Summer Time- FROM A MOTHER’S PERSPECTIVE!
Summer is the one season that children long for all year! In my house they start talking about it right when the leaves begin to fall from the trees. All winter long, we discuss the joys of summer, and this hot topic of conversation continues on through the brisk Ohio winters and all the way through spring!
Well, here summer comes! Our June weather started out on the chilly side, which is a good reminder, that mom must have more scheduled than just going to the pool!
Let’s be ho
nest, as mothers we get hit pretty hard with summer! We want to burn the books, put away the school uniforms and chill out, but the fact is, our job just got harder! Either we are scrambling for childcare and activities while we work or we are scrambling with places to go and things to do on a serious budget!
Last summer was almost a wash for me. I can barely remember wonderful pool days, and I felt like I spent most of the summer “transitioning” into activities before getting to actually having fun!
So here are some helpful tips for improving your summer, especially when the famous words strike, “I am bored”!
1.Clean out and set up a plan: We started cleaning out this past weekend, I found old board games, activity books, books they need to read and even set up a chess/checkers board. Find a minimum of 10 activates that your kids don’t have to plug in to do!
- Pool or die. I would let kids pick and choose when we went last year but the results were not always pretty. My children always wanted to do different things, so my new goal is to make it to the pool everyday for at least an hour. This summer we all go, and if you don’t want to swim, that’s fine with me. Keeping the family (bigs and littles) on the same schedule sure helps.
- Employment Matters: I have a young teen mowing lawns, and two boys working at the pool (helpful since last summer they wouldn’t go) and caddying. Keeping kids busy helps mom and puts money in their pockets!
- Learn New Skills: Teach children to cook and clean if they are “bored”.
- Play Games: Croquet, Badminton, Volleyball, look for anything that could occupy them for a few more hours!
- School Skills: Work on weaker school areas, writing, spelling, math and vocabulary. Take at least 30 minutes a day, make it a habit and you will be grateful when August hits.
- HAVE FUN!
