A Balanced (and fun) Summer

Sorry for the lengthy break between posts these days. Per usual, life is crazy and the time simply gets away from me. But here we are. For must of us summer is in full swing. Schools have wrapped up, kids are home, or in camps and a new routine (or lack there of) is upon us. I don't know about your kids, but mine were bouncing off the walls with all the end of school year activities. And even more so transitioning into summer. Like everyone we want to have a great summer. And with that comes addressing all our expectations (and bucket lists) which prompted a family meeting to discuss all of the above. Here are some of my tips for setting yourself up for a great summer as discussed at our most recent family meeting.



Everyone has a different summer routine. Some parents work full time and kids enjoy the perks of camp for 10 weeks. Others have a parent home full time and every day is different. And some are like our family which is a hybrid of both. During this summer my kids will be home some weeks and in camp others. This is to balance my work commitments as well as provide my kids with new and interesting experiences outside our home. And lets face it, we all need a break from each other too! So with that in mind here are what I feel were good guidelines for our family to enjoy the next couple of months and make some decent memories in the process.

1. Summer Reading. We headed right to our local library and signed up for their program and checked out a bunch of fun, interesting books to read. Having this incentive is such motivation. I'm thankful our library offers this. We determined 1 hour per day would be dedicated to summer reading (Mommy too). Having this expectation predetermined provides a "no surprise" transition into the task. They actually look forward to it and so far there's been no push back.

2. Allowance Chart Update. Our family's holy grail is their individual "chore charts". I'll have to blog about that in the future. But basically it's a spreadsheet with their responsibilities (and penalties). They receive 10 cents per chore (and 25 cents per penalty...ouch). At the end of the week it adds up to about $5 per kid if they complete everything. It's again highly motivating and works for us. But our chart is updated to include summer responsibilities (and remove school specific ones).

3. Research Local Activities. We're not in the habit of throwing our hard earned money around all summer and going to bounce houses, blockbuster movies, and out to lunch all summer long to keep our kids entertained. Those kinds of things happen, but in moderation. Seeing there are a lot of hours to fill in any given day , we've compiled a pretty decent collection of fun things to do. Again the local library is a great place to start. They have many fun and free activities scheduled throughout the summer (we're going to a 3D art demonstration today actually) and museum and state park passes galore, We also invested in a season pass to a local theme park (pays for itself in 2 visits and cheaper than local carnivals), and discovered our local movie theater is running $1 specials on Tuesdays/Wednesdays. Lastly we love to be with our friends so there will be many day trips, beach days, and play dates to keep us busy.

4. Establish Expectations. I made it very clear to my kids that we could have a fabulous fun summer, or miserable one. It really comes down to their choice of attitude and behavior. I was firm in saying I'm not a short order cook, a maid, or responsible for entertaining them all waking hours of the day. There will be times when we're home, without friends over or an activity planned. These are the times when the large backyard, the craft cabinet, the playroom, the new puppy, or your sibling should be utilized. There are PLENTY of opportunities to keep you engaged throughout the day. I was generous in increasing their screen time from 15 minutes/day to 25 minutes per day. Thought that was pretty nice of me! First one to say "I'm bored" gets a penalty! Having gotten that out of the way, I vowed to do my best to make this summer a great one. They agreed to do the same.

Those were the main bullet points. We're not in the habit of taking a summer vacation. Having just been away in March and a Disney trip planned for early fall, we're staying local. Living in a gorgeous shoreline town makes that pretty easy too. And the bumper to bumper summer traffic on the highways from Memorial Day to Labor Day is incentive to stay put as well! But that's our plan, hope these tips help your family gear up for the next 2.5 months! It's hard work, but these kids are only young once. What's better than summer vacation when you're a kid anyway? Good luck my friends and I hope you have a fabulous safe fun summer!

Thanks again for stopping by and here's to another day closer to a life in balance....
xo
Sloane