My kids get out of school for the summer in eight days. Eight days.
Part of me is elated. I’m excited about the thought of not having to fight through a morning routine or having to convince anyone that school will be super fun. And, if I’m being honest, part of me is kind of terrified too. I’m afraid of having to juggle my kids and what they want to do and what I need to get done with my work and to keep our home running smoothly. And I know that we flourish in a routine, but without it, at summertime, what’s a girl to do? I’m a little nervous that I’ll go bat shit crazy playing princesses and SCUBA diver and Paw Patrol that I won’t make it to Julia’s start of Kindergarten.
But here’s what else I know for sure. Overthinking is a big part of my summertime problem. I worry that the kids are doing enough, that they’re forgetting what they’ve learned in school. I over think trips we should take, and I complicate simple playdates. I’m my worst enemy in the summer. But this year, going into it, I’m recognizing the issue, and I’m determined to not let it get in the way.
This morning, I pulled out a monthly calendar, a pencil with a good eraser, and a really big cup of coffee. And I started planning. I put Julia into a dance day camp toward the end of summer. And I found a ballet, tap, and tumbling class for her to go to once a week with one of her favorite teachers. Remembering Max’s love of gymnastics and need to move, I found a half-day gymnastics camp at the rec center near our house for the middle of summertime.
And at first I thought, “Great! There’s some structure!”
But I can’t schedule every minute, and I don’t want to. I know that some of summertime needs to be unplanned too. They’re kids. They need downtime. They need backyard sprinkler time, and time to nap on the beach. I want them to have lazy, relaxing, and simple summers. Not seasons marred by Mom’s decree that they do something.
So I’m asking you now, before I even start to overthinking (any more).
How do you simplify and keep your summers fun? What are your go-to activities? How do you survive without a school routine?
I’d love to see links if you’ve written about activities or if you’ve read of fun things going on. And I promise to let you know if and when I try anything out.
I plan for structured and unstructured activities - if that makes any sense. In fact, I mapped out our summer plans about a month ago. Blocking off a week for a family vacation and a couple a quick weekend getaways. I enrolled the little one in a couple little camps sprinkled throughout the time off. All the remaining days are planned to remain unstructured..beach, impromptu play dates, etc. I like to just see what the day brings .
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I like this balance, Wendy. I need to find this with my kiddos this summer too.
I know this probably sounds like an oxymoron but we schedule ‘do nothing’ days — literally, I draw a line through the calendar on a day each week when we won’t do errands or any scheduled activities — then we just go with the flow. If something comes up, great! We take advantage of it — if not, we stay in our pj’s a little longer, read a few more books and just hang out. Kind of balances out the days we have a camp or activity scheduled.
And I focus on not having any scheduled evening activities if at all possible so once Dad gets home there’s no more running — just relaxing time to have dinner, catch fireflies, blow bubbles, go for a bike ride, etc. Simple things that I remember doing as a child and the kids always love.
I love your ‘bat shit crazy’ comment, makes me smile. Enjoy your summer!
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I LOVE the idea of Do Nothing Days, Jacquie. What a great concept, and I bet my kids could really fall in love with an idea like that. And I wish we had fireflies. Catching them is one of my favorite childhood memories too!
Since I’m not at home, the kids’ summer weeks looks a lot like any other week BUT I do try to make sure there’s a fair amount of down time in their weekends because I worry that they don’t get enough. We usually plan some time with the grandparents and a weekend getaway, too.
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