The nature of the jobs/ministry that we have been doing over these past several years, involves one or both of us traveling and being away from home more often than some families, maybe. And it's good. It works for us. We enjoy traveling, it's why we chose homeschooling, it's one of the reasons why we're religious about taking a family day each week, and we have grandparents close by to help out when one of us (meaning me) single parents the solo missions.
I think that's why I love HOME so much and the simplicity of our rhythm and routine once we get settled back into some semblance of "normal" once again. And now that school is out for us for a few months, there's an even newer and different rhythm in our summer routine. And I love that too.
Summer in Maine is fleeting.
There have been some summers (especially when the weather did not cooperate), where you blink, and somehow it's over. I'm not cool with that... So, I want to savor my summer as much as possible. We always go for a long weekend camping trip to celebrate the two biggest boys' birthdays. (So far, we are 2 for 2 in the weather being a torrential downpour for most of the weekend. I'm shooting for sunshine this time. Fingers crossed). We always go away as a family for a week to my Father-in-Law's sweet little cabin on an island. Kev and I sneak away for a night or so on our Anniversary, and on our family day's we are always gallavanting somewhere - which I absolutely love.
But, I want to milk the days of the week for all they are worth, too. Because our summer is so stinkin' short, I want to "be aware" during the Monday through Friday as well - and not just the weekends and the special events.
So, I have a few summer vacation goals. Nothing lofty, mind you. Super super simple things, actually. But, here are a few of them, starting with dinners on the deck as much as possible. A few extra steps and a little bugspray is all it takes. And when this happens, the meal is often less rushed, more savored, and whatever is being served feels more special. It's all psychological, but it works. For us, anyway.
Living and running and playing outside as much as possible, as well. We really do this already, I just want to cut t.v. time waaaay back - maybe even off - for the summertime. (She writes...while the boys are watching cartoons in the background waiting for Mama to serve them breakfast. Just keeping it real).
More walks - every day, if possible. And for me that involves focusing less on the exercise and more on the rabbit trails and treasures found and breaks for snacks and tree climbing...and carting home in the backseat of the stroller the days' new pet.
More fires outside and chances to stay up late.
And more just "being" ~ watching babies grow, puttering in the gardens, riding bikes in the the dooryard, smoothies for lunch, no rigid schedules, slowing and seeing. Good, yes?
And inside goals... I have several books that I want to read to the kids this summer. I love our morning schooltime routine. My kids have to have some semblance of structure in their lives, else they run like hooligans, and they love to be read to, so at some point each day, I still want to keep a reading time. Any good book suggestions? At breakfast time, we are reading through "The Jesus Storybook Bible." I can't say enough good about this children's Bible. It is my
ultimate fave. The way it tells the Story of Jesus beneath all the other stories and shows how He is the missing piece of the puzzle that fits all of the other stories together is perfect and beautiful and done like no other book I have seen. I also have a set of "Magic Schoolbus" chapter books that I would like to read through, I want to read through the Little House on the Prairie books again, and my sister-in-law gave me a Christian Heritage book series that her kids loved and also used as their History curriculum. We shall see how many we wade through, but it's good to have goals, right?
Less rushing. I am a get-er-doner with minimal patience. Not the greatest parental traits to have on my resume. I am working on slowing and savoring. It does not come naturally to me, and it's one of the reasons why I started listing my Joy Journey ~ to help me
see. I read somewhere that if you would really like to maintain some semblance of sanity in your life while you still have young children under your roof (maybe it was worded a little more classy than that, but regardless...)you should always schedule in an extra half hour to whatever task you are trying to complete, because the littles in our lives are very good at doing the very things that we are not so hot at doing, and that is stopping to smell the roses...every. last. one. of them!
More cooking in the kitchen with the littles. And gifting the goodies to our neighbors. And finding healthy snacks and meals and juicing recipes for Kevy's belly.
And spending lots of time in the dirt - planting and picking and bringing inside to bake and can and cook and eat. Studies show that the more time you spend in the dirt, the healthier you tend to be. Tis true. In that case, my boys should never be sick a day in their lives...
So, there you have it. A few summer goals for me and my brood. Any of you have a few of your own to share?
Because really..."the best thing one can do when it's raining is to just let it rain." ~ Henry Wadsworth Longfellow.
{Giving credit where credit is due ~ kudos to Rachael Anderson for all photos in this post.}
"Let the rain kiss you. Let the rain beat upon your head with silver liquid drops. Let the rain sing you a lullaby." ~ Langston Hughes.
We are full swing into summer vacation mode in these here parts, and I am loving it. I think the fact that I have my boys around me twenty-four seven makes for an easier transition into "summer mode" for this Mama than for others, maybe. I honestly don't know what I'm talking about, because I have nothing else to compare our lives to - I just know that I don't have a hugely dramatic shift in my days from my kids being gone all day to them now being back home again. The only shift that I have is the beautifully simple fact that our mornings have now shifted way down into the low gear of sweet simplicity.
P.j.'s and coffee at the computer...right this very instant, in fact.
Early, early morning walks and bike rides.
Cribbage over breakfast.
No watching the clock to get at those lessons.
Freedom to putter at my heart's content.
And being perfectly fine with being outside and playing all the live long day.
Basically, the Mama is on summer vacation!
And THIS week, we are very busy doing very important things like playing with Daddy because we missed him so much and prepping for our annual long weekend of camping for the two big boys' birthdays! And per our tradition, friends from near and far will hopefully make their way over to our campsites for a little pop in visit, some camp coffee, some sharing of their babies, and some footloose and fancy free time for the kidlets to run wild and free. Also, per our tradition, I am fully expecting it to rain torrentially -- even though the forecast is looking somewhat lovely. We shall see. I am not holding my breath. Amy, camping, and rain always seem to go hand in hand. Joy unspeakable.
But, in the meantime, we shall just continue to be in summer mode. Starting with my two biggest boys being plastered in poison ivy, a snake bite for Jesse, hunts for a ginormous turtle that Daddy saw on the road, baby chickies growing, garden planting and weeding, bonfires at night, lunches on the back porch, and the always changing aquarium filled with salamanders, frogs, taddies, and treasures!
"Summer afternoon. To me those have always been the two most beautiful words in the English language." ~ Dame Edith Wharton.
The boys and I kept busy, I tried to make it fun, we saw friends and family, we watched movies and ate fun foodies, we visited the Grammies and had yardsales - so the time went by pretty fast. I can honestly say that I wasn't TOO overwhelmed at being a single Mama for those days...but things always feel just a little bit "off" when we are not all together. It is most definitely not my favoritest of things.
So, today being Monday - while all the rest of the world was working - it was our first full day together as a family, so we kicked it to Camden for the day. A little bit of road tripping, a little bit of coffee house eating and drinking, and a little bit of ocean was on the agenda for the day.
Love tanks were filled, quality time was had, and life is now back in order as it should be...Happiness all around.
P.S. On a super unrelated side note...can anyone tell me why my text is going so funky all around my pictures? It is not spacing where I want it to, and the final copy doesn't look at all like the way I type it up in my preview. frus-tra-ating!!!
So, anyway, since just about every weekend, we come home with some sort of treasure from some sort of yard sale, somewhere (almost our entire house is outfitted with these sorts of finds), I have to compensate on the other end by getting rid of stuff, as well. Garbage in, garbage out so they say...
So, yesterday, my wee hoolies and I had ourselves a mega-sale. We decimated their bedroom, and I told them that whatever they sold, they could keep the moolah for their own little selves. I have one son who is a bit of a hoarder and another who would get rid of the birthday gift that he was given today, so that was a bit interesting to negotiate. But, my sales pitch lit a fire underneath them, and from that one little bedroom, we managed to fill one trashbag full of trash, and two others full of toys, so I was as happy as a clam. Win-win for everyone!
They made their own pricetags (see picture above. hmn.), they each had their own little spot on the lawn, and they had a side business of selling some sweet tea, to boot. I was able to get rid of some of my cra....treasures, as well. So, all in all, it was a good day of business. And now we are set for the rest of the summer and all of the little "treasures" that will surely make their way into our house -- all for the love of yardsaling! One of the simple joys of summer.
Here's an article that gives evidence to my claim. Read it. Some really impressively smart people wrote it, so it must be true. And there are many other health benefits besides. It can aid in preventing depression! And it can maybe even make you smarter.
Who knew? Holy Hannah, my kids are going to be stinkin' geniuses, some day.
And in addition to dirt, I just came across this rockin' blog post that lists just a few more amazing "toys" that our children can enjoy during these brief days of summer vacation. For some awesomely innovative ideas for some good old fashioned fun, this "geek dad" lists the five best toys of all time. Classic.
Yep. My once a week shower time for the boys shall remain firmly in place.
I am now justified in my lazyness...er..I mean my health consciousness.
