Summer Must-Haves for Our Autism Household
Summer holidays can be amazing, but if you're parenting an autistic child, they can also be a long six or seven weeks to fill! Over the years we've found a few things that make summer much easier in our house. Some help keep Emily regulated, some encourage outdoor play, and others simply give me a chance to get a few jobs done around the house!
Every autistic child is different, but these are the summer essentials that we come back to year after year.
A Pool, Splash Pad or Bubble Machine☀️💦
When the sun comes out, we don't always need an expensive day out to have fun. Some of our favourite summer days are spent right in the back garden!
Emily loves cooling off in the paddling pool, and it's one of the easiest ways for us to enjoy the nice weather. We'll often fill it up in the morning so she can jump in whenever she feels like it throughout the day. It's brilliant for sensory play, helps her regulate, and burns off plenty of energy.
If you don't have space for a paddling pool, a splash pad is another fantastic option. They use less water, are quick to set up and are perfect for children who love running through sprinklers and water.
And if getting wet isn't on the agenda, bubble machines are another huge hit in our house! Emily loves watching and chasing the bubbles, and even Bella (our dog!) joins in. It's a simple activity that brings lots of smiles with very little effort.
Some of our summer favourites:
📱 A Tablet
One thing we couldn't do without during the summer is Emily's tablet. Whether we're at home, on a long car journey or waiting at an appointment, it gives her something familiar and comforting. It also gives me a chance to catch up on the housework or even write blogs like this! 😊
Emily loves watching sensory and ASMR YouTube Shorts, and we've even recreated some of the ideas together at home, like carving out a watermelon and filling it with jelly!
We've used a few different tablets over the years, but our favourites are Lenovo tablets and the Amazon Fire Kids tablet. We especially like the Lenovo tablets because if the screen ever gets broken, they're surprisingly easy and inexpensive to replace yourself, which has saved us more than once!
Our recommendations:
🍦 Ice Pops & Holiday Activities
When school's out for the summer, I always like to have a few simple activities ready to go. Ice pop moulds are one of our favourite summer buys, and we use them every year. Emily enjoys them made with fruit juice or fat-free strawberry yoghurt, and they're a fun little activity to make together before popping them into the freezer.
I also like to have a few colouring books and activity books tucked away. They don't have to be completed all at once, but they're great for keeping little hands busy and helping Emily practise some of the skills she's learned at school over the year.
Some of our summer favourites:
🧩 A Few More Summer Favourites
There are always a few things we keep tucked away for those moments when we need a change of activity or just a little quiet time.
Kinetic sand, Play-Doh and slime are always a big hit in our house. We often put them away after Christmas and bring them back out during the summer, which makes them feel new all over again! We also never go far without our visual timer, as it really helps Emily understand when it's time to move on to the next activity.
When the weather is a little cooler, we love getting Emily's disability bike out for a trip around our local GAA grounds or park. I'll be sharing another blog soon about how we got her bike and some of our favourite autism-friendly day trips too.
Our favourites:
💙 We'd Love to Hear From You!
Do you have a summer must-have that your family couldn't live without? Whether it's a favourite sensory toy, outdoor activity or something that helps make the school holidays a little easier, we'd love to hear your ideas.
Leave a comment below and share your favourites—you might just help another autism family discover something new! 💙
If you enjoyed this blog, don't forget to check out our other autism tips, activity ideas and family recommendations. We're always adding new content to help make everyday life that little bit easier.Some of the links in this blog are affiliate links. This means that if you choose to make a purchase through them, we may earn a small commission at no extra cost to you. We only recommend products that we genuinely use, love or believe could be helpful to other autism families.
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