One of the things that I always looked forward to about starting a family with my husband was going out for the day all together! Now that our daughter is one, there’s so many fun things that she can do with us. Here’s a few of our tried and true family fun days, plus some ideas we haven’t personally tried but are on our to-do list.

1. The zoo

I don’t know about you, but when I think about activities for kids of all ages to enjoy, my first thought goes to the zoo! The zoo is such a great place to visit. There’s so much to see and do! My daughter went to the zoo for the first time with us at about 11 months old. She was so interested in all of the animals, and she loved all of the areas to crawl around in. Our zoo that we go to is attached to the botanical gardens, so we can go there when we’re done seeing all of the animal exhibits. Best of all, the botanical garden near us has the most amazing splash pad! We like to end our zoo/garden day with an hour or so at the splash pad. My baby loves the water!

2. Splash pads

Speaking of splash pads, it’s one of our favorite activities in general! Perfect for a family fun day. The splash pad near us is at a really nice park, just a couple miles from our house. Splash pads are often located at a park or a city pool! We like to spend the morning at our local splash pad, and bring a packed lunch to enjoy together after drying off.  Then, you can end your day with some playground time or even a walk in the stroller! If your kids enjoy the water as much as my baby does, a day at the pool is just as fun as the splash pad! We love both, and we’ve tried to go to both the splash pad and the pool at least once a week this summer, even if it’s just a couple hours here and there.

3. Children’s museums

Something that’s on our list now that our baby is one is the children’s museum. It’s another great option for a family fun day, especially on a warmer day because it’s an air conditioned activity! Children’s museums have engaging, hands-on activities and safe play spaces for children of all ages. I think we’ll be going very soon to check out exactly what they have to do at the children’s museum near us!

4. Movie nights!

Going out for family fun is always a special time, but sometimes there’s nothing quite like staying home! We love to have a family day at home by making a special movie day. We set up our play couch (ours is the Nugget style, but from Sam’s Club) and put out blankets and pillows to make a super cozy area for us to snuggle in. Sometimes we eat dinner on the floor while watching a movie, but most of the time we just eat some fun snacks! My baby is too little for real popcorn, but she loves Pirate’s Booty puffed snacks. It’s a special snack we save just for movie days. We like to buy a movie that’s newly released to stream right from the comfort of our own home! So much fun and no need to change out of our pajamas!

5. Easy hikes

Is your family outdoorsy? We used to be before we moved to the Deep South! Where we live now, there’s too many bugs for us to be as much into hiking as we used to be, but we always thought we would be the family out hitting the hiking trails every weekend. Hiking is a great family fun day activity! The best part is that you can really choose how challenging your hike is to fit your family’s needs. If you have older kids, you can go a little bit further than if you’re bringing babies and toddlers along for the hike. For us, a quick walk around our neighborhood or nearby park is more than enough, but maybe we’ll start looking into hiking trails near us too!

The best kind of family fun day is whatever your family most enjoys together. I hope this list gives some ideas, happy fun days everyone!