I have 2 children in grade school. They are so scheduled during the school year that I worry they will go bonkers without all the scheduled activity during the summer. They tend to get very restless and constantly say "i'm bored!" when there are plenty of things to do at home or around the neighborhood. Any idea of how to keep them occupied and happy without turning myself into a school teacher?

Hi I have three children, two boys 7 and 8 and one girl who is 12. I stay at home with the kids and my husband and I are sure to find fun things to do during their break. Since our daughter and youngest son (my step kids) don't live in this area they do not have any friends in our area. The boys entertain themselves but our daughter gets very possessive over me and wants all my time for her. Obviously this isn't possible with three kids. There are no girls her age in our area for her to get to know. I am looking for advice on how to keep her happy and occupied while at home without buying a ton of stuff to entertain her and basically ignoring the boys.

Our local community college offers "KIDS COLLEGE". It is designed specifically for kids 1-6th grades. It keeps them busy in the mornings and we swim in the afternoon. Everyone is happy.

I have a twelve year old son. I am in nursing school, so I have class most of the summer. He is going to basketball camp and to boyscout camp for a week. I have a teenage babysitter who takes him to the pool. I don't have classes on Fridays, so that is our play day. We are going on a train trip to Washington DC later in the summer. Most of all, I just want him to be able to lay around in the sun, chase butterflies, make forts, get dirty, make lemonade. That's what summer is for!

My daughter has lots of friends in school, but we live in a very large school district and don't live in a "neighborhood" so she doesn't have many friends that live in walking distance to play with. What is a mother to do?

I love summer, and one of the reasons I am a sahm is so I can be there with my school-age kids during the summers... However, my kids (and I) do not do particularly well with too much unstructured time. One problem is, I am one of the few sahm's on the block and all of the neighborhood kids end up hanging out at our house all summer long. When there are a bunch of 12-year-olds together with not enough to do, they come up with some pretty stupid ways to pass the time, like making YouTube videos of themselves performing stupid, semi-dangerous stunts; picking on the younger brother (age 8) and his friends; playing way too many video games, etc. At this age, they are bored with the neighborhood pool (no diving board). I am at the point where I am almost dreading July, which is looming large & empty on my calendar -- no vacations or camps planned for that month... How can I direct these older kids in such a way as to make the summer enjoyable for ALL of us again?

Our four children go to Memphis Bitsbytesbots computer camp.It is fun and educational at the same time. Our girls and boys love movie making,robotics and game creation as well as making a new friends. In the afternoons we bike, swim, talk, walk and play together.On the weekends when my husband is always home, we are usually taking a short trips and enjoying the sun,water, birds and forest. We all love our summers because we have so much fun and a time to enjoy each other company.

I do stay home with but I also find a Day camp for them to participate in at least one week during the summer. For my son it's Cub Scout Day Camp and I actually volunteer for that one and my girls also attend for a special program set up just for the non-cubbies. This year one daughter will be attending Softball Day camp for the first time.

My son is PETRIFIED of the swimming pool. He is 9 and had a bad experience before (nothing major, he choked on some water) and now refuses to go anywhere near the pool. I don't want him to miss out on any summer fun, but I think making him take swimming lessons might be too hard for me. Help!

I have 3 little ones! 1 1/2 and 4 and 6? I'm a stay at home mom and this summuer I think is going to drivr me crazy with gas going up! What are some ideas that we should do with out put a hole in my pocket?

my daughter is 11 weeks old. Recently, she has started something new. Whenever anyone else holds her (even dad) she cries hysterically. When I take her back to hold/comfort her, she will calm down in just a few minutes. She is fine with daddy as long as he isn't holding her. He can get on the floor and play and/or talk with her without any problems. I am breast feeding and we have started to have dad feed her the night time bottle and she is ok when he is holding her while feeding her. What can we do to overcome this? Is this a phase and is it normal at this age?