Top 10 Things To Do With Your 13 Year Old Over The Summer

Two weeks and counting until my 7th grader enters summer vacation. When she was younger, we planned our days between morning swim team practices and afternoon summer camps.

But what do you do with a 13 year old? She's too young to work; too old for most summer camps. While she is in a couple of sports camps, how can I keep her busy while I try to squeeze in a few hours of work each day?

We've got it all planned out.

1. Catch up on reading. My daughter loves books, and has accumulated a number of novels over the past year that she just couldn't squeeze in between homework assignments. We've already created a stack of must-reads that she'll be starting on soon.

2. Volunteer at the library. Our local library has a kids program that rewards summer readers. They look for teen volunteers to help run the program, so she'll be hanging out at the library a few times this summer.

3. Convert her playroom into a library/study room. She's actually very excited about this. She'll be sorting through things and deciding which toys/games to donate or sell at a yard sale and which to keep. She's also going to be painting the room in her favorite colors, and finding shelves, desks and possibly a couch to give it a comfortable feel. I'll be teaching her how to use Craigslist.com and ebay.com to find good deals on furnishings.

4. Start a blog. Like every 13 year old, she's been asking for ways to earn extra money. So why not teach her how to blog? I'll be setting her up with a blog, and teaching her how to blog. Then we can compare our blogs - and maybe even learn from each other.

5. Plan out day trips. We have a heavy travel schedule in the fall, so we're not planning a large vacation this summer. But living in the Rocky Mountains means we have amazing places just a short drive away. She'll be planning out some fun places to visit just a short drive from our home.

6. Hangin' out. She is 13 after all - what could be more fun than hanging out with friends? A day at the pool, a movie or two, or even a sleepover with her favorite friends is at the top of the list. Sometimes hanging out can be difficult with all of the extra activities during the school year - so we're putting them on the calendar already.

7. Writing. Writing is a big part of my daughter's life, and she hopes to be an author some day. So why not start now? She loves being online, so I'll have her create a few articles that interest her, and teach her how to share with the online world. Hubpages, here she comes.

8. Learn a new sport. Gold - tennis - softball - swimming. There are so many choices. The great thing about summer is you can head outside and try your hand at anything. I've always wanted to kayak - maybe we'll both give it a try this year.

9. Sleep in. Yep, just like hanging out, sleeping in is big on her list. So if I'm up at 5, and she sleeps til 10, I guess I can have almost a full days work in before she's ready to go for the day.

10. Get ready for the new school year. I know the new school year will be here before we know it. There's school supplies to buy, clothes to shop for, locker accessories to buy. So much to do; so little time.

Summer, here we come!