One of the classic summer family activities is huddling around a bonfire. Kids and kids at heart will love the warmth the fire brings. The kids are out of school, and that’s more than enough reason to give them a free pass to stay up late and enjoy some time with the family.
Those summer nights with your entire family can be made more memorable with a bonfire. For your bonfire, you can look for a fire pit from maxfirepits.com.au and other stores. There’s nothing like a cozy night, having fun, and roasting mallows. But – it’s not just that which you can do. There are so many fun family activities you can do around the fire pit beyond simply grilling and roasting.
If you’re looking for activity ideas, this list has got you covered.
Grilling
Making it first on this list is that classic fire pit activity: grilling. As common and cliché as it may be, what’s a bonfire without grilling? So, if you’ve scheduled a bonfire night with your family or you’re going camping, don’t forget to pack the required food items that you can grill.
Yes, smores will always be a no-fail, especially for kids.
Charades
Charades are always handy to play whenever you’re outdoors, especially when you have quite a big family size. It’s fun, challenging, and it can get the entire family together to participate. If you’re camping, it’s a bonus that you don’t need to prepare any toy or special gear to play with charades.
Once you’ve set up the bonfire, dinner and grilling are done. Then when it’s time to play games, start with charades.
Kids’ Choice
Before your scheduled family time by the fire pit, gather together as a family, even if it’s during meal times. Discuss what the kids would love to do by the bonfire for the weekend. You can call it the kids’ choice night.
This is a fun way to break away from all the rules and restrictions you may have set for them during the school season. More so, this kids’ choice night is a great way to build up some hype, where your kids are going to look forward to that family bonfire activity.
For as long as it’s within the budget, reasonable, safe, and doable, let your kids have control over this evening, as something that doesn’t happen so often.
Watch Your Favorite Family Movie
If you have a projector (or you know a place where you can rent one), a family movie night by the fire pit always sounds like a great idea. There’s nothing like watching a movie outdoors, with the fire pit giving you enough coziness and heat.
Prepare some mats and throw blankets, too. To elevate the outdoor movie experience, prepare chips, popcorn, and pizza. On top of your barbecue and toasted marshmallows, there’s more than enough food you can prepare to accompany you through the entire movie.
If you start early in the evening, you may even be able to watch two movies! How often is it that the whole family gets to stay up late, outdoors, anyway?
Light Up Some Sparklers
Kids love sparklers, and adults, too. It doesn’t need to be New Year’s Eve or a birthday celebration to light some up. It’s a fun and memorable experience for parents when you see the glee on your kids’ faces as the sparklers start to shine.
Just be sure, however, to have all the eyes on the kids. Sparklers can still be dangerous, especially with the fire pit around, so always be on guard. You can still have fun while staying safe at the same time.
Camp Together
Not all bonfires result in camping out. So, if you want to make it even more fun for everyone, pitch some tents in your backyard and camp out for the night. It’s not less enjoyable just because you’re simply in your yard. This will be easier for parents too! You can simply walk back inside the house should a kid need to use the bathroom or look for more food.
There’s something special about sleeping in a tent. Then, if you have the time and resources for it, you may want to go camping too. Many campsites have a fire pit ready to use, so all you need to bring are your tents, belongings, or your RV or campervan.
Takeaway
Life typically slows down in the summer, at least for families with children. The kids are happy to be off school for a few months, and the parents now have some more time for some family togetherness. With that in mind, weekends are made more fun when the whole family spends some time outdoors – even if it’s just the backyard, with a tent and your fire pit. Take note of the ideas above, and you’ll never be without fun activities for the whole family to enjoy. Now those family bonfire nights can be more fun and memorable.