HELLO SUMMER! We did it, moms and dads… we made it through another school year, and now it’s time to throw caution to the wind and embrace the chaotic season that is summer. Constant towing our kids back and forth to friends and pools and summer sports. The revolving door of wet footprints and nagging flies. Frequent trips to the supermarket with a doubled grocery bill. This is summer as we know it, full of frenzy and chaos, wet bathing suits and sunscreen.
At the end of the school year/beginning of summer, we make a bucket list with our kids, listing activities that we would like to do over the break. We take turns coming up with ideas, write them down on a poster board and hang somewhere we see it daily. We refer to the bucket list as a guide, if you will. It’s a resource that helps us plan the day’s activities when the kids feel like climbing the walls or when we are sick and tired of seeing them on their electronic devices. Instead of trying to pull ideas out of a hat on the fly, we refer to the summer bucket list. You can include some fun ideas like trips or local adventures and some not-so-fun ideas like cleaning kids’ closets to donate all the clothes they grew out of over the school year (which makes for a great rainy-day activity in my opinion).
There are some tangible things I’d like to achieve this summer with our crew and a couple of trips that I hope we can go on, but mostly I’m hoping that there are lots of pool parties in our backyard and late-night bonfires with friends. I hope I look out over the farm pond and see their bobbing fishing poles. I hope there is so much joy – so much fun. I hope our guest room stays full of old friends and new ones. I hope there’s flashlight tags amongst the teens and playdates with the little. And I hope that it’s a summer that we all want to bottle up to keep alive forever.
Here’s what won’t keep though, moms and dads: groceries. Our pantries are going to be bare the day after we stock them, so here’s a running summer list I have on my phone to make sure we always have on deck:
•Beef jerky
•Apples
•Grapes
•Watermelon
•Pickles
•Popsicles
•Ice cream
•Ice cream cones
•Lemonade
•Assortment of crackers and cheeses for a last-minute charcuterie board
•Bottled water
•Sliced bread
•Turkey
•A couple of frozen pizzas
•Popcorn
•Iced tea
•Sunscreen
Whether you are a lover of the routine and structure that a school year brings or the haphazard schedule of summer break, it’s my advice that you have a few good activities lined up for entertainment and a staple grocery list to conquer the season. A picnic blanket and basket are a good idea, too. Cheers to summer!
-by Destini McPherson
Be the first to comment