The Change Of Seasons | Summer Rhythms
Ah summer, you are so very delicious.
You start slowly around here and as you ripen you provide lots of joy and light and opportunities for connection. Thank you for reliably coming around again.
As we dip our toes into summer around here I've been spending a bit of time thinking about how I'd like to experience the next few months.
I want to live the length and the width of my life. (referencing this quote from Diane Ackerman)
Some people talk about surviving summer. My approach is this: how can I really be present during the summer? How can I take advantage of the things that are really special and unique to this season like longer daylight hours, fresh foods, kids out of school, etc? I want my kids to grow up knowing the deliciousness of summer.
Life is so different during these months of the year - I want to give myself the gift of full participating in and enjoying the next couple of months.
Here's some things I'm hoping for myself for this summer:
- Eat lunch outside. Get away from my desk and into the light.
- Work smarter to finish up what I need to earlier in the day to open up more family time in the afternoon and evening. This is the biggest challenge for me and also the biggest reward. If I'm here a bit less know that it's because I'm living up to what I set out to do this summer - live the length and the width of it.
- Handwritten notes. Build in time for writing notes - to grandparents, to friends, people who have done something nice.
- Support Chris on his quest to master the BBQ (maybe "become proficient" is a better term than master).
- Help Simon learn to ride his bike. He was doing fine with training wheels but once they came off it became a lot scarier to him.
- Generally go slower. Ride my bike (loved how we did that for date night last week). Go to the pool. Sip instead of gulp.
- Instill a sense of love and wonder in my kids about the outdoors. Go on hikes. Take walks around the neighborhood. Camp. Be outside in the evening. Lay in the grass and look up at the sky (Simon is awesome at that).
- Keep up the garden not out of a sense of obligation but of love. The veggies are coming along great. The sweet peas are amazing. The sunflowers are waist high.
A few weeks ago I also mentioned that we were turning off the TV for the summer. We are following through with that and have found what seems to be working for us: no TV or computer movies during the day with one movie at night as an option depending on the plan for the evening.
So far that's been going okay. Except for that time last weekend when I was out for a bit and Simon & Anna carried my laptop upstairs into Simon's room, closed the door and proceeded to start watching Dora after Chris had reminded them about no TV/computer. Not good...but I do kinda love that they are developing that special sibling bond.
Really what it takes is a bit of planning on our part to have suggestions and ideas for them when they start getting bored and start asking to watch a movie. Here's the list of activities and options (that I'm going to make into a printed list that I can tell Simon to go check out) that I'm encouraging:
- Legos.
- Swimming.
- Letter writing. I've got a list of people they can write notes to - family and friends and a pen-pal that Simon is overdue on writing back.
- Go outside. Mess around. Turn on the sprinkler. Climb a tree. Chase each other around. Jump on the mini-trampolines
- Workbooks. These can be puzzle books like dot to dot or word searches or some other academic workbook. Something quiet, at the table, that engages a different part of the brain for a bit.
- Read.
- Play cars on the front porch.
- Color or paint or draw or make a treasure map.
- A trip to the library. Or maybe play library with the bunches of books we have here.
I know I'll think of other things as soon as I hit publish.
In our living room we've got a closet on the other side of our couch that holds games, books, a couple baskets of Anna-sized toys, some legos, etc. I'm using that as a command center with baskets for the different themes (one holds workbooks, one holds art supplies, etc) which makes them easy to grab. Getting that set up is in progress - I need to take some time later today to remove the toys that are now too little and add them to our donation pile.
Have you thought about what you'd like to see for yourself or your family this summer? Do you have a list of activities for your kids when they start getting antsy?
On bad weather days (rain), my kids and I in advance create a list of interesting places to visit that are indoors. So when the weather turns bad we go to plan B.
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my daughter is almost 21 now and living in Florida (we are in iowa) but one thing that kept us having lots of fun (even when she was in middle school) was a tent! we bought one at walmart and set it up in the back yard. we would take my laptop out there and watch movies, do crafts, eat our lunch etc. we had one big enough for a air mattress and lots of pillows and blankets. she would beg to sleep out there almost every night. it's great fun for the daytime and in the evenings. everything is more fun if you're in a tent!
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Our favorite summer grill meal is cedar plank salmon. Buy a cedar plank at grocery/Lowes/Home Depot...soak 30 minutes in water...place salmon skin side down on the plank...kosher salt& pepper on top. Throw the whole thing on the grill and close the lid. Cook until it reaches a level of doneness that make you happy. Serve with lemon slices. So delicious and really hard to mess up! I added chores to my bored bucket...like pull weeds, put away laundry, and read to your siblings. Have a good summer!
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Love the list that you have so far Ali! My girls' definitely have a list of things that they want to do this summer which always ends up being swimming, swimming, and more swimming:)
But we also will have days where we build tents out of sheets as well as do a lot of painting when boredom sets in so I like to have different items on hand besides the typical paint brushes.
So we'll do Marble Painting, Paint Rocks, Paint small Pots from Michaels (and plant little seeds in them). I like to also buy cheap household stuff from the $1 store, like sponges with different textures, rollers, etc. I also have small tubs where they can have some sort of water play outdoors. Even my 15 yr.old will still get in on the action. I think she just likes that sensory part of play.
I sometimes purchase art supplies from Discount School Supply. They have some very cool stuff. Here's a link - http://www.discountschoolsupply.com/Product/ProductList.aspx?category=29&src=categorynavigation1.
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What great goals--I LOVE the idea of eating lunch outside. We are in a tiny apartment right now with no direct outside access and I always open our windows in the morning while I drink my coffee and dream of the day when I can sip my coffee outside! I also want to get outside more with my son this summer. Have you tried a push bike for Simon? They are basically a two-wheeled 'big kid' bike with no petals (they just use their feet on the ground). They are supposed to teach the concept of balance to make the transition of balancing on bike with no training wheels much easier. It gives the kid a sense of control while they are learning to balance. I worked in a Montessori school for several years and we had a few for the kids on the playground and it really helped them be able to get that concept of balance without the scariness of having their feet off the ground and not being in control. Enjoy your summer!
I agree - the idea of those bikes totally work. We got one for our daughter as a birthday present when she turned 4 in the beginning of April. It took about one week or so, with her riding on it maybe 3-4 times during that time period. When I noticed she had got a grip of the balance we tried the "real" bike. She has quite a strong will - she practiced for half a day (lots of tears and screaming, but she just wanted to learn and wouldn't get off that bike even if we asked if she would take a break) - and after that she could ride the bike! (Before her 6-year old brother :-)
Our 6-year old learnt the same way. But instead of buying a second "practice bike" we just removed the pedals from his own bike. That worked as well, and it was obvious after he was riding it a couple of times that the balance was definitely improving quickly.
So I also recommend such a practice bike over training wheels, at least what I have seen here at home it was such a difference regarding how to feel&learn the balance.
Here in Canada they are called Strider bikes and they say that an 18 month old can ride them.
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I so love the idea of the kids 'playing library' - does my librarian's heart good to think of this happening!
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A book that is VERY useful in mastering the BBQ is The BBQ Bible by Stephen Raichlen. There is not a bad recipe in the bunch. His other books are wonderful as well.
http://www.amazon.com/Barbecue-Bible-Steven-Raichlen/dp/0761149430/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1309306070&sr=8-1
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Luv the post. We also put together a wish list of what the kids what like to do/see this summer. A new, FUN, list we created was a "U SHOULD TRY THIS, LIST". this list is made by each kid for the other members in our family of the things they'd like for them to try or experience.
Seems like the kids really feel like mommy need to learn how to swim without holding her nose, and learn to Snorkle, so we can visit the local reef.
And we all want to see Daddy climb the oak tree in front of the house.
-Cute to see what the kids feel we need to try, and a nice piece to add to the summer scrapbook.
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So happy to see this post Ali, I was going to ask you tomorrow how the no tv rule has been doing. My challenge is what the kids can do first thing when they wake up since usually they watch tv. They aren't that awake yet and it's early so their has been quite a few cranky mornings lately. What do your kids do first thing in the morning?????
I love seeing your ideas and the other comments. This summer I'm changing things and going to make it last longer too and get outside more. We have already added baseball in the evenings and school related work in the afternoons. The big change I'm making is getting the kids in the kitchen with me and teaching them more about cooking. I just did a big post about this yesterday on my blog. I love that we have all day to ourselves and no time limits and commitments. The only other challenged area is having my 2 teen age girls go along with these ideas. They love their cell phones a little too much right now...thanks for sharing this Ali and love the photo of them on the couch.
I would love any help from the readers and you Ali on how to make the mornings easier for us. It seems to be getting tougher and takes a couple hours until they want feel motivated to do something fun. They aren't tired just being lazy. Thanks
Hi Dawn,
Unless your children have to get up to go somewhere, I'd be inclined to let them sleep in/read/think in bed - maybe agree which days if you can't bear it every day! I work in a school where each child seems to have so much to do each day, that I think they are allowed a little lazy time. Many teenagers spend a lot of summer growing! That takes time and energy too! I am pretty sure I have read articles about teenagers having a different body clock to adults and actually school would get more out of them if it started later! I accepted a long time ago that my daughter is a nightowl and I am a morning person. So I am glad for the early morning me time, and I just grin and bear it when she wants to talk at midnight. That's what being a mum involves, right? Anyway, to cut a long story short, maybe don't feel so bad about cutting them some slack about early rising, so you can enjoy those precious afternoons together without bad feeling and stress. Now my girl is 23, she gets up early when she needs to, even on holiday for a 5am trip to the fish market! Hope you don't mind this alternative veiwpoint.Good luck!
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I forgot to add that I signed my girls up for the Just Kidding Around 2 class over at BPS and they love it. It's about recording their summer in a Smash Journal, so that keeps them a little busy too. I think it's still open if anyone else wants to join in, it can be ages from 5 to teenagers and even some moms are doing it.
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As I sit here reading this I long for summer (I'm in New Zealand) and I have the fire going as its a bit cooler today for my liking, and I want summer even more now after reading your fun list of things to do...This year for xmas I have gotten the kids lots of out door stuff from santa, like a tramp with nets, a outdoor set with tennis, soccer and stuff like that, they love outdoors and I love your list will write some things down for when summer does arrive here again :)
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Hi Ali! I saw that you mentioned that you wanted to help Simon learn how to ride his bike. Here's something my dad with my sister when she was learning: He took off her pedals and lowered her seat so that her feet early touched the ground. He let her ride around for a while, just kind of pushing her self with her feet. It gave her that sense of balance and pretty soon she was able to do it with the pedals back on. It also gave her more control because she could easily and quickly stop with her feet. It may or may not be something that works for Simon, but just thought I'd pass it along.
What a "why didn't I think of that" moment. I usually don't read through the comments... but I am glad I did. What an awesome idea!! My kids are teens but I will tell my niece about this, her son is attempting to ride his bike without the training wheels. Thanks!!
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I found the "go do something" phrase doesn't work. I have a little tin bucket that I started a few summers ago, cut some squares of cardstock and wrote indivdual things to do on them. It's the "I'm bored" bucket. It's worked really well for my girls. We need to add a few different things now that they are older.
I should make one for myself ;) so I get off the computer/phone.
We also have a reward system to earn screen time so they don't spend 14 hours a day on the tv/computer. It also gets them cleaning up and helping out too.
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Ali, great list. My boys (ages 9, 8 & 5) made a list of things we would like to do this summer. Things like go to library, pick strawberries, make bread, letter-boxing, making ice cream, etc. We have been having fun crossing off the items on our list. We also have our "bored" items - swing, legos, workbooks, reading, drawing, bubbles, chalk, play with cars.
Have a great summer!
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Hello Ali! It's so funny you posted this as I had this same thought process several weeks ago. I've made a book from paper lunch sacks and decorated it out and called it 94 Days of Summer. I make sure to have at least 1 thing to document everyday. My husband and I just got back from watching the sunset over the reservoir. I wake up everyday wondering what will go into my book for that day. It drives me to get outside of the mundane and make memories. I know it won't happen everyday and in that instance I have a list of 11 questions to answer and I call it Me Today. I look at this as practice for Project Life next year. I hope you have as much fun making the most of your summer as I have so far.
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re: simon riding bike. you can take off the pedals on his bike and then he can "scooter" around, lifting his feet up and balancing. Do this for a few days to a couple of weeks and his sense of balance on the bike will be superb. Then after he masters that , go out and buy one of those balance bikes for Anna and never do the training wheels for her and you will see how much better it is than training wheels. I have done both ways, training wheels are not the easiest method.
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Backyard campout and learning how to play classic outdoor games is on our list this summer. Croquet and ladder ball will be learned over the holiday weekend while we visit grandparents. Have a wonderful, lazy summer.
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Hi Ali,
Great list! Another idea is to move Anna's play kitchen outside onto the porch and let her play house outside. We also make sheet tents outside, hanging over our clothesline (really just a long line strung up in the yard) and it provides a great place to chill out with a book outside. Good on you for sticking to the no TV rule. Hope you have a great summer.
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If your area parks participate in it..they offer what is call a geocaching adventure. You have a teasure hunt using GPS and clues listed on your state conservation web site. It is a a great way to explore and see nature and the kids love finding the "treasures" that are hidden. It would be a great way to have the whole family involved in a totally free and fun activity. Participants hide objects to be found by others with the aid of a GPS unit. The latitude and longitute coordinates of the geo cache are posted online along with additional clues. By typing in the coordinate in to a GPS device, you are lead to the "hidden treasures". Fun fun fun. Even state parks have listed activites for families to do and there is a stamp book that the kids get stamped as they complete the activities. So many wonderful things offered for the summer.
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Hi Ali, I love that you know exactly what you want to experience this summer. My kids are just finishing up school today for the summer (we live in Canada) and they are so excited to have some time off. I also love the list you made of suggestions for entertainment when the inevitable chants of "I'm bored" start.
Have a great summer. I hope you achieve everything on your list.
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BBQ tips: a meat thermometer is key! Also, a two zone fire, and a Steven raichlen (hope I spelled that correctly) cookbook. Go chris!
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I used summer to teach my kids how to cook food. When it rained out, we learned how to make soup and bake goodies. Also, when it rained, we loved to have an "indoor picnic" in the living room...complete with the blanket on the floor and picnic basket filled with all sorts of snacks.
Another thing my daughter loved was a magnetic board with dolls and my son had one with magnetic pieces to build castles...I got them from a school supply store.
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One of my favorite memories from my childhood is sleeping out on our front porch! It seemed like such an adventure! (My mom was not in to real camping!) I'd have 1 or 2 girlfriends over and we'd all put our sleeping bags out on the porch and talk until we fell asleep. When my boys were little we purchased a very inexpenisve tent - it wasn't very big - but we set it up on the deck and they had all kinds of fun with that. The overhang kept it mostly dry when it rained so that helped. Enjoy your summer!
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I found a book lasat week about getting your familoy connected to nature. It is called "The Nature Collection" by Clare Walker Leslie, isbn 1-60342-531-4. It is done by the month, but is full of ideas to learn about each season. You might want to check it out. A bit over the top, but no way do we have to do all of the pages.
That looks like a great one Chris - thanks for the recommendation.
And next time I will get the title right and check for typos. Sheesh.
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Hi Ali!
I love your posts! I'm new to blogging and today I'm featuring scrap booking on my site with a link to Project Life as well as your site. I just wanted to let you know. Thanks for the great inspiration. Following your blog is how I first learned about Project Life and now I am hooked!
Thanks Elaine!
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