Treat yourself a little better than that this time around. Whenever you're feeling bored, come back to this list and pick something fun to do.
- Make ice cream sandwiches.
- Sell your old stuff at a garage sale. You'll clean out your room and make a little cash at the same time.
- See one of those big blockbuster summer movies. Bonus points if it's in 3-D.
- Build sandcastles on the beach.
- Get a job.
- Go for a walk (or a jog, or a run) in the park.
- Make a bird feeder and wait for someone to stop by and check it out. (It'll probably be a bird.)
- Get some sidewalk chalk. Play hopscotch and four square.
- Fill up some of your community service hours.
- Help out in your parents' garden. Or start a little garden of your own. (How about growing some blueberries?)
- Participate in a charity walk.
- Lay out by the public pool (with plenty of sunscreen on, of course).
- Get together with some friends and make a movie. Don't forget to write a script, make costumes and pick the best location. Or if you're flying solo, go to a local event and make a documentary about it.
- Set up your sprinkler in the backyard (or the front yard, if you dare) and run through it.
- Go to an outdoor concert.
- Make popsicles in fancy flavors. Eat them all yourself, or set up a stand and sell them to passers-by.
- Go fly a kite...literally. Here's how to make your own.
- Go boogie boarding at the beach.
- Read a good book in a hammock (which everyone knows is the best place to read good books).
- Make your own Slip 'n' Slide on your lawn out of a plastic tarp and a hose. Then slip. And slide.
- Go on a nature hike.
- Play some tennis. If you don't have access to the court, just play in your driveway, or against your garage door (with your parents' permission, of course).
- Take your poor dog on a walk.
- Throw a softball around in the backyard.
- Learn how to breakdance.
- Go to a farmers' market. Buy at least one weird thing you've never eaten before.
- Have a water balloon toss. Or, if you're not that civil, a water balloon fight.
- Go to an outdoor yoga class.
- Start a band.
- Play lawn bowling while drinking lemonade, all fancy-like.
- Collect pretty seashells at the beach. Turn them into a sand casting.
- Play putt-putt.
- Get on your bike and ride (destination: ice cream cones).
- Take photos of all the pretty summer flowers around your town. Turn it into a photo collage.
- Go to the amusement park. Ride all the scary rides you were afraid to ride as a kid.
- Get some embroidery floss and make friendship bracelets for all of your closest friends.
- Make a fun playlist for your iPod and take it for a jog.
- Go to a baseball game. If there are no major league teams near you, go to a minor league game - the tickets are cheaper, and the games are just as exciting.
- Make a zine. It's a lot more fun than making a blog, and you can actually hold it.
- Go to the zoo. Wave at all the monkeys.
- Learn how to skateboard. If you know how to skateboard, learn how to rollerskate. If you know how to rollerskate, learn how to ride a unicycle.
- Contribute a true story to Teen Advice (shameless plug).
- Fire up the barbecue and grill a pizza.
- Go on a walking tour of your town's historical district. Or if there aren't any tours offered, just walk around and make stuff up.
- Make a tasty mocktail and sip it outside on a hot day.
- Make plans with a friendly acquaintance from school whom you like but never really hang out with.
- Go bird watching. Don't forget to bring a camera.
- See how many laps you can swim in a row. Keep practicing. Then see how many you can do by the end of the summer.
- Teach yourself the dance routine from Thriller. It's like "Single Ladies" but more terrifying.
- Send long letters to your out-of-town friends. But first, do some of the stuff on this list so you have something to brag about.