Summer...What to do?

Last Summer

 My husband has been trying to convince me that we need a pool in our backyard.

Uh...no?

I really don't want to mess with that and small children. Last night though, I realized why he has been so persistent. He is getting nervous about summer...for me! He worries that it will drag on, the kids will get restless, Mama will stress out...and he'll come home from work to a mad house (as if he doesn't already. ;) )

I have been a little apprehensive about the dog days with four children against one mama, but I really have taken the attitude of, "We'll make it work". Setting myself up for failure? Maybe, but hey, I signed up for this when I chose this career of SAHM and agreed to birthing four rugrats! HA!

Really though, I do want to have a game plan in place, to make it a fun summer for the kids and a relaxing time for me. So I decided to copy the local community center in a way, and break up the summer into "week camps" for the boys. I could pay for them to go to the community camps each week, and they will do some of those activities too, but I'm a do-it-yourself-er, and I know that this time with kids at home will be one I look back on longingly.
I am in the process of printing out monthly calendars so I can write in my "art, science, nature camps...etc." and I think I'll go see if they still sell those archaic disposable cameras so the boys can create a photo journal at the end of the summer, capturing all they will have done.

Do you have any fun ideas to entertain your children during long hot (hopefully) days? Please share!