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Totally free, fun things to do with or for dad on Father's Day if you're on a tight budget

Father's Day is a time when families across America celebrate their dads and everything they do. It's a special day — and there are a number of free things you can do with your dad.

If you’re young and don’t have a lot to spend or are on a tight budget for Father’s Day, don’t panic because there is always something to do with dad to celebrate him.

Father’s Day, a day specifically for letting your dad know you love and appreciate him, doesn’t need to cost you much money or, really, any money at all. 

And let’s face it, your dad is probably more interested in you saving your money than spending it on him anyway.

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If you’re looking for something to do at no cost for your dad on Father’s Day, check out the following fun and free options.

If you’re pretty creative and computer savvy, creating an interactive presentation about the reasons you love your dad or a video of all the funny things he’s done that you recorded might be just the free thing.

While offering paid plans, Canva is totally free and easy to use. 

Do some research ahead of time if you’ve never heard of it or used it and see all that it can do. Add pictures and videos of you, your dad and your family for him to laugh at and love.

This is something he can keep forever, show his friends or even post on social media to show off to everyone what a great dad he is.

The local parks are free and often forgotten. Head to the park with baseball bats, pickleball or tennis rackets, a kickball or any other supplies to participate in a friendly game together. Use whatever equipment you have already that might be collecting dust in the garage.

The only money spent here is a little bit of gas.

Dads love to compete against their kids. If your dad is an athlete or just enjoys a long run now and again, challenge him to a race. Take it to the local high school track or plan a path in the area together. Decide on the number of miles you’d like to challenge him to, tie your laces and get to jogging.

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Not only will you both get in a great workout, but you’ll also get to enjoy each other’s competitive sides. Decide on the winner’s prize and let your mom or sibling cue the race with a "ready, set, go" to avoid any cheating or head starts.

If your dad is really competitive and a long run or a game of softball won’t cut it, set up a fun obstacle course in the backyard. Use household supplies to create a course that is as long, short, easy, challenging as you want.

An obstacle course equipped with a mixture of difficult and easy stations will be totally hilarious. This is also an activity the entire family can participate in. Separate everyone into teams and even require team members to wear their designated colors.

Some ideas to consider are an egg toss with partners, a water balloon toss with a target, running around the house, climbing or jumping over things and so much more. Get as creative as you want here.

If your backyard is long enough to avoid disturbing cars or neighbors, and you simply can’t afford to take dad to a golf course, hit some balls in the backyard with him.

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Even if you’re not an avid golfer but your dad is, he’ll likely appreciate the effort put into letting him teach you a thing or two about the game.

As long as the refrigerator isn’t full of specific meal prep items for the week, this should be pretty easy to do. Use what you have in the pantry, freezer or fridge to come up with a great meal for your dad. 

This can be breakfast, lunch, dinner or a dessert or snack.

Get creative with the ingredients but make sure everything is thoroughly cooked through. You don’t want to get dad sick on his special day.

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If you’re puzzled by cooking and the ingredients in the house, use AI chatbot ChatGPT to come up with a recipe. 

Simply add the ingredients you have to the chatbot and ask it to come up with a recipe for you.

There are a number of films that include more than one movie in a series, and your dad probably likes at least one of the series. Find out which may be his favorite, if you don’t already know, and set up the living room for a movie marathon.

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Some film series ideas include the following:

It’s been spring for more than a few weeks now and your dad has probably put in a great deal of yard work already. 

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A great gift for him would be to complete the yard work for the weekend for him — or with him if he still prefers to do it himself.

Help him cut grass, pull weeds, plant flowers or vegetables, water everything, etc.

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