Tips on Tuesday: Summer Fun Checkpoint

Here we are, officially into summer as of yesterday. (And yet, it seems like summer's been here since Memorial Day...so it's very anticlimactic when we hit the 'official' first day of summer.)

The first day of summer reminds me to check in on our "Summer To Do" list. I like to do this because--to me--July 4th marks the halfway point of summer. After the 4th of July, we're on a downhill slide right back into school, forced routines and less time to squeeze in fun stuff.

I'm looking at the list and realizing we haven't really done anything that involves leaving our own yard. Not even going to the park. Oops. And yet, we've spent more nights outside watching the kids play and ride bikes and scooters than we have in the three years we've lived here. So there's a little give and take.

Now that band camp is going to be over, we'll gain Andrew back into our mornings. I'm hoping now will be the time to go to the museums we want to see. Maybe a sprayground or a park day. And if it ever stops raining, maybe the kids could run through the sprinklers. Right now it would only create a mud bath.

On the flip side, they've done less reading than prior years, but the number of hours spent riding a bike has gone through the roof. I'm willing to give up pages for some good old-fashioned exercise. Nathan has his summer super tan (that kid turns golden brown like a gingerbread boy each year) and Rebekah loves her sandbox and swing set. She tells everyone we have a park in our backyard. (Maybe that's why I don't bother taking them down the road to the park---silly me, we already own one.) We've enjoyed bubbles, chalk, playdoh and playing games together.

I can't be sad that the zoo, the museum or the park hasn't hit the list. We've spent time together. We've taken time to talk to each other about important stuff, about life, about hopes and dreams and the future, and about silly things like Curious George and his lack of  a tail (which means he's not a monkey, he's a chimpanzee).

Take a little time and look at your summer goals. Are you heading to where you wanted to be? Let me know if you have some great ideas for us to add to our list.