Summer vacation officially started yesterday, and I have vowed that I am not going to get to the end of this summer and feel like it was wasted. In exchange for all I am asking of my kids (mainly Mason and Katie, since Andrew just ignores me), I'm promising them one activity a day that is at least somewhat fun and effortful on my part.
Yesterday, we had to go to drop something off at Mason's school, so I figured I'd let them play on the playground for a while (like I said, all I'm trying for is "somewhat fun and effortful"). Since it was in the 90's and extremely humid, I wasn't sure how long we'd actually last. Luckily, Mason knew where there was a trail that lead through the woods that surround the soccer field, and I was very happy to find that a walk in the woods was a perfect idea. It was much cooler, and all three of my kids love to hike. I love watching Andrew wear his little body out, since my chances of him taking a nap go up significantly.
This morning, we headed to a blueberry patch. Unfortunately, we had been beat out by dozens of other blueberry pickers who had cleaned off most of the best berries. So I paid about $4 in gas and $1.79 for the pound of blueberries we were able to find. Of course, only about half of those are even ripe enough to eat--but I'm sure they'll be real tasty in muffins. The one thing I can say for Virginia is that if I'm going to pay $4 for gas, at least the scenery is amazing. Between the huge old houses, mountain views, and beautiful trees, I sometimes have a hard time keeping my eyes on the road.
I also had a party for my CTR 8 class this afternoon (I'm Mason's teacher). I teach 12 kids, 9 of which came. It was only 2 hours, but it was a busy two hours full of water balloons, ice cream, and other games. Now that was an effortful activity.
As for the things I'm asking my kids to do, for the first summer ever I'm getting off to a good start with having them do some reading, writing and/or math every day as well as practice the piano. I've had good intentions but poor follow-through other summers, but after 2 days I'm now at 100%. I have to celebrate the little things. They are also being told (at least a couple of times a day) that a clean house makes for a happy mom. And happy moms are definitely the best kind, so it's worth the effort.
One of the things I'm having Mason and Katie do is keep a journal, so this is going to be my journal of our very productive summer. Wish us luck!
3 comments:
I like you summer plan. Sounds like you are off to a good start. I hope the weather will be good enough while you are here in Helena that we can hike Mount Helena. That should wear Andrew out a little bit and it should be really pretty this time of the year. We definitely don't have 90 degree weather. We had one day of it back in mid May. I hope that wasn't the extent of our summer. We have been in the 50's & 60's since. I look forward to seeing you in a week and a half.
Yay for your summer plan! It sounds super productive! And I am sure it will be a summer that your kids will remember for a long time! Good Luck with Day #3!!
Holy ambitious. I am impressed. And I wish I was your kid.
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