I'm not normally one to make lists. I either forget where I put the list, much
less what was on it, or I get so frustrated that I'm not accomplishing anything
on the list that I just throw it away.
But the other day, I read a Facebook article from a teacher about her
suggestions for parents when they make their summer bucket lists, and it really
got me thinking about the things I want to do with my kids this summer.
You see, her suggestions were things like “Make sure your
child has good table manners, because so many of my students don’t,” and “Make
sure your kids can tie their own shoes so others don’t have to help them,” and “Put
your kids to bed at a normal time, so it’s easier for them when they start school
again in the fall.” While these are
valuable ideas and skills that all children need, they all sound like horrible
summer ideas to me! Maybe it’s because
we homeschool and our school year consists of studies and lessons and schedules,
all that I’m responsible for, but I like our summer to be more relaxed, more
free, and more fun. So, here’s my summer
bucket list:
-Play with my kids. While
normal barn and house chores must be done in the summer as well as extra summertime
activities like gardening and canning, not having to get school work done
allows us some extra free time. This
summer, I hope to spend some of those extra hours playing some games with my
children that we often don’t have time for during the school year. Whether it’s sitting down to build Legos, playing
a board game, or getting out the deck of Uno cards, I want to spend some time
doing something that they want to do,
instead of something we have to do.
-Go outdoors. Behind
our house we have a little woods and a creek the kids love to play in. I want to take the kids back there several
times this summer to play in the water, to explore, to catch frogs and bugs and
find shells and crawdads. I want them to
get dirty and discover things for themselves and enjoy being outside while it’s
warm and sunny. It’s also something the
boys absolutely love to do, so it won’t be hard to get them out the door for
this activity.
-Maintain a sense of normalcy. It’s easy for me to let schedules and chore
lists slip in the summer, mostly because I hate schedules and lists. I have to constantly struggle against my
nature during the school year to stay on a (very loose) schedule, so summer
days usually devolve into messy, tv-watching, running around, accomplishing-nothing
days. I’ve let the kids take about a 2-week
break from their normal routine, so it’s time to bring some of it back. We’ll be trying to keep our chore, night-time
reading, Bible memory work, and Bible reading times throughout the summer, even
though everything in me wants to totally give in and give it up for the next
two months.
-Enjoy them. I want to look them in the eyes, snuggle them,
laugh at their terrible knock-knock jokes, watch them play, and just enjoy
being with them. It seems they grow
older every second, and I want to savor it all while they’re still little and
still here. It’s easy to get frustrated
and just zone in on their messes, fights, and faults. But, when I really observe them closely, I’m
reminded that they are really good kids!
That they are pretty fun to have around!
That I really do like them! I
want to take the summer months to reconnect with each of them.
Our list may not involve anything terribly exciting, like
trips to the zoo or ice cream every Friday, nor is it filled with extra
homework or practicing important life skills so we can catch up before the next
school year, but I hope that this summer we can make new memories, enjoy some
down time, and relax from the school year grind. And I hope you get to cross off many things
from your summer bucket list too, whether they are exciting or not.