101 Things Every Child Should Do Before Growing Up

I follow a lot of mommy boards. These women are my inspiration and many of them are my heroes! While I wish I could be like them, blogging all these amazing deals and ideas, I just don’t think I’ll ever manage the amount of commitment these women have. Granted, if it were a paying job, perhaps I would force myself, however, I lack commitment (this seems to be a common theme for me) and time to fully dedicate myself to a blog or thinking up tons of cool ideas to actually share with people. However, I realized one thing in reading all these blog posts: I neglect my son way more than I should and in so many ways. Now don’t take that to mean that my child is raising himself and doing everything for himself. I do the necessary things I’m supposed to do. I cook, clean, make sure he has clothes, make sure he bathes, get him in bed, and fix his lunch for school, all that great stuff. Where I’m lacking is quality time. I don’t spend enough time just playing with my son and enjoying all of life’s little moments. This hurts me because I thought I was doing this mom thing pretty well… I neglect to help him plan for a future and enjoy his childhood. I neglect to see that he should have goals and aspirations. Sure, he’s only 9, but he should be doing amazing things with his childhood that he can look back on and regale in tales with his children. I find myself saying to my son a lot, “when I was your age, your nana taught me how to cook this or make that.” I want him to have the same types of memories to share with his children. I want him to have funny memories about the time he flipped his scooter because he hit a hole (this really happened by the way) or the pictures that his mom showed him of his first kiss with the little girl two months younger than him (this happened too). With that being said, I’ve been thinking, and listing, and thinking some more and gathering ideas from my childhood and with a little help, a list (yes, another one) of 101 Things Every Child Should Do Before Growing Up was born. Yes, adults can enjoy all this stuff too! I just feel that all children should have an amazing childhood especially since we only get one. Feel free to dive in head first to the list. Take away things you’d never do or can’t do. Add in things you can. The point is…children should have something to look back on that makes them say “I had an amazing childhood and for that, I will be an amazing adult.”

Also, please note that some of these things aren’t necessarily things we WANT our children to partake in, but we know it’s probably going to happen and we want our children to get some kind of tale out of it that will have their children and grandchildren laughing one day.

1. Build a fort
2. Catch fireflies
3. Create a self-portrait (be creative!)
4. Fall asleep in a hammock (make sure it’s in the shade!!!!)
5. Build a gingerbread house (or train, or car, or something else fun)
6. Go on a hayride
7. Dance (or play) in the rain
8. Go on a scavenger hunt
9. Camp in a tent in your front yard or the woods (or be brave and do both!)
10. Take care of a pet
11. Read with a flashlight
12. Climb a tree
13. Keep a journal or notebook
14. Catch a snowflake on your tongue
15. Shoot a BB gun
16. Spit watermelon seeds
17. Bake or help bake a cake from scratch
18. Lick the bowl, beater and spoons  (from number 17)
19. Have a favorite book
20. Hatch a monarch butterfly from a cocoon
21. Have a pen pal
22. Identify constellations in the sky
23. Go to camp
24. Lay out looking at the clouds. Find shapes and animals.
25. Make a tie dye t-shirt (I am aware this is not the 80s but this is pretty cool to do!)
26. Build a sandcastle
27. Help make dinner for the family
28. Have a favorite stuffed animal and never let anyone tell you’re too old for one!
29. Make caramel apples
30. Participate in an extracurricular activity
31. Have your own garden and eat from it
32. Play a classic board game. (YES I SAID BOARD GAME)
33. Play in the tub until you turn into a prune!
34. Roll down a big grassy hill
35. Put on a puppet show
36. Learn a magic trick
37. Make and eat homemade ice cream
38. Go to a county fair
39. See a movie at a drive in
40. Ride a horse
41. Spend time with a senior citizen
42. Get lost in a corn maze
43. Swing on a rope or tire swing
44. Water balloon fight
45. Spend an entire weekend without television
46. Carve a jack-o-lantern
47. Get a library card
48. Enjoy the beach
49. Wear a costume as clothing
50. Have a pet
51. Fly a kite
52. Go to a real sports event
53. Make a slingshot with a limb/branch
54. Build something with one or more cardboard boxes
55. Roast marshmallows over an open fire (with adult supervision)
56. Catch tadpoles and watch them change
57. Do a cartwheel
58. Make mud pies
59. Jump in a pile of leaves
60. Build a snowman
61. Make play dough
62. Finger (or toe) paint
63. Watch the stars come out
64. Watch a sunset
65. Watch a sunrise
66. Make a full body mural
67. Run through sprinklers
68. Pretend to fly (safely)
69. Wish on a star
70. Volunteer at a soup kitchen or for a can drive
71. Wear a cape
72. Face one fear head on
73. Wear whatever makes you happy
74. Hunt for seashells
75. Family road trip
76. Have a collection (rocks, shells, TURTLES OR MONKEYS (real of fake)) (my son has turtles and monkeys! Lol)
77. Slip ‘n slide
78. Ride a carousel
79. Enjoy a picnic (yes, on a blanket on the ground)
80. Attend a REAL play with people on a stage acting out something sincere, like “The Color Purple” or something on Broadway!
81. Cut your own hair (no parent loves this, but it inevitably happens and we laugh at it)
82. Learn to swim
83. Bury someone in the sand (make sure to let them out)
84. Make a snow angel
85. Make a pizza
86. Play with bubbles
87. Hand shadow puppets
88. Plant a tree
89. Pick wild berries (have mom and/or dad be sure they’re safe to eat)
90. Find your way with a map and compass
91. Get in a fight (again, nothing a parent WANTS, but it will happen and it will toughen your child)
92. Fall off your bike and skin your knee (this is classic. It happens to every child who isn’t living in a bubble. It’ll lead to a funny story and some intense caring from your parent!)
93. Hug and kiss your parents
94. Get lost in a store (yes this will freak your parents out, but it’ll teach you to listen to your parents when they say stay put! Lol)
95. Get a real butt whooping (taking away a video game from a 5 year old is pointless, having your behind tore up with a BELT will teach you way more respect)
96. Go to a museum
97. See a circus
98. Go to the movies with your mom and/or dad
99. Go trick or treating
100. Sing loudly
101. Dance in the car (make sure you’re the passenger!)