Bring back the summer memories and share them with your kids

(ARA) - Remember the summer days when you held a camping adventure under the stars in your own backyard, played board games with your parents or enjoyed an ice cream bar on a hot night? Do you remember learning to ride a bike through the neighborhood, waving to everyone sitting out on the front porch or working on their landscaping?

Now that you have children of your own, summer is a great opportunity to repeat those memories and share them with your kids. Here are some ideas to bring back the memories:

Camp in the backyard

Remember making s'mores and chasing fireflies while camping in your backyard? Recruit help from your kids to set up the campsite and then spend the afternoon playing games, looking at the clouds and talking about bugs. After grilling out and roasting marshmallows over a fire pit, make the experience an educational one and teach your children about the planets and stars they'll be sleeping under.

Decorate the sidewalk

Who hasn't drawn oversized pictures on the sidewalks and driveway? Bring the kids outside for a day of fun and creativity - decorating the sidewalk with chalk drawings is a creative outlet for young artists. Trace the outlines of your kids' bodies and teach them about different body parts. And there's easy clean-up - either wait for rain from Mother Nature or wash away the art with a hose for a clean canvas.

Cool off with an ice cream treat

For 90 years, the familiar jingle of the Good Humor ice cream truck has brought smiles to many children in neighborhoods across America. And for adults, the ice cream man brings back special happy memories from their own childhoods. Memories of when they played hard all day and their moms let them visit the truck when dinner was finished. Parents can treat their families to classic nostalgic frozen treats all summer when they see (or hear) the ice cream truck coming down the street. It's the perfect opportunity for parents to share with their kids stories from when they were young.

This summer, that specially marked 4 oz. single-serve Strawberry Shortcake, Chocolate Eclair, Toasted Almond or Candy Center Crunch bar could win you $10,000 - or one of 10,000 instant-win prizes. Check the stick to see if your ice cream bar is an "instant winner" or, for free instant-win game play, mail a 3x5 paper with your name, date of birth and full address to Good Humor. Log on to www.GoodHumor.com to redeem prizes, enter to win the $10,000 cash sweepstakes and review the full sweepstakes rules.

Announce a family games tournament

The games of your childhood can entertain your children for hours - especially if they haven't played them before. Organize various competitions and races, such as an egg-carrying race, an obstacle course and a soccer ball dribbling contest. Fashion a challenge to see who can create the most delicious or craziest ice cream sundae. Bring all the fixings to the patio, and if there's a mess, turn on the sprinkler for a fun way to clean up sticky hands and faces.

Create a backyard adventure

Bring back the homemade stage by having your children bring their favorite books to life. Don't forget to share the stories you loved when you were a child - they might become favorites of your children. If there's a sandbox, dress as pirates and have a buried treasure hunt. For mystery fans, set up a scavenger hunt with clues hidden around the house and yard. And for young playwrights, the backyard area provides the perfect stage to decorate, dress up and play out a scene.

About the sweepstakes

No purchase necessary. Void where prohibited. The 10,000 Winners Sweet-Stakes is sponsored by Conopco, Inc. doing business as Unilever. Open to legal residents of 50 U.S. states and Washington, D.C., ages 13 and older (for Maine residents, 18 and older). For free game play, send a 3 inch by 5 inch paper with name, date of birth and full address to: Good Humor Request, P.O. Box 7999, Melville, NY 11775-7999, by Sept. 14. The contest ends at 11:59:59 p.m. pacific time on Sept. 6. For official rules, visit www.GoodHumor.com.

Courtesy of ARAcontent