So for whatever reason, today it finally sunk in that summer vacation is nearly upon us. Maybe it has to do with the fact that we finally had a hot day. Maybe it's because we've been BBQing every night for the last week. Maybe it's the fact that it doesn't get dark until after 8pm now. Whatever it is...it has now reminded me of the fact that my kiddos are going to be out of school in about a week and a half and I'm going to have to figure out ways to entertain them.
Normally I keep my kids pretty busy. I expect homework, and chores be done. Piano practicing, and other extracurricular activities come next, and playing (or in Jackson's case...hanging out) with friends comes in a distant 5th. I'm sure most of my kids' friends think that I'm just a horrible, mean mom that doesn't ever let her kids out of the house. In actuality, if the kids got their stuff done in a timely fashion, they'd have plenty of time to do whatever they want...but they don't, so they're usually stuck inside. I digress.....
Regardless of how long it takes my kids to do their chores, I don't think it could stretch into everyday, all day long....At some point in time I'm sure they'll figure out that if they get their stuff done quickly, they can get their mom off their case for the rest of the day. There's the crux of the problem right there..."the rest of the day." What am I going to do to entertain the crew 24/7????
Last year I had an excuse...I was preggo the first half of the summer, and then we had a brand new baby for the last half of the summer. This year I don't have an excuse...and despite a floundering economy, Kenny will be working his tail off at work, so I can't count on him to bail me out. What to do??? Hmmmm. I need to figure out something fun/exciting/challenging/etc. to do so the kids can at least have something cool to talk about when school starts again in the fall.
There's the park.
The Library
The pool.
Throw in a few crafty projects.
Jackson's got Scout Camp.
Maybe a BYU camp???
Friends.
Popsicles.
Bike Rides.
Picnics.
A few well timed boating adventures...
Grandma & Grandpa always come in the summer.
Late nights.
Camping??? (maybe in the backyard again)
Movie nights.
That should get me through for a little while. How about you? Are you excited for your kids to be done with school? Do you have any big plans? How about big plans on a little budget? Let me hear 'em. I'm all ears!!!
2 comments:
Do I get to use the pregnant excuse too? I would love to not feel obligated to entertain the kids, so I'll take a leaf out of your book.
But so far what I DO have planned is:
library Tuesdays
summer movie fun Mondays
a few nature classes at the arboretum on Tues. too
a box full of crafts and first grade workbooks
and the park once a week
I really wanted to let them take swim lessons, but I just don't think I'll be up to it. And yes, I feel guilty about that.
I am so EXCITED to not have to go to the school 3 times a day!! That excitement may dwindle after a couple of weeks of kids complaining of boredom, but we'll see. This year we are going to take a family vacation and so we have a big jar that all of the kids are working to fill. Whenever they do extra jobs we will pay them with coins that they can stick in the jar. The more money we raise, the more fun things we will be able to do on our trip (of course Joe and I will be filling in the gap), but it's fun to have the kids working towards something. They are all very excited to help out and do extra jobs.
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