If you're anything like me, you look forward to summer all year long. From the second I step foot in class, I'm looking forward to next summer and hanging out with my friends, all the time.

However, if your friends are anything like mine you probably spend a lot of time sitting around trying to find something to do, ultimately just sitting on the couch for hours.

To avoid spending your summer days like this:

1. Visit a park.

There are parks all over the place, I mean seriously they're everywhere. The best part is, most of the time they're free! There are some where you might have to pay a daily or yearly fee to get a pass, but they're typically only a couple dollars and it gives you free reign to explore as you want. Depending on the park, there are also some awesome things like kayaking or paddle-boating available. For example, Winton Woods has 4-person paddle boats for $11.21 an hour. That's under $3 a person to explore the lake!

2. Go to a movie.

Sometimes it's just too hot to be outside and a movie is a perfect break from the heat. Now if you're looking for free/cheap activities, movies can get a little tricky because the ticket prices seem to be going up faster than college tuition. However, if you're smart you can find some pretty good deals. My personal favorite is the drive- in. Less than $10 a person for two movies, plus drive-ins are just more fun that sitting in a theater in my opinion!

3. Take advantage of festival season!

It's summer and that means pretty much every weekend there's a festival of some kind going on somewhere in the area. Festivals are full of games, (sketchy) rides, food and arguably the best people watching opportunities you can find. Typically festivals are free to attend and have live entertainment so you don't have to spend any money if you don't want to!

4. Volunteer

You might be thinking, "Volunteer? Uh... I thought this was supposed to be a list of fun things to do?" But hear me out. I know volunteering might not be the first thing to come to mind when you think of summer, but it can be so great. Not only are you helping charitable causes within your community, but there are so many different volunteer opportunities. You can help out a soup kitchen, a nursing home, an animal shelter, you name it. Chances are no matter what you're passionate about, there's a charity that will gladly welcome you with open arms.

5. Have a pool day!

Summer is meant for relaxing by the pool, working on your tan and hanging out with friends. Chances are someone you know has a pool, or your neighborhood has one close by. When it doubt- get creative. You don't have to have anything fancy- buy a baby pool ($9 at Walmart), get a sprinkler or just use the hose! In high school some of my friends even turned the bed of their truck into a pool using tarps. Your neighbors might judge you a little bit when you and four of your friends try to pile in a baby pool but hey, who cares?

This list is in no way exhaustive. Summer fun doesn't have to be expensive or far away, though no one is going to complain about a trip to the beach, you just have to be a little creative! Hopefully this will decrease the time you spend sitting around staring into space bored with your friends and more time looking like this:

Enjoy your summer!