‘Fun Mom’ Hacks for the Summer

Families around the country are counting down to summer. A new survey reports that 71% of moms are looking forward to the last day of school, while 58% are also feeling pressure to entertain their children during the summer months—in other words, to be the “fun mom.”

The study, sponsored by Mother’s Cookies, surveyed 2,000 moms with children ages 5 - 12 and found that 67% of them believe it's important to "stop and enjoy" the summer, especially after the events of the past two years. However, 62% feel that they've run out of ideas to keep their kids entertained.

According to the survey, moms turn to the following activities to ensure summertime fun for their kids:

Pools and waterparks (28%)
Visiting the playground (26%)
Arts and crafts (25%)
Creative cooking (25%)
Playing board games (25%)
Watching TV shows/movies (25%)

To celebrate and inspire moms, Mother's Cookies partnered with comedic duo Kristin Hensley and Jen Smedley from #IMOMSOHARD to help moms everywhere relax and enjoy summer moments with their children. Here are their end-of-school hacks and favorite ways to help moms keep kids entertained this summer:

Teacher gifts: Bring teachers flowers from the backyard the last week of school with a sweet handmade note from the kids. It's free, and busy teachers are sure to appreciate it.
Backyard camping: So much easier than loading everything into the car and pairs perfectly with a movie night.
Ice cream sundae bar: Include fun toppings like sprinkles, whipped cream and hot fudge.
Face paint: No need to be an artist to partake in this activity. Some simple hearts, rainbows, kitten whiskers and tattoos are plenty.
Home field day: Set up your own at-home field day challenges including cones, hula hoops, logs and jump ropes. The whole family can join in and it can also become a friendly competition where the winning team gets a fun prize, such as first dibs on the ice cream bar.

Survey respondents also reported that the following last-day-of-school rituals help kick the summer off on a positive note:

Taking a photo of kid(s) at the end of each grade they finish (50%)
Burning old homework, schoolwork or workbooks (49%)
Writing "thank you" notes to their teachers (48%)
Storing all school-related items in their closets (46%)
Getting ice cream (43%)
Decorating the sidewalk with chalk art (40%)
Throwing a party (38%)
Making s'mores (36%)