Planning for Summer

Well, after rushing around from dance lesson to Brownie meeting to teeball game for what seems like an eternity, summer is almost upon us. And having no paycheck is a quick and effective way to pare down the summer activities!
Really, the kids usually only did one camp each over the summer, so it's not a big hardship they're going to have to endure. We will probably join the town pool but will skip the swim lessons. The library is free, the weekly free movies are free. My stresses about summer have never been about getting the kids into camps or places where we need to spend money. Rather, I stress about how to fill all that time. I usually draw up a whole schedule, with theme weeks and corresponding crafts and activities to do. And then we usually don't do them. It only takes one kid to say, "I don't want to do that," to get them all to boycott.

I just haven't even gotten out my file folders of summer activities yet. I did print out a few Junior Badge pages for ideas, but I'm really going to try to abandon my own planning and just go with the flow more. I think I'm going to try to have certain activities for certain days (i.e. Cookie Monday, Library Tuesday, Movie Wednesday--that's all I've got). And the rest we'll make up as we go.

Mary Beth usually makes a list of things she'd like to try during each season, and she posted her summer list last week. I love that she does this, and I'm finally going to make a list for myself. Some of the items on my list will absolutely get done, some are nothing more than wishes written down, but here's my list of Things I Want to Do This Summer:

Make a Cookie of the Week with the kids,

Go strawberry picking,

Make strawberry jam,

Shop frequently/regularly at the weekly farmers' market,

Start my contribution to the Milkweed Project,

Try knitting something in a feather and fan lace pattern (maybe a blanket?),

Celebrate summer solstice (which will happen during the first week of the kids' summer break),

Celebrate midsummer,

Read aloud more to the kids,

Start a list of handmade Christmas ideas,

Start making one dinner for the whole family--no more "kid meals",

Make homemade ice cream.

So there you have it. It'll be fun to check this list again in September to see how summer turned out!