5 Ways to Experience Adventure this Summer
The last day of school brings so much excitement! No more lunches to pack, no homework, and less stress. It is also when so many of my friends and family and those others I love to follow begin heading out on an adventure! Summer is an exciting time!
Summer for us is not full of exciting vacations to new cities or tropical destinations. For the past, oh, 15 years our summers are planned around weeks full of baseball tourneys and destinations that are not always pretty and are sometimes dusty (hello Lubbock). This can all leave me feeling like our summer is boring especially if I start comparing to others!
My job is also in full swing during the summer so taking off for long periods is often a tad stressful. So I also make it my job to find a way to add adventure to our summer even if it is in small doses!
Be spontaneous!
I know it seems easy but this really is not for me. I may not need a hard and fast plan but having at least a bit of a roadmap for an adventure is helpful to me.
But you know what? Sometimes in the planning the adventure gets lost. Lost on a whining teen or unenthusiastic husband who doesn’t show enough enthusiasm in my choice. Often times when this happens I just give up!
This summer I want to be more spontaneous! I want to wake up on a Sunday morning, grab the car keys and head somewhere unexpected for the day!
Become a Local
Even in smaller towns I promise if you begin searching you will find there are things to do! Find the fun in your own backyard. Explore your town, go to local events and meet new people.
Searching the internet for “events in (insert your town)” has yielded me resources I didn’t even know existed for local calendars of happenings. I’ve also used social media to begin following hashtags for my local area and have been surprised by the number of accounts I’ve found where others are pulling together events for the week and sharing!
Or this is a novel idea, actually drive around parts of your town off your normal route. Better yet explore by foot or by bike to grab a different view. Stop to eat in other areas of town and pop in local stores. You might be surprised at what you will find.
Some may seem a little out there or maybe even boring on the surface but being adventurous in your own town can really create some fun summer memories!
Volunteer
I know, I know, your asking what could volunteering have to do with adventure right? Well, personally I believe spending time volunteering will lead to adventure of exploring yourself. By giving back to your community and others you will grow as a person.
Summer is a great time to explore volunteering at different philanthropies and get a feel for what impacts you the most. Volunteering will enrich your life and you will definitely appreciate your own adventures more.
Find Fun Every Day
Summer is the perfect time to find a little fun every day. The days are longer, the schedules are not so tight and there are no bedtime rules right? So even when the day may be long you can still work to add fun every day.
Take a bike ride, have ice cream for dinner or maybe stage a water balloon fight. It’s really not hard to find fun if you just let yourself! You don’t have to spend a ton of money or go someplace extravagant. Fun is in you!
Try Something New
What better time than summer to try new things? This can be as easy as trying a restaurant you have never been to or experimenting with some ethnic food you have never tried. Take a dance or cooking class with your family.
Learn a new skill or brush up on an old one. Classes may be available to teach things like photography, knitting, guitar but we are also so lucky to have You Tube right so available! It is a great resource if you are wanting to learn something new.
Creating a spirit of adventure does not have to be expensive. There is adventure all around us and taking the time to just pause and see the adventure in the everyday will create lasting memories. Learning to be adventurous will insure when you do finally save up for that 10 day dream trip you really will appreciate it to the fullest!
How do you plan on finding adventure this summer?