Top 10 Most Awesome Tween Activities {Especially During the Holidays}
So, my tween may not enjoy an opera and a fine steak-dinner–he’s still too young for that. And he’s not really into spending days on end during a school break just watching movies while I make ham sandwiches for lunch–he’s too old for that. Tweens are in that funky between-state where nothing quite fits for them anymore–except that there’s like a totally awesome category of activities sized just-right for tweens…and these are THE Top 10 Most Awesome Tween Activities {Especially During the Holidays}.
I’m totally into being a Cool Mom, despite the fact that, yeah, it’s not always fun and games (someone has to clean-up the mess we made when we pulled together the Cardboard Reindeer for Teacher Gifts…). However, that does NOT mean that I can’t have a ton of fun, too. So, not only does my tween totally get wild enjoyment from doing these activities, but I do, too (just don’t tell him).
- Surfing. Yeah, that’s right. I’m talking SURFING–like s-u-r-f-i-n-g. Right. Just because I live about a million miles from the closest body of saltwater does not mean I’m incapable of providing my kiddo with this experience. That’s because there’s a surf-shop with an indoor wave generator within an hour’s drive…SO AWESOME! These may be hard to find, but they’re out there. If you’re in north Texas, you can go to AquaShop and sign-up for a slot online…then just show-up with your suit-on!
- Rock Climbing. Do it indoors, if it’s cold out. Or, you can just go hiking if it’s like 70 degrees (like where I am) and find some big rocks somewhere cool. Either way, you’re kiddo will love it.
- Ice Skating. There’s not a ton of people who utilize the ice skating rinks in my area–not sure about where you live (because I don’t know where you live…), but they’re really cool and probably not something you do everyday.
- Zoo. Well, yes, while you might think your pre-teen is waaay to old to want to go to the zoo, think about the cooler exhibits they have that older kids can get into. They can pet a horseshoe crab and actually walk through the open-air bird exhibit at one near me. And at other zoos, they can pet a sloth or help prep some of the animals’ food…older kids really can enjoy it (sometimes more than the little ones).
- Skatepark. Even if your kiddo isn’t into skateboarding head-over-heels, there’s a tiny part of him or her that really wants to learn how to do it. So, give them a chance. There’s often lessons they can take at the skatepark or they can just play around…fall down a few times, sure, but that’s cool too!
- Indoor Pool. You may not realize this, but a lot of local city-aquatics facilities have indoor pools–there are 3 within a 30-minute drive of my house. So, even though it’s freezing outside, a nice
- Indoor Skydiving. I’m not really into the idea of taking my kids actual skydiving (why jump out of a perfectly good plane?), but this indoor thing seems kind of cool. Well, in my son’s words as he jumped in and out of the updraft: “This is the coolest thing EVER!”
- Safari Adventure. In my area, we’ve got two of these things hiding in the boonies…you pay some nominal fee for the car-load and a bucket of animal treats, then they send you off into this huge ranch with exotic animals. A giraffe ate some of our treats through the window of our car. We saw a rhinoceros chewing some grass (and thanked our luckys that he didn’t decide to eat treats from our car)…
- Children’s Theater. Oh, please, don’t tell the kids where you’re going until you get there–the groans and whines will crush your ears! HOWEVER, if you can pull-off this task of keeping the destination secret, your kids might actually enjoy seeing Peter Pan in the round or Wizard of Oz…or A Christmas Story–all three of which my son loved…once we got there.
- Go-Kart Racing. Man, there’s nothing like getting out on that go-kart course and having your tail whooped by a 12-year old. Apparently, my driving skills are too honed for safety. Oh, well, my son had a blast…so it was totally worth it.
Your kiddo might not be into each of these, but it’s worth a try or at least asking…you never know…you might actually get them to look up from their video-game system for more than 10 minutes! LOL!