Fun, Simple Patio Activities to Enjoy Before Summer Ends.
It is hard to believe that schools are starting to be back in session. It seems as though the summer has barely started and that list of activities you wanted to do for fun is still long. Add in honey-do lists and ongoing home maintenance and you may have a recipe for burn out (which isn’t hard in our Virginia heat).
National Relaxation Day
How great is it that we now have a whole day where it is our DUTY to relax! A day where it is okay to sit back and do nothing. Since 1985 we’ve had this day – August 15th – identified as National Relaxation Day. And frankly, we can’t think of any better way to celebrate than by doing relaxing things on – you guessed it – the patio!
So we thought we would present to you ways in which you might want to celebrate and make National Relaxation Day an annual family patio tradition.
Seven Fun, Simple Activities for Relaxing on the Patio
- Wake up early and watch the sunrise.
While not a morning person, I find that getting up on a cool, dewy summer morning is such a treat I have even set my alarm to catch it.
- Listen to all the bird song.
Another aspect of being up in the early morning is listening to all the birds and watching them begin their day at the bird bath or at the bird feeders (our More Birds® Elixir Hummingbird Feeder from Plow&Hearth is turning out to be quite the gathering spot for us).
- Have your coffee or ice tea out on the patio.
You know we love our Cold Brew Coffee — hot or iced. And check out our recipe for Julie’s Homemade Handmade Ice Tea. Make it a tall glass, too!
- Enjoy popsicles or yogurt bars while you gaze out over the horizon.
There is nothing like “homemade” while you sit back and relax. Learn how to make homemade popsicles or yogurt bars below in this post. And don’t worry about drips!
- Use your Adirondack chairs to gaze at and create images out of cloud shapes.
This works particularly well with adult beverages (like Julie’s Cosmopolitan Cocktail) and if no chairs are available, the grass or a picnic quilt work great too!
- Take an afternoon nap outside.
One of the best sleeps I’ve ever had was in the gravity chair, but a hammock or a picnic quilt will work just as well. Make sure you use bug spray so you don’t wake up with nasty bites. My personal favorite is NEEM Adios Outdoor Spray.
- Camp overnight in your own backyard and sleep outside under the stars.
Okay, maybe not sleep out in the open but a Glamping Tent from Sam’s Club is a terrific alternative.
Relax Any Time You Want
Now, here is the best part of this list: you don’t have to wait for National Relaxation Day to do any or all of these things AND you can continue to do these things long past August 15th. You get the idea – spend your day outside, glory in the summer sun, and live on the patio where every day is Friday!
In Praise of Homemade Popsicles and Yogurt Bars
Summer, especially when hot and humid, instills in me a craving for popsicles – So cold! So fun! So refreshing! So homemade!
Yup, I LOVE my homemade popsicles. It brings to mind my childhood summers. My mother refused to buy the manufactured popsicles at the grocery store that were basically 90% water and 10% sugar. She used popsicle molds and juice: apple juice, grape juice, orange juice, thankfully finding a way for me to get that necessary Vitamin C without having to drink OJ with pulp in it (I think it was a sensory thing that I was so repulsed by).
As I got older and started my own family, popsicles became a summer staple. Even today, I find the perfect mold (for me, anyway) and my favorite orange juice is a great little treat that I can enjoy on the patio. And I think it was my love for OJ popsicles that prompted Randy to find a mold for yogurt bars. I really think he intended to use the mold for ice cream bars but they were had too much lactose for my sensitive tummy, so we moved on to yogurt which is easier for me to digest. The best yogurt is Greek that we either purchase with fruit already in it or enhance the plain with our own added flavor selections.
And both are so easy to create, even I can do it.
Homemade Popsicles
The popsicle mold that I like best is the one at IKEA. Fill the popsicle mold with your juice of preference. Orange juice is my favorite but I’ve also tried cranberry, grape, and apple juice. Place the stick in each mold and place the mold tray level in your freezer for several hours. When ready to eat, you may need to run the individual mold briefly under hot tap water to loosen it from the iced juice.
Homemade Yogurt Bars
The yogurt bar mold we like is found at Amazon. Greek yogurt works the best for us but you can try regular yogurt and see how it works for you. Fill each individual mold with yogurt — you may have to scoop it in because it is thick. Place the cover over tray and insert the stick in each mold — sticks were provided with the mold we bought. Place tray level in the freezer for several hours. NOTE: You may need to run a butter knife under some hot water and then around between the yogurt bar and the wall of the mold before you can pull the bar out. Be careful to not puncture the mold.
Now, get relaxing and enjoy either of these two treats (or both) on the patio!
Please Leave a Comment
Let us know if you liked our relaxation suggestions and tell us how you relax on your patio. Did you make the homemade popsicles or yogurt bars? Were they yummy? Please share.
And remember to mark your calendar for next year’s National Relaxation Day, August 15th.
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