How to Survive Your Child's Summer Vacation

School's out, the kids are at home and, more than likely, you're still pulling 40-hour workweeks. To keep them active and away from daylong Internet marathons, you may need to make a few plans for both when you're at home and when you're not. Here are some ideas about how your kids can have a productive and fun summer, and a few pointers on how you can aviod too many summertime headaches.

Starting It Out Right

Consider sitting down and having a discussion with your kids about the kinds of things they'd like to do in the upcoming months--and what you'd like to do, too. Try to leave out vacation ideas and personal choices like going to the mall. Instead, consider making a list of what the family might do together (game nights) and what daily routines might consist of, like chores.

Summer Camps

Summer camp may not be every kid's dream, but, if your child has a special interest like playing a sport or a musical instrument, a two- or three-week camp might be the answer. These camps usually run staggered throughout the summer, so if your son has multiple extracurricular interests, he may be able to attend more than one. Some camp programs even offer scholarship opportunities, too, so it might not be a strain on your pocketbook.

Play Dates

If you have younger children, consider calling up a fellow mom or dad to set up weekly play dates or outings. You might think about setting up a schedule, too. For example, the group could go to a museum one day, the park another day and then have an at-home play date the following day. Skating rinks, baseball games (minor league tickets are often inexpensive), the local library and lunch outings are also possibilities. If there are multiple parents in the mix, you might even get to expand the rotation so your kids are busy every week, maybe even multiple days within that week, and you're only the hostess once a month.

Part-time Jobs

If you have teenagers under your roof, you might want to encourage them to pick up part-time jobs. In addition to teaching responsibility and accountability, jobs may allow them to have some extra cash (and they may not beg you for it as often, either). Employers usually hire before and all through the summer, and, if you live in the city, you may not even have to drive your son or daughter to work. If you have a 12- or 13-year-old, child labor laws may prohibit them from working at an establishment; however, you may still want to encourage them to babysit, deliver newspapers or cut the neighbors' lawns.

No matter how you and your kids end up spending the summer, you may want to schedule plenty of alone time, and you may want to make sure that whatever your kids decide to do is fun and uplifting. Happy kids usually create a happy mom!