Jack is one day away from his summer holiday, and we’ve been thinking about how to keep him entertained over the summer.

Here are three of my favourites, but I’m very open to suggestions if anyone has any better ideas.

1. Camping out in the garden

Jack will turn four this August, so is probably just the right age to appreciate spending a night in a tent. There’s a bit of a nostalgic element to this. When I was a child, I was all about camping out in the garden.

Obviously, Jack is too young to stay in the garden on his own, so he’ll need an eager parent to join him. With Mum pregnant, aching and generally not that mobile, I am that eager parent.

I’m sure Jack will love this idea too, and half the fun will be in the preparation: putting up the tent, packing our overnight bag and sneakily gathering some ‘tent snacks’ from the kitchen, unbeknownst to Mum.

2. Sprinkler jumping and a water fight

Barring another hosepipe ban, Jack and I enjoyed ourselves so much the last time we did this, it would be criminal not to do the same again during the summer.

We don’t have a sprinkler yet, so I may have to do a begging knock at the neighbours house, but I think this will prolong the ‘fun times’ for Jack, and give wet Dad an opportunity to dry off.

3. Treasure Hunt

Jack’s pirate obsession continues, and we’ve even acquired a pirate outfit from a friend for a while. Given the circumstances, there’s really no excuse for not having a treasure hunt in the garden.

I’m even going to get Jack to help me make an ‘authentic’ treasure map using teabags, candle wax and finger smudges. Again, great fun for me too!

The more observant among you may notice the ‘fun for dad’ theme here – but I’m sure you can forgive me for using this as an opportunity to embrace my inner child.