Since last Thursday when school got out for the summer we have managed to pack in a lot of fun in less than a week. Thursday PapaBear and Sam went to a local baseball game. Now that we've lived here four years we are finally starting to get to know some of the families that the kids go to school with. Sam spent much of the time shagging fowl balls or playing on the playground with his friends. Friday we went to the zoo. We could have easily spent another three hours there but I needed to get home to help check in campers.
Saturday morning the kids helped me with a pond life program we put on for the campers and then that afternoon we had friends over for a campfire. I introduced the instructor for the evening program later that night so all the kids came over to the amphitheater for that. Coffee Ground Fossil Prints were a big hit with everyone!
The kids and I slept in the tent that night or attempted to sleep that is. Elsa was not having it and I gave up around 3am. The older ones did great and were so understanding of all the noise Elsa was making.
Today we had to buckle down and get the house picked up. It was getting dangerous for Elsa to be on the floor because of all the things she could get into. The kids worked hard to make their rooms safe again for their baby sister while Elsa took a much needed 3 1/2 hour nap. (She has hand foot and mouth disease and has hardly slept in a week.) We didn't get the house perfect, but I was so pleased with our progress and knew that enough was enough so we packed a picnic and went to the park near our library. We worked on our summer bucket list while we ate. Then after a long game of hide and seek with some other kids who were there at the time we went to check out new books and sign up for the summer reading program. We didn't get home until almost 5:00 so I made a smoothies for dinner so the kids could swing in the hammocks while I watered the garden. By the time we were done it was baseball time. Two (hot) hours later I brought tired dusty kids home for showers and bedtimes. But then I saw how calm the lake was when we pulled into the driveway. Fifteen minutes later I was waving goodbye to Sam and PapaBear as they pulled out of the driveway with our 17 foot Old Towne strapped to the top of our car. Elsa had fallen asleep in the car so I carefully transferred her to her crib before Julia and I showered and crawled into her bed with a stack of library books. Simple things like reading as late as we want, with no regard for bedtimes, with no need to rush off in the morning for anything...these are the moments that make summer vacation so special. These are the moments I want to savor and focus on. Julia ended up falling asleep while I was nursing Elsa who had woken up during our fourth book, but soon after Sam and Daddy returned with tales of crappies and Rapelas. I had some one on one time with Sam after his shower and then sent him off to bed. Tomorrow we will tackle another layer of cleaning but at our own pace. There is not a single thing on the calendar and no reason to leave the house except to venture the 15 yards to the hammocks in the front yard.
We'll finalize our summer bucket list by writing on the clothepins and hopefully come up with some sort of 'schedule' or wish list that will provide some semblance of order to our days. I'm all about relaxing and slowing down, but I also don't want to look back on the summer and wonder where it went. I know I won't be able to document it like I have in the past.
I would love to hear how you structure your days in the summer and how you balance housework with fun things. I really struggle with keeping up with housework if we are on the go even a couple of days a week. Is it better to have a whole day at home to catch up on everything or to always spend the morning at home whenever possible? I also have Elsa's naps to consider...lots to figure out, but so far...so so good!
Saturday morning the kids helped me with a pond life program we put on for the campers and then that afternoon we had friends over for a campfire. I introduced the instructor for the evening program later that night so all the kids came over to the amphitheater for that. Coffee Ground Fossil Prints were a big hit with everyone!
Today we had to buckle down and get the house picked up. It was getting dangerous for Elsa to be on the floor because of all the things she could get into. The kids worked hard to make their rooms safe again for their baby sister while Elsa took a much needed 3 1/2 hour nap. (She has hand foot and mouth disease and has hardly slept in a week.) We didn't get the house perfect, but I was so pleased with our progress and knew that enough was enough so we packed a picnic and went to the park near our library. We worked on our summer bucket list while we ate. Then after a long game of hide and seek with some other kids who were there at the time we went to check out new books and sign up for the summer reading program. We didn't get home until almost 5:00 so I made a smoothies for dinner so the kids could swing in the hammocks while I watered the garden. By the time we were done it was baseball time. Two (hot) hours later I brought tired dusty kids home for showers and bedtimes. But then I saw how calm the lake was when we pulled into the driveway. Fifteen minutes later I was waving goodbye to Sam and PapaBear as they pulled out of the driveway with our 17 foot Old Towne strapped to the top of our car. Elsa had fallen asleep in the car so I carefully transferred her to her crib before Julia and I showered and crawled into her bed with a stack of library books. Simple things like reading as late as we want, with no regard for bedtimes, with no need to rush off in the morning for anything...these are the moments that make summer vacation so special. These are the moments I want to savor and focus on. Julia ended up falling asleep while I was nursing Elsa who had woken up during our fourth book, but soon after Sam and Daddy returned with tales of crappies and Rapelas. I had some one on one time with Sam after his shower and then sent him off to bed. Tomorrow we will tackle another layer of cleaning but at our own pace. There is not a single thing on the calendar and no reason to leave the house except to venture the 15 yards to the hammocks in the front yard.
We'll finalize our summer bucket list by writing on the clothepins and hopefully come up with some sort of 'schedule' or wish list that will provide some semblance of order to our days. I'm all about relaxing and slowing down, but I also don't want to look back on the summer and wonder where it went. I know I won't be able to document it like I have in the past.
I would love to hear how you structure your days in the summer and how you balance housework with fun things. I really struggle with keeping up with housework if we are on the go even a couple of days a week. Is it better to have a whole day at home to catch up on everything or to always spend the morning at home whenever possible? I also have Elsa's naps to consider...lots to figure out, but so far...so so good!
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