The summer school holidays are quickly approaching and if you’re not careful, you could end up spending a small fortune in an effort to keep the kids satisfied. Whether it’s last minute trips to an attraction or over-priced buckets and spades from the seaside – it soon adds up and the expenses could have covered a well-earned weekend away once the holidays are over. Although this is my second real ‘school holiday’ with Dylan, he certainly has a taste for the finer things in life, if finer things include Iron Man toys, Pokemon cards and ice creams every time he hears the van chime along the street. I might as well get shares in Mr Whippy by the time the holidays are over!

Have some old fashioned fun

There are plenty of articles out there that say children are growing up too quickly. As they grow up with more advanced technology then we could have ever imagined as kids, these tech-savvy children haven’t experienced the true joys of climbing trees or going on a scavenger hunt for beetles and funny shaped feathers.

There’s plenty of old favourites to make you feel like a big kid again, too.

Check out local free events

Where I live in Somerset, I’m quite lucky to be surrounded by plenty of interesting places just beyond the doorstep. By simply googling ‘visit (your area!)’ you should be able to find out all the local events happening nearby.

On the Visit Somerset website, for example, I found out that there is a Kids Fest happening in Weston-Super-Mare and different activities every day at Radstock Museum for children during the holidays.

Make sure your meal plan effectively! Crikey, I could write a whole different post on meal planning but during the school holidays you need to meal plan to a whole different level. Things you could consider over the holidays is being flexible with meal times – I know when my kids are outside playing football, they often don’t want to come in mid-match for food. By serving dishes like bolognese, means you can reheat a portion alongside some pasta when they come in.

Try getting the kids involved in DIY

Make gardeing and simple repairs fun for all the family. Fixing holes in the fence or adding a new roof to the garage can become an adventure instead of a chore.

Another thing to consider during the holidays is that you somehow always end up feeding the entire street!

If you’re lucky enough to have an extra storage freezer, you could bulk it up with easy kid-friendly things like pizza, chicken nuggets and lasagnas.

Or, you could grab a load of ice pops and dish those out for when friends come wandering in for a snack too! If you’re planning a day trip out but know you’ll be home in time for tea, make sure you use your slow cooker!

Most people make the mistake of hiding the slow cooker away once the weather warms up, but if you’re going to be out all day having fun, you want to make sure you don’t waste any money on a quick fix tea – like a takeaway! – when you could have had something working hard in the kitchen for you while you were out!

There’s plenty of excellent summer slow cooker recipes on Pinterest, so there’s no excuse really!

Have a ‘Summer Bag’ in the boot! A quick trip to the pound shop could save you a small fortune over the holidays. By packing up a bag with buckets and spades, frisbees and other outdoor toys, you shouldn’t find yourself paying over the odds whilst out on a trip. You could also store a spare towel and some loose change – handy for ice creams and parking!

I think sometimes the best thing to do over the holidays is to understand that your budget may take a bit of a hit at some point or another. Although we try our hardest to put money away during the year to put towards petrol or hotels for trips away – which we always need to do, with family living halfway across the country! – you can’t predict what will happen in the future! If you’ve tried all these money-saving tips and still find yourself short, then maybe considering a well-established and reputable short-term lender to help you on your way.