Can you believe school is ending right now? As much of a weird school year that this was it's so strange to me that it's already over!
I'm finding our summer planning to be really different this year. Usually my husband and I are still scrambling to figure out if we are going to do a family vacay, where we should go, do we even want to bother- and squabbling about why it's just a pain in the butt to haul these kids everywhere yet we also want to give them MEMORIES....
We already booked our vacay for this year! And we already said "NO" to any type of summer camps, etc. I'm finding that we are a lot less pressured for this Summer.
I think I spend so much time worrying that they're not going to be entertained that I frazzle myself into a tizzy and get so worked up.
But this year, things feel much more relaxed. I don't feel like I have to have every moment planned.
I want the teens to start taking this time to get ready for the world in all honesty. A lot has changed this past year, and it's not for any type of better. We are making appointments for them to get state IDs and I want them to get little summer type jobs.
I mean nothing crazy, but one or two days a week with a few hours so they can start to build some experience.
It feels weird to me, but I also remember that I had a job when I was 14 and quickly progressed into full time wayyy too soon. I don't want that for them, but I also want to have them start to have a better understanding of real world responsibilities.
I want them to also have the free time to enjoy a summer without too much pressure.
I guess it's hard to really say both sides without sounding like I'm contradicting myself. I mean it's like I'm saying here I want them to have more responsibility and then not- LOL. I hope there's a good medium that can be established. Like grow up with a solid head knowing your surroundings, but hey- have some fun while you're at it too.
This is where I pause and realize, DAMN. Parenting really is so complicated. At the end of the day your kids just need to know how loved they are but shoot- we make it 10 layers of hell and trudge them thru all of our childhood trauma. As I sit here and type this I'm thinking of how I was just tossed about into the responsibility of working because I wanted "things" and wasn't taught the real value of a dollar or how much life really "adds" up. I kinda just worked to buy the fun stuff my parents wouldn't get me yet LOL. I quickly learned if I wanted a car and such I'd have to buck up, but that's another blog post.
Anyways- back to the "unpressured" summer idea- I like it. I don't want to feel overly consumed in making sure every single day is planned, because quite honestly it was always overwhelming!
So this summer, we are doing a whole lot of "winging it" and I'm ok with that!
I am ready to just have some real impromptu plans, or if we end up laying around more so in the backyard and pool than anything else, I'm really ok with that too!
Living in the moment is something we do TOO LITTLE OF! I want them to still have the fun memories while they can. Even with the large age gap we have between our kids, they still always come together around any type of outside activities.
These are a few of our simple favorites we like to do!
Planting some new plants
Having outside picnic lunches
Flying kites and running after them!
Go camping in the backyard (if we have a breezy night LOL)
Make an obstacle course
Go on a scavenger hunt around your neighborhood.
Chalk art outside
Water balloon fights
Arts & crafts on the patio
So that's where I'm leaving it for right now. Hopefully we can still manage to keep it "unplanned" as much as possible!