Hello August! Summer Activities for Kids in South Jersey - Grateful Prayer

It’s August! Usually the hottest month of the year and there is still a full month before school starts! Running out of ways to keep the kids busy? If you live in the South Jersey area and you are looking for fun things to do, I have a few suggestions. Kid tested summer activities that you will enjoy too.

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Fourteen year old Ryan and ten year old Shaela spent a week and a half with us and their cousins recently. We had many days of adventure. Much fun and action-packed times together, enjoying each day without spending a fortune. Most of the activities are local or just a short drive and one less than an hour away. You might want to consider some of these activities for your family.

Summer Activities for Kids

in South Jersey

Outdoor activities

Black Run Preserve

LOCATION:

Kettle Run Road in Evesham Township, NJ 08053

COST: FREE

Black Run Preserve is a 1300-acre preserve. Called the Gateway to the Pinelands, it is a lovely place for hiking with unique natural beauty and Pine Barrens ecology all around. A relaxed place to explore in the shade of the trees. We packed a lunch that we ate upon returning to the car after our hike.

The girls walked and talked as they strolled along the nice and well marked trail paths.

There are little streams to peer into and reflect about things girls reflect upon.

Off to the side of one of the trails, we noticed a muddy area where well camouflaged frogs sat sunning themselves.

Grounds for Sculpture

LOCATION

80 Sculptors Way, Hamilton Township, NJ 08619

COST

Adults $18 online price 16

Students $10 online price $10

Seniors 65+ $15 online price 13

Children under 5 FREE

OPEN Tuesdays – Sunday, Closed Monday Hours 10 am – 6 pm, Friday and Saturday open until 9 pm.

NOTE: Timed Tickets are required to visit Grounds For Sculpture. It is best to buy your tickets online to ensure your selected visit date and arrival time are available. Tickets are issued for a specific date and arrival time.

Grounds For Sculpture is a 42-acre sculpture park and museum located in Hamilton, NJ, on the former site of the New Jersey State Fairgrounds. Founded in 1992 by John Seward Johnson II, Grounds for Sculpture is dedicated to promoting an understanding of and appreciation for contemporary sculpture.

This was a first-time visit here and we all really enjoyed it. Gorgeous gardens and plants along with sculpture and art throughout and open space for the kids to freely explore. There is so much to see here we will need to make a return visit. I think it will be especially lovely to come back in the fall with my husband.

Ryan admiring the ceiling of the Van Gogh Cafe.

Sculpture is scattered throughout and are all unique and of different styles. These ghoulish figures with a cauldron of scary parts intrigued my grandkids as they mimicked a pose.

There are beautiful fish swimming in a large pond with banks filled with flowering plants.

A very cool grove of trees on a winding path.

Giant American Gothic sculpture that was so fun.

Have your camera ready because there are playful photo ops everywhere.

Are they real people or are they sculptures?!?

Far too many places of interest to share photos here, so plan a visit and see for yourself.

Summer Activities

Hiking

Crows Woods Nature Preserve

LOCATION: Upland Way, Haddonfield, NJ

COST: FREE

Crow’s Woods Nature Preserve includes about fifty acres of fairly mature undeveloped forest in an “almost-urban” park with ball fields and mowed lawn areas. Trails wind through beautiful deciduous woodland and streamside habitat, making for a nice getaway stroll where visitors can expect neighborhood wildlife throughout the year, and migrant birds in season.

Our oldest grandson, Jared, was super excited to take us to Crows Woods Nature Preserve. Not so much for the hiking but for the rope swing tucked back in the trees. He has been here with friends and knew his cousins would love it too.

This day was a hot one with temps in the 90’s and real feel in the triple digits. Because of this we got to the woods before 10 o’clock in the morning and in the canopy of the trees, we felt comfortable.

This is the place where a rope swing hangs waiting to thrill anyone willing to to give it a try. I wasn’t too sure about my precious grandkids leaping from the top and flying through the air so I made a video of Jared and sent it to both of Ryan and Shaela’s parents asking if they gave their permission for them to do this. I quickly receive answers that they were more than good about allowing them to swing from the edge and swoosh back and forth.

After and exhilarating time we headed to the car and broke out our packed lunches.

Miniature golf

Pleasant Valley Miniature Golf

LOCATION:
93 NJ-73, Voorhees Township, NJ 08043
COST: $6 before 6PM. After 6PM – Kids (under 12) – $7 Adults – $8
HOURS:
Monday – Thursday 3PM – 9PM
Friday 12PM – 10PM
Saturday 10AM – 10PM
Sunday 10AM – 9PM

Pleasant Valley Miniature Golf has been operating since 1972, It is a charming family-owned miniature-golf course with cute themes at each hole including gardens and a gazebo. We have been visiting every season since our girls were kids and our grandchildren have a great time here too.

Shaela didn’t win but she had a great start… THREE holes-in-one in the first five. Then she sort of lost her steam 😉

These three were a challenge to their PopPop.

Local food and beverage spot

Starbucks

LOCATION: We went to NJ-73, Marlton, NJ 08053 but there are many others in the area.
COST: varies by items selected
HOURS
Monday 5:30AM–9:30PM
Tuesday 5:30AM–9:30PM
Wednesday 5:30AM–9:30PM
Thursday 5:30AM–9:30PM
Friday 5:30AM–10PM
Saturday 5:30AM–10PM
Sunday 6AM–9:30PM

I am guessing a visit to Starbucks might not be on every kids list of fun summer activities, but it was for Shaela and Ryan. Their first-time visit included a special beverage and a really tasty muffin. A nice change of pace from our more on-the-go activities and perfect for relaxing and heart-to-heart conversation. You’d be surprised what kids share during these casual moments.

Totally FREE and other activities

Snapchat

Playful times with the mobile phone app, Snapchat. Cute, silly and goofy selfies that can be saved and sent to friends and family. We use the app mainly for the hilarious face filters but it also allows sharing videos and pictures that self destruct after a few seconds. As with all social media sharing, adult supervision is advised.

Waiting for a meal to arrive, Shaela and I passed the time playing on Snapchat and sending the creations to her mom and dad.

Watching movies

Technically, only free if you have Netflix

Anne with an E

My children grew up reading the Anne of Green Gables books by Lucy Maud Montgomery. Our granddaughter, Keri suggested we all watch an adapted series, Anne with an E, available on Netflix,
The first season consists of seven episodes, and premiered on March 19, 2017 on CBC and concluded on April 30, 2017. We spent several evenings watching all seven of the well-done and moving episodes. Even Ryan enjoyed the story.

Cousin Time

Ryan spent time at his cousins house doing boy-things and just playing together. Keri came to our house and she and Shaela played here. They still enjoy getting my childhood Barbies down from the bedroom closet shelf and pretending with them. If your kids have family nearby, day and sleepovers are a great way to pass some summer days.

Cooking and Baking

Most kids love to be in the kitchen and as they get a little older, their skill and abilities grow too, enabling them to make some really good eats. Not only is the experience rewarding, but everyone gets to enjoy the rewards of their labor. Shaela made a really special meal I will be sharing soon.

Board games

Our new favorite board game is Pandemic. For ages 8+, it is a teamwork game based on the premise that four diseases have broken out in the world, each threatening to wipe out a region. For 2 to 4 players, each playing one of five possible specialists: dispatcher, medic, scientist, researcher, or operations expert. The game is unlike most board games in that the game play is cooperative, rather than competitive. Through the combined effort of all the players, the goal is to discover all four cures before any of several game-losing conditions are reached.

Two other games that they loved playing is Codenames for 2-8 players, ages 14+ and Carcassonne for 2-5 players, ages 7+

After days of being in New Jersey, it was time to head home. Oldest cousin, Jared drove them back to New York and spent a week with his aunt and uncle. We had busy, fun-filled summer days making great memories together.

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Comments

Ann Thompson says
August 2, 2017 at 8:26 pm
You guys always have so much fun
Adrienne says
August 2, 2017 at 4:36 pm
What fun! We are in Oregon and there are so many things to do with kids and grandkids here. It's always nice to know about them wherever we are. It was fun to see your grands enjoy time together and have fun in great places.
~Adrienne~