What do kids do in the summer? (Phoenix, Parks: cul-de-sac, house)

[brattpowered]

After observing the national weather maps, I can't help but wonder what parents in Phoenix do with their kids during the summer. Do they let them out on the cul-de-sac for the day to bake in the 112-degree heat? Or do they stay inside all summer with the cheetos and Nintendo? I grew up in the Northeast and every day during the summer was an adventure, riding my bike through the neighborhood all day, catching frogs in the pond, et cetera. But I would imagine this type of thing would be seriously dangerous in Phonix.

[CodyW]

Hmm. Us kids.. XD

Well, generally, most parents, during the summer, will rarely push their children out the front door and let them run until the sun goes down. That would be risky. Very few parents I know actually ENCOURAGE their kids to go play sports and things with their friends in the park or something. Most parents will be quick to allow their kids to jump into a pool.

Also, alot of families take their vacations to cooler places during the summer, so that kills a good amount of time.




And when we're NOT swimming and vacationing, you ask? We annoy people at the mall.

[BillyBaroo]

My kids are in a program run by Parks and Recreation department. They go from 8-5 Monday through Friday. They have all kinds of activities for them and they love it. Some are inside and some are outside. Our family isn't bothered much by the heat, but we do know to stay out of the sun during the afternoon.
The other eight months of the year are when we ride around on our bikes and we catch lizards instead of frogs.

[twiggy]

Swim, swim, and swim! Nintendo, cheetos and more swimming. A lot of parents work and send there kids to day camps. Indoor activity camps, yeah, air conditioning. Then they start school and try and get out after homework for an hour to enjoy the good weather... I wish our summer break was in the winter. That would be nice. I have noticed a fall (week) break in Oct. the last couple of years, good idea. Now if they can only extend that to a couple of months we'd be alright. Trying to get kids to do there homework when the weather just starts to get nice is a little tricky.

[diggitydot]

Honestly, my kids don't go outside much during the summer unless it's in the morning or early evening to swim. It's just too stinkin' hot and the sun is way too intense for them. I really don't want my kids to become Crispy Critters.

The seasons are kind of backwards to most northern US areas where you're stuck inside during the winter. Here, you're pretty much stuck inside during the summer.

[sablebaby]

When I was a kid, I went to the mall all the time with my friends. I was lucky though, I lived across the street from one! In the evening when the sun was going down and remember that it's still daylight at 8pm, we would ride our bikes around. During the blasting sun hours though we stayed inside a lot doing other things that kids do, like play with barbies or something. I didn't have a pool, but sometimes I'd go to a friends house who had one. It wasn't a big deal to me back then.

I know our summers are getting hotter, but I believe if the parents don't go crazy and complain about how hot it is the children won't notice as much. These days it's just what virtually everyone does is complain or talk about how hot it is.

[artyst]

kids hang out in the malls. nuff said. actually, they stay in the house and play video games between the hours of 10am and 6pm. younger kids might go to indoor summer programs (bored my child to tears). swim, maybe if you have a shaded pool or go in before 10am and after 6pm. this is not a kid friendly town.

[Kyusa]

is there such thing as affordable homes within seattle city limits? where can i find such areas for around 250k

[jco]

There are actually many more indoor places with activities/programs for kids than I thought. This is my first year with an active toddler, and I've really had to hunt to find places to take him this month.

If you search for indoor activities and kids and Arizona, you'll find lots of lists with links to different places. Some are free, some are a few bucks and some are more than I'd like to spend!

[Axiom]

However life does not stop even with the heat.

When my daughter was on a high school cheer team they still had outdoor practices all summer, they just started at 5am

My son has a baseball game at 5:30pm tomorrow. I'm expecting to be downright miserable. He's just excited to play.

Of course since those are organized sports, they don't have much choice.

While my kids don't choose to go outside and kick around a ball, etc in the middle of a summer afternoon often, it's not unheard of either. Of course it usually doesn't last long and ends with a dip in the pool more often than not.
We do have to be really careful about keeping them properly hydrated however.