Voices: Kristina Hernandez is a writer for KiddingAroundGreenville.com, a working mother, and a mom to two little girls.

While summer has the vibe of chilling out at the pool and play dates at the zoo, for working parents, it’s not much different than the rest of year, except the fact that it’s more responsibility and planning for childcare and entertainment. But moms and dads stuck at work want to have fun with their kids just as much as anyone else and really, summer is a great season to spend quality time with kids on off-hours. Here are 10 ideas to make the most of summer with your kids when you’re not punching that clock.
Catch a Game
What’s more summer than catching a baseball game? Most games, even during the week, start at 7:05 pm and tickets are pretty cheap. See the Greenville Drive play at Fluor Field for a memorable summer date with your kid.

Ice Cream

Seriously my go-to date with my kids and an easy (and not terribly expensive) way to spend time together. Find the best places here.

Hit the Books

The books at the Greenville Library, I mean. They are open till 9 pm on weekdays and 6 pm on Fridays. Read some books with your kids or head to one of the events after working hours.

Get Outdoors

Because the sun doesn’t set until after 8 pm, it’s easy to take the kids to a local lake for fishing, swimming at a waterfall, or biking on a trail. I bookmarked this GVLtoday hiking guide last year and it hasn’t failed me.

Make Some Art

The art scene in Greenville for kids is off the hook. There are so many places to take kids to release their inner artist that you’ll have a hard time choosing which one. Yellowbobbypins in Greenville is one of the places you can go to classes during the week (after 5 pm) with your kids.

Listen to a Story

While most story times are right when you’re probably at your morning meeting, there are evening story times on Tuesdays over the summer at the Greer Heritage Museum from 6:30-7:30 pm (and they are free).

Do Some Science
The Roper Mountain Science Center is a gem. For working parents, take your kids to their planetarium shows on Friday nights. They are really neat and you’ll be extra cool because it’s educational, too. RMSC also has their Butterfly Festival coming up on Saturday, July 14th that you can do with your kids.

Jump & Climb

I bought monthly passes to Big Air in Greenville and I’m positive they are losing money when I come because I take my kids all the time to jump on the trampolines and scale the climbing walls. They are open late every night, as are Gravitopia and SkyZone.

Explore Fairy Tales (for free!)

The Upcountry History Museum has Neighborhood Nights the first Thursday of every month from 5:30-8:30 pm and you get in free and your kid(s) gets a free book. They have a cool exhibit all summer about fairy tales. See it in July or August before the clock strikes midnight.

See an Outdoor Movie

The outdoor movie series in Greer every Thursday is awesome - they have bounce houses, dancing, and crafts all before the movie even starts, which isn’t until it’s dark. Heritage Park in Simpsonville also has summer outdoor movies during the week.

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