Keep gates and fences closed. If this is the first event of the Spring or Summer, check both carefully. Many dog breeds have a habit of digging for all kinds of reasons, especially when they’re bored. That rose bush in the corner of the backyard is pretty, but it can hide an escape hatch your dog will use the moment all you want is a burger to absorb the two (or three) beers you drank while grilling.

Remember, the meat goes on a tray, on the table. Preferably on the center of a sturdy table with no chairs around it to avoid canine ninja action. The ideal location is a fold-down shelf attached to your grill. It’s perfect for support, lets you keep an eye on the meal before and after cooking, and it’s a great place to set down your beer when you need to use both hands on the grill.

Of course, the best defense is a good offense. Train your pet now to avoid the grill and not pull items off the backyard table. If your dog already knows to stay off the kitchen or dining room table, then you’re in good shape already.

That said, puppies are puppies and have an attention span even shorter than that of a two-year-old. If you haven’t started training or just started, you may need to keep your dog inside until you finish grilling and put everything away. Not just utensils, that also includes charcoal, lighter fluid, kindling, wood chips, and everything else. Even if what you’re using for fuel isn’t toxic, it’s still big enough to leave a knot on your dog’s (or your kid’s) head.

Now that the food is cooked and everyone is ready to eat, you can relax and begin that fine, American tradition of feeding your dogs from the table. Yes, you’re not supposed to, but this is the outside, so the inside rules can be broken and then duct-taped back together the next day. After all, duct-tape fixes everything.

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As an actor and stuntman in my mid-30s, I love seeing the newest releases on the biggest screen possible. Action movies in IMAX? Mandatory. Animated movies “for the kids” that I absolutely wanted to see too? Also mandatory, especially when my friends were the animators. Something about summer movie season feels nostalgic in the best way.

The good news? Movie theaters are actually making it affordable this year.

With ticket prices getting a little wild lately, the Summer 2026 theater deals are incredible. Whether you’re trying to entertain kids during summer break, survive the heat with some air conditioning, or just want cheap date nights, here are the best movie theater deals happening this summer.

Regal Cinemas Is Bringing Back the $1 Movies

Regal’s Summer Movie Express might honestly be the MVP of summer break. From June 1 through August 13, Regal is offering $1 family movie tickets starting at 11 a.m. Monday through Thursday. Which, in this 2026 economy, feels almost suspiciously affordable.

The lineup is stacked with family favorites including:

• Kung Fu Panda 4
• The Garfield Movie
• A Minecraft Movie
• Despicable Me 4
• Paddington in Peru
• And more!

I would fully watch Paddington in Peru even without kids present. No shame.

Regal is also offering:

• $3 off Snack Packs
• Discounts on Dippin’ Dots
• Affordable weekday morning showtimes that scream “summer nostalgia”

I wish this existed when I was younger because my entire childhood would’ve been spent in air conditioning watching animated movies and eating blue raspberry ICEEs.

AMC Is Going All In on Summer Deals

AMC is making a serious play for movie lovers this summer, and… they’re crushing it. The AMC Summer Movie Camp runs from June 22 through August 12 with discounted family movie tickets every Monday and Wednesday.

Featured movies include:

• How to Train Your Dragon
• Sonic the Hedgehog 3
• Muppet Treasure Island
• And others!

Which is one of the most random and elite combinations possible. But the real AMC deal this summer is for Stubs members.

AMC is offering:

• 50% off regular evening tickets on Tuesdays and Wednesdays
• Daily discount matinees for earlier showtimes
• Summer Movie Camp discounts
• And the absolute game changer: AMC A-List – which I am 100% a part of!

AMC A-List Might Be the Best Deal for Movie Addicts

Look, I’ll say it. If you’re someone who sees multiple movies a month, AMC A-List becomes dangerously worth it. A-List lets you watch multiple movies per week, including premium formats like IMAX and Dolby Cinema, for one monthly price. Which means if you’re the type of person who says things like:

“I’ll probably only see one movie this month…” and then somehow ends up seeing four?

This thing pays for itself fast. As someone who loves action films, stunt-heavy movies, and giant blockbuster releases, Dolby and IMAX alone make A-List tempting. Watching explosions shake the seats is part of the experience. Also, summer 2026 has so many releases coming out that I already know I’d abuse this membership immediately.

Cinemark Quietly Has One of the Best Deals

Cinemark’s Summer Movie Clubhouse is another insanely good option for families.

From June 1 through August 6, Cinemark is offering $1.75 movie tickets for select family-friendly films during Wednesday morning showtimes at 9:30 a.m. Some locations are even adding extra show days.

They’re also offering:

• $1 off snack packs
• $1 off popcorn and drink combos

It is weirdly fun seeing movies early in the morning during summer. You haven’t fully experienced summer until you’ve eaten popcorn before noon while sitting in freezing AC watching animated animals save the world.

Marcus Theatres Has the Ultimate Family Pass

I have never heard of this theatre before but the Marcus Theatres is going full “parents, we got you” mode this summer.

Their Kids Movie Magic program includes 10 different summer movies, and you can either:

• Buy individual tickets for $3 each
• Or grab the full Summer Kids Movie Magic Passport for $15

That passport gets you access to all 10 movies, which is honestly an absurdly good deal.

Marcus is also offering:

• $3.50 popcorn
• $3.50 sodas
• Discounted food and drinks throughout the program

Movie theaters are basically competing to become the official summer survival plan for parents. With these deals, you can actually enjoy it without spending your entire paycheck on popcorn and tickets. This summer, grab the oversized soda, show up way too early for trailers, and go watch something loud on the biggest screen possible. I’ll be the guy in the back row quietly judging stunt choreography, and looking for my friends in the films, while pretending I’m “studying for work.”

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Ingredients:

• 1 1/2 cup Juice
• 2 cup frozen fruits (do 1/2 – 1 cup of each fruit)
• 3 tbsp honey
• 1 1/3 cups whole milk, divided

Directions:

1. Blend the juice, honey, and frozen fruit.
2. Purée until really smooth.
3. Place popsicle sticks into molds.
4. Freeze for at least 6 hours (or overnight).

Notes:

• You can get really creative with these smoothie pops! Try out your favorite fruits and juices to find different ways to enjoy this recipe!

These ice pops are a HUGE hit in my house, especially on those super hot days. Nothing is better then a tasty ice pop to keep you cool during the hot Texas summer!

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Ingredients:

• 6 Full-size Graham Cracker Sheets.
• 12 Jumbo Marshmallows, sliced in half
• 2 Chocolate Bars
• 1/4 cup Powdered Sugar (divided if you’re doing more than one flavor)
• 6 T Butter, melted (divided if you’re doing more than one flavor)

Directions:

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees
• Grease a mini muffin pan.
• For my traditionally flavored s’mores, I crushed 3 sheets of honey graham crackers and mixed it with 1/8 cup powdered sugar and 3 tablespoons of melted butter.
• Press the mixture down into each muffin cup.
• Bake for 5 minutes until lightly golden brown.

• While the crusts are still hot out of the oven, top each with a square of chocolate (I found it easier to fit if I broke them in half) and half a jumbo marshmallow.
• Place back in the oven for 5 more minutes.

• For my chocolatey twist on s’mores, I used 3 sheets of chocolate graham crackers mixed with 1/8 cup powdered sugar and 3 tablespoons of melted butter.
• Baked them for 5 minutes and then topped them with Hershey’s cookies and cream bars and the jumbo marshmallows.
• Another 5 minutes in the oven and you have gooey, chewy, amazing s’mores bites!

• If you want a more toasty marshmallow top, you can stick them under the broiler for a quick minute, but keep an eye on them! They’ll burn quickly, just like over a bonfire!

Notes:

• I made two different flavors so I got traditional honey and chocolate graham crackers

These little gems are the best little bite of summer goodness. They’re gooey and melty and perfectly sweet. They’re even better in the morning with a cup of coffee, but you didn’t hear that from me! I hope you enjoy your last few weeks of summer vacation and decide to make these S’mores Bites for your family!

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However, we never let summer end without that one last epic family gathering. Typically, we would have a camp out in our backyard and make tons of S’mores. Everyone looks forward to this every year, but this year we decided to do something a little different. With our kids getting older, they enjoy being more independent and being a part of every activity. When it comes to S’mores making, they have a tough time understanding why we can’t touch marshmallows that just came out of the fire, or that you may have to wait a minute for the S’mores to cool before eating. Granted, even I have trouble remembering this at times and have a few moments of burning the roof of my mouth to prove it.

Also, my kids love the idea of S’mores, but not so much the idea of taking the time to roast a marshmallow to perfection and assemble the perfect stack. And don’t even get me started on the sticky gooey mess that is inevitable. Every bonfire is always cut short due to having to take a bath to get the marshmallow/chocolate off of their hair/face/arm/leg/etc.

So, this year we found the perfect alternative to the standard S’mores – S’mores Nachos. Last weekend it was particularly rainy and we could not have our typical Friday night bonfire. So, I broke out this recipe and they have been asking for them every night since. These ‘nachos’ are so simple to make, and I even let each kid add their favorite variety of chocolate candy to customize their own portion of ‘nachos’. The best part is there was virtually no mess, minus a few sticky fingers and chocolate mustaches.

Prep Time: 10 min
Total time: 10 min 
Servings: Makes 6 servings, 6 topped graham pieces each.

Ingredients:

• 9 HONEY MAID Honey Grahams, quartered
• 2 milk chocolate bars (1.55 oz. each), chopped
• 1 cup miniature marshmallows

Directions:

• Heat oven to 350°F.
• Place graham pieces, with sides touching, in single layer on parchment-covered baking sheet; top with chocolate and marshmallows.
• Bake 4 to 5 min. or until marshmallows are puffed and lightly toasted.
• Remove from oven.
• Let stand 2 min. before serving.

I hope you get a chance to test out the S’mores Nachos before summer’s end. You won’t regret it. So, head on over to your local Commissary and grab your ingredients for S’mores Nachos today!

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I used ramekins to hold the bubble solution. Mix a squirt of paint in each one and stir it up. You can always add more solution if you find it’s not “bubbly” enough.

Supplies:

• Tempera Paint
• Bubbles

Directions:

• Mix some paint with bubble solution in a small container.
• Carefully dip the bubble blower into the solution.
• Get close to the paper and blow until the bubble pops on the paper.
• Have fun & get creative with your masterpiece!

Notes:

• We practiced a little bit on the paper to get a feel for them. The bubbles are messy and drippy, but I think it adds to the painting. Why I let my kids talk me into using black, I’ll never know. You’ll see why in the photos.

• Since the paint weighs down the bubble solution, you can’t just blow bubbles and let them float down and pop on the canvas. We had to get pretty close to the surface and gently blow our bubbles.

• The boys really got into it. They made such funky designs!

• Our almost splatter-proof surface. It all comes out in the wash though and the memories are worth it!

• I turned my back on the 5 year old for a minute and he went crazy with the black bubble paint! He LOVES bubbles and the fact that he could paint with them made him really happy. That made me happy! Of course his painting took FOREVER to dry, since there was so much solution on it. He loves it though!

• As you can see, the bubbles pop everywhere! A couple wet wipes later and we were good to go.

Such a fun summer craft! I hope you try it out with your kiddos!

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Before the unexpected road closure, they had planned on taking an RV up the California coastline in this area and camp out at various State Parks. It was too late to make new plans and reservations, but not wanting to disappoint his kids, the dad decided they would simply take the family vacation at home instead.

Turns out it wasn’t so bad after all! They all camped out in the backyard and still had a wonderful time. They never set foot in their house for the entire week and still enjoyed most of the activities that they had originally planned, sleeping under the stars, building a roaring campfire at night, roasting weenies, making s’mores and cooking outdoors. He even brought in some sand and seashells to simulate the beach environment!

One of the reasons that his plan worked was because they all pretended they were not actually at home, and since they lived on rural property, they parked their trailer far from the house.

For your “staycation” to really seem like time off, be sure to:

• Turn off the devices…NO smartphones, tablets, gaming consoles, and computers
• Put away chores like laundry and housekeeping for the time being
• Cook outdoors and prepare meals in advance
• Do things you would normally do on a vacation like reading and playing board games

Add to the Atmosphere:

• If you’re staying indoors, make things a little more interesting by building a blanket fort, sleeping on the living room floor or using the fireplace for some extra ambiance.
• If you’ll be camping out in the backyard and you don’t have much in the way of equipment, see if you can borrow some from a friend or family member or check with your local MWR for rental supplies.
• Be sure to have some comfortable leisure items like an oversized umbrella, perhaps a hammock, some lawn chairs and patio furniture.

Look for Special Discounts:

• If you will be shelling out some dough on summer toys or other outdoor equipment, look for discounts wherever you can find them.
• Home improvement stores like Home Depot and Lowes can often be a source for significant savings on seasonal and outdoor decor.
• Think outside the box!
• Remember, if you’re in the military or a veteran, there are lots of stores that offer extra savings and coupons for those who serve our country.

Plan Activities:

• Anyone who has kids knows these two familiar words all too well …“I’m bored!”
• Be sure to plan plenty of activities for your downtime, things like:
  • Hide-and-go-seek
  • Flashlight tag
  • Board games and playing cards
  • Coloring books, puzzles, crossword puzzles, sudoku, and word searches
  • A scavenger hunt
  • Cloud watching
  • Stargazing to identify constellations
  • Rounds of singing and stories told around the campfire

Even though we’re putting our technology down for the time being, you could still have a fun-filled movie night. Watch old favorites or view a new release that everyone’s been dying to see. For a travel feel, think about titles like The Secret Life of Walter Mitty, where the main character is thrust into an around the world journey. Be sure everyone in the family has an opportunity to pick out their own movie selection and take time for reviews and comments afterwards. Don’t forget the popcorn and snacks!

Thank you to our guest blogger Hilary Smith for this awesome blog!

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Ingredients:

• 4 Ounces Orange Juice
• 2 Ounces Clear Soda
• 2 Ounces Club Soda
• 1 orange wheel
• ½ glass full of ice

Directions:

1. Combine all ingredients into a glass and stir.
2. Garnish with orange wheel.

This drink is so refreshing and it was the perfect porch side drink for us while the kids played outside. I know you will enjoy this mocktail, especially after a long day at work. It was the perfect ending to a stressful week.

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I have great memories from camping trips while I was growing up. One of my favorite memories was the food. Something about cooking over an open flame and getting those special meals only served while camping! S’mores, roasted hot dogs, campfire donuts and biscuits on a stick!

Now as an adult, I’ve realized that cooking while camping definitely isn’t as easy as it seems. The key is preparing what you can before you leave! Cause no one wants to spend most of the day prepping and doing dishes! Come on, I wanna take naps, go on walks, and sit by the campfire to relax!

When we camp with the entire family, the deal is we alternate meals… One person covers breakfast for the entire family, one lunch, and one dinner, etc. In an effort to make this camping trip not only fun, but relaxing, I’ve decided to test run a few meals at home here in North Carolina, so I’ll be prepared for when it’s my turn to cook for the whole family!

We decided to try out walking tacos! My conditions for picking camping meals is as follows… Easy prep. Easy clean up. Minimal dishes. Yummy and filling. Cheap for a crowd. With walking tacos, I think I nailed all five!

Ingredients:

• Ground Beef
• Taco Seasoning
• Black Beans
• Tortilla Chips
• Taco Toppings:
  • Shredded lettuce
  • Diced Tomatoes
  • Shredded Cheese
  • Salsa
  • Sour Cream
  • Ranch Dressing, French Dressing, or Thousand Island Dressing
  • Black Olives
  • Diced Onions
  • Diced Avocado
  • Cilantro

Directions:

• Brown your ground beef, draining any grease.
• Add in taco seasoning plus 1/4 cup water.
• Dump in one can, drained and rinsed black beans, heating through.
• To build your walking taco:
  • Start by taking your personal bag of chips, cut the tip of one corner off, then crush the chips.
  • Next, slide the scissors into the hole and cut the side of the bag open.
  • Roll the side down and top with all your favorite taco toppings!
  • Since walking tacos are a cross between tacos and a taco salad, I also provided our three favorite taco salad dressings…French, Ranch, and Thousand Island!

Notes:

• For camping, I’ll precook the meat, and store in a large zip lock bag. When ready to eat, dump your taco meat and 1/4 cup water into a large pan and heat over the fire or camp stove until warmed through.

Whether you eat these at home or at your campsite, we hope you enjoy them as much as we do!

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Supplies:

• Small Water Guns
• Tempera Paint
• Canvas Panels

Directions:

• Water down the paint in a small bowl and mix well.
• Using a small funnel, slowly pour the paint mixture into your water gun.

• Head outside.
• Prop your canvas up on a tree or other allowed surface or lay them flat on the ground.
• Have the kiddos start shooting at the canvas to make their creations.

• Allow your creations to dry.
• Display them proudly.

Notes:

• I discovered using a frosting tip was the perfect size for a funnel to pour the mixture into each gun, since I did have the right size of funnel available.
• Some of the paint was a little thick so I would recommend adding more water if you run into any misfiring issues.
• You can put them in a frame or hang them without one. Awesome!
• The water guns were so cheap, I did not feel bad for throwing them away. There’s no way I have the patience to clean them all out!

Didn’t they turn out so cool? I was really impressed with their own color choices and styles. They had a blast squirting the canvas to create their own masterpieces, and with it being outside, clean up was a breeze! These bad boys do need to dry overnight before hanging them up. I just love how each of their personalities show through in their work! The kids REALLY got into it. It was so much fun! All in all, this was a complete success! Happy crafting, y’all!

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