This post is sponsored by Hudsonville Ice Cream. Hudsonville Ice Cream is about more than just ice cream. For them, it’s all about making life a little sweeter. It’s about the feeling you get, the experience you have, and the people you share a scoop with. Their Midwest creamery has been perfecting the art of ice cream making for more than 90 years. While they enjoy creating creamy, delicious and exciting new flavors, many of their ice creams use a base recipe that was created back in 1926! With more than 50 flavors to choose from, including the world’s best French Vanilla and Dairy Free options, Hudsonville Ice Cream has options for everyone to enjoy. 

While we can make memories all year long with our kids, the summertime ones seem to stand out as the most sweet. July is actually National Ice Cream Month, and that’s something well worth celebrating. Have you ever thought about incorporating something as fun as ice cream into your typical playdate and making it that much better? While you’re at it, grab your phone and snap some photos of your little cuties enjoying the sticky goodness and you’ve captured some magical moments on canvas to hang all over your home to remind you of the warm days gone by when we’re all freezing again!

This isn’t just about busting out the gallon bucket of vanilla to appease hot and sweaty kiddos. This is about pulling out all the stops with the best flavors, colorful dishes, and fancy toppings and letting your kids flex their artistic muscles as they create their perfect sundae. It’s a treat, to be sure, but think how much bribery power this gives you, Mom!

 

We want to make this so easy for you, so we made a list of the essential things you need for this uniquely delicious and adorable playdate. Go ahead and re-create it; we want you to! Get this playdate on the books with your mom squad before summer disappears for another nine months and these days are long gone. We promise you will love the result and your kids will think you’re a hero!

How to Create the Perfect Ice Cream Playdate

A Private-ish Park or a Backyard Playground

We opted for a pocket park in a neighborhood behind one of our mama’s houses that doesn’t get a ton of foot traffic. Your kids can wear themselves out going down the slide and flying high on the swings to burn off a ton of energy. Plus, when it’s finally ice cream time, you are outside, so the mess and drips get on the grass and not on your floors or counters! If you’re bringing the ice cream along to a park away from a nearby house, just make sure it’s frozen solid before you pack it in a powerful cooler with a TON of ice. 

Bring Your Camera or Phone!

Trust us, you’re going to create some photo worthy moments at this playdate that you’ll want to make sure you capture! Is there anything cuter than a toddler with a chin covered in melted ice cream?? Plus, as the kiddos play on the playground, it’s the perfect opportunity to capture sweet images of them just being kids. As we all know, they grow up far too fast!

Want to kick it up a notch and get some extra magical photos you can print out and retain for memories for years to come? Enlist your friends and bring in a photographer that specializes in lifestyle photography and capturing real-life moments with families. Our favorite local picks are Vanessa Wyler, Talia Laird, and Melissa Morgan. You can also use your own camera (or iPhone) if a photographer is not available and still get a great result. Thanks, Portrait Mode!

The Perfect Ice Cream.

Our pick is Hudsonville Ice Cream. Not only is it midwest made and INSANELY creamy and delicious, they also offer dairy-free ice cream — great, right!? Now even your dairy-free babes can be a part of the fun. Plus, their branding is on-point and photographs perfectly in pictures. As part of Hudsonville’s Sweetest Summer Ever campaign, they’re also offering a $2 coupon off any 48 oz. Hudsonville Ice Cream flavor. Find out which stores carry Hudsonville Ice Cream by clicking here! 

Cute Sundae Bowls + Ice Cream Toppings.

Small details make a fun and noticeable difference in making this playdate one you and your kids will love. Remember, the goal is to create an extraordinary and special experience! Choose toppings that are bright and colorful so they excite your kids, or maybe are their favorites that they don’t get to indulge in very often. Ice Cream tends to be pastel colors, so those multi-colored sprinkles, M&Ms, or bright colored bowls are going to pop out and look gorgeous! 

Set up a couple of stations.

Whether it’s a picnic table, blanket, or a spot on the playground, pick a few places to “camp out” so you can slow down and enjoy these sweet moments with your children and their friends while still allowing them the space and freedom to roam a bit and just BE KIDS. 

Be prepared to get sticky!

If you have toddlers, be prepared for spills, especially on their clothes. Keep in mind that those messy photos are always some of the cutest, and the real star of the show is the smiles on their faces!

Don’t forget an ice cream scoop. It’s really awkward to serve ice cream without it! 

As we round the corner into August and summer fades away, tiny pieces of our hearts go with it. Summer is perfectly and painfully sweet. There is nothing like seeing your kids enjoy the best parts of summer, and absolutely nothing is sweeter than enjoying those moments with them. So why not capture that?!

Just when you thought summer couldn’t get any sweeter, Hudsonville Ice Cream is kicking things up a notch with weekly giveaways all summer long! They’ll be giving away a new prize every week, including sweet new flavors, ice cream for a YEAR(!!), a grand prize trip to Grand Hotel and more! Check out their Facebook page for all the details!

 

All photos were taken by Talia Laird Photography, a fantastic lifestyle and family photographer serving the greater Milwaukee area! 

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