed represent the opinion of Modern Wealth Management, LLC, an SEC Registered Investment Adviser. Information provided is for illustrative purposes only and does not constitute investment, tax, or legal advice. Modern Wealth Management, LLC does not accept any liability for the use of the information discussed. Consult with a qualified financial, legal, or tax professional prior to taking any action.