I don't know about you but the past couple of months have been just crazy with all the end-of-school activities. On the blog we've been busy as well and if you've missed any of our posts you can find them here.
No matter what you have planned for the summer I am sure you are all in need of a little change of pace.
If you are a little apprehensive about what you're going to do with your kids on all those summer days with "nothing" to do, then I've got some tips for making the most of your time with them over the next two months!
1. Keep a daily routine. If you're going to make the most of your summer you have to know your kids still need a little structure. Just because the kids are off school doesn't mean that your work and home keeping responsibilities end. The key to a Summer Routine is that they have some responsibilities daily, and know what to expect.
2. Have a plan for Screen Time ahead of time and let them know what to expect right away. Here is what we do to help our kids with this.
3. Talk with your kids about their goals for summer. Maybe they would like to read a certain number of books, or learn a new instrument, create some art or perfect their cooking skills. Consider character issues, like hard work, serving the elderly or needy, helping a mommy with her little ones, writing notes of encouragement to shut-ins. Put time into your schedule where they can work on these things specifically and celebrate their accomplishments at the end of summer.
4. Have fun together doing what they enjoy. I don't prefer going to the beach on a hot day, wrestling with my toddler and eating sand in my sandwich, but my tween absolutely loves this! Doing the things that they love simply for the sake of showing them you love them is the perfect way to spend a part of your summer. One way I've learned to enjoy this is by doing it with other parents and kids. Carpool to the beach with a friend. Take your tween daughters shopping together with her friends and their moms. Doing it together makes it so much more fun for everyone.
5. Organize group outings and pool days. Summer doesn't have to be expensive or hard. We have several in our church who have opened up their homes for pool days. Four out of 5 weekdays in the summer we can go to a pool to swim with others from our church! Its so fun to meet up with other moms and kids for a couple of hours and its totally free! If you have a pool or even a nice back yard, consider having a "pack and paddle" of your own where you invite moms and kids to pack a lunch and come over for a swim or just to play. We also have a weekly beach day where we meet other moms and kids from church at the beach. We help watch each other's kids and build giant sand castles with the little ones while the teens go boogie boarding all together.
6. Involve your kids in the planning and packing when traveling.
There are so many great videos out there like this one from Alejandra.TV where they can learn how to properly pack for a trip. Even the youngest child can pack their own bags if you give them a list to check off. My kids have been packing since they were able to follow directions. Even at 4 years old they can follow verbal directions you give them and learn to pack so that by the time they are 10 they should be able to do it without any help at all and you will all share the workload for having a great family vacation!
We have some amazing sponsors at Organizing Made Fun and you will definitely want to check out what they have going on as you plan your summer!
Alejandra Costello is a Professional Organizer who shows people how to become organized so they can live a more productive, efficient, and stress-free life.
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