Being an adult is not all it’s cracked up to be. Practice “kidulting” with these activities and feel like a kid again.
I loved being a kid. I loved to play with my friends and have sleepovers and have other people take care of the things that I didn’t really understand yet, like paying bills and spending money on things in general. But I also remember being in this rush to grow up. I wanted to be 16 so I could drive. I wanted to live in my own house so I could make my own rules. I wanted to clean on my own schedule and not get reprimanded when I didn’t make my bed in the morning.
When we finally grow up, we kind of regret wanting to grow up so fast. We miss living without bills and living in the little bubble of bliss that we didn’t realize your parents had created for us.
Even though we’re legit adults now with jobs to go to, bills to pay, obligations to manage and chores to do, it doesn’t mean we have to live our lives without the magic we felt when we were kids. You know that feeling you get when you hear a song that brings you back to an amazing memory from your past? You can have that feeling all the time with a concept called “kidulting” aka indulging in activities from your past, many times with an adult twist, that give you that blissful feeling from when you were younger. If you’re letting adulting get the best of you, do a little kidulting and feel like a kid again with these activities.
CHASE DOWN THE ICE CREAM TRUCK
The tune of the ice cream truck used to be one of my favorite sounds when I was growing up. I loved taking my pennies and getting a delicious frozen treat from the ice cream man, especially on a hot day.
Even if the ice cream truck doesn’t frequent your neighborhood, you can still go to the store and pick up your ice cream of choice. My favorite was always the strawberry shortcakes.
GO TO A TRAMPOLINE PARK
I used to love jumping on trampolines when I was kid. I never had a trampoline in my own backyard, so when I made a friend that had one, I liked to make excuses for us to play at their house.
If you don’t want to dish out the money to get a trampoline of your own, visit a trampoline park and feel all that nostalgia. Indulge in a game of dodgeball or show off your trampoline basketball skills. Either way, you’ll be panting by the end of the night after burning off all that energy.
HOST A HARRY POTTER PARTY
If you were a fan of Harry Potter growing up, I’m sure the magic is very much still alive for you. Hone that magic into a Harry Potter-themed party and make you and your party guests feel like you’re living in the magical world created by J.K. Rowling.
If you weren’t a Harry Potter fan as a kid, pick a different book, movie or TV show from your childhood that you absolutely loved, like The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, A Series of Unfortunate Events or Rugrats.
HAVE AN ADULT FIELD DAY
Field day at school was seriously the best. You got to spend all day outside competing in different games and winning prizes. Bring that excitement into the adult world by inviting some friends over for some friendly field day competitions. Do egg races, sack races and even some tug of war. You could also have prizes for the winning teams or individuals.
GO TO A WATER PARK
A day at the water park during the summer was always so much fun. Grab a tube and float down the lazy river or stand in line to go down the tallest slides.
HAVE A SLEEPOVER
Sleepovers were always my favorite growing up. I loved being able to stay the night with my friends or have my friends over at my house. We would pretend that we were going to stay up all night, but fall asleep by midnight. We’d talk about what boys we liked and what celebrities we wish we could be for the day.
Having a sleepover as an adult is even more fun because you can do it over wine or your favorite adult beverages and vent about all the the things you’re glad you’re not going through alone.
HAVE A DANCE PARTY
Music is like a gateway into the past, so why not make a playlist of your favorite songs from your childhood? Turn it up loud, belt out the lyrics and dance like no one’s watching.
MAKE A LEMONADE STAND
During this time of year, everyone is out of their houses doing yard work or walking the dogs or simply enjoying the sunshiney weather. Set up a lemonade stand in front of your house or somewhere else in your neighborhood and give out some tasty drinks to help your neighbors cool off. For the adults, you could even put a little something extra in it to put a little pep in their step.
SLEEP IN A TREE HOUSE
When I was younger, I always thought it would be cool to build my own tree house and have that be my little escape from reality (because life was so hard back then apparently – ha!). While I don’t have the patience or know how to build a tree house of my own. There are several places around the world where you can get the tree house experience on another level, like Treehouse Cottages in Arkansas orย TreeHouse Point in Washington.
GO TO SUMMER CAMP
If you went to summer camp as a kid, I’m sure those were some of the best memories you had from your childhood. I didn’t get the summer camp experience until I worked at two different ones as an adult. If you’re wanting to get that summer camp experience as an adult, they’ve created adult summer camps, like Camp No Counselors and Club Getaway, which I can only imagine are even better than camps for kids.
For even more kidulting ideas, check out Nicole Booz’s new book, The Kidult Handbook. It hits shelves tomorrow, May 15, 2018.
What are some of your favorite ways to feel like a kid again?
