My current place in life is in a very weird (yet very wonderful) place. I am not a full time working mom, yet I am not a stay-at-home mom, either. I am what I have always wanted to be, a work at home mom. The only problem with that is, I am home with both of my kids, trying to work, now that school is out. The guilt is already creeping up on me with thoughts of all the work I need to do, and ignoring my kids for the greater part of June, before we leave for vacation.
Tonight, in the middle of shuffling between embroidery jobs, emails, and to-dos, I started looking at the perpetual time-waster, Facebook. An old high school friend had posted a hand-written summer bucket list that she had made with her kids. BINGO! This was a way for us to list some things, big and small, that we want to do together throughout the summer. To-do lists are kind of my thing, so this should be great!
Here is the one that my friend (www.jenmirabile.com) posted tonight on Facebook that sparked my interest:
So, now I am just about a week into June and haven’t filled ours out yet. TOMORROW, I promise to make a conscious effort to sit down with my 5-year-old daughter and make some fun plans, big and small, for this summer.
We finally made ours! Here is the final copy, all filled out. Thanks to a fun weekend with out-of-town cousins, we managed to start getting some items checked off the list.
I think the key is, a combination of easy-to-do items, learning items, fun items, helpful items, and maybe some more extravagant and creative ideas. Here are some ideas I have compiled to add to your very own Summer Bucket Lists:
- See (big) fireworks show
- Do (small) fireworks show, like the kind from Publix
- Do sparklers
- Water balloon fight
- Go on a water slide
- Drive-In Movie
- Go on a boat
- Learn to water ski
- Learn to swim
- Learn to float on your back
- Go hiking
- Go on an outdoor picnic
- Play date with a friend from school
- Play with your cousins
- Build a sandcastle
- Collect sea shells
- Make ice cream sundaes
- U-Pick Fruit
- Go bowling
- Catch lightening bugs
- Paint/hide rocks for PBC Rocks (Facebook Group…check it out!)
- Use sidewalk chalk
- Go to the library
- Go to a new park you have never been to
- Watermelon eating contest (fastest or most)
- Finger paint
- Go clothing shopping
- Mom/Daughter or Mom/Son only date
- Father/Daughter or Father/Son only date
- Ride on a carousel
- Family game night
- Make rootbeer floats
- Scavenger hunt
- Go out of your way to help somebody
- Learn to write your name
- Learn numbers (in our case it is 0-20)
- Learn to tie your shoes
- Set a goal of how many books to read by the end of summer
- Unplug for 1 whole day (my husband was not down for this one)
- Make lemonade from scratch
- Splash in a puddle
- Have a pillow fight
- Make s’mores
- Play putt putt golf
- Go to the zoo
- Do crazy makeup and hair
- Paint nails and toes (or go to a nail salon)
- Go to (insert restaurant you have never been to) Chuck-E-Cheese
- Walk the dog
- Take bubble bath or use a bath bomb (the fun colored ones)
- Go carts
- Play with bubbles
- Make slime
- Go swimming
- Make homemade popsicles
- Build a fort
- Stargaze
- Feed the ducks
- Fly kites
- Watermelon seed spitting contest
- Eat breakfast for dinner
- Watch a sunrise/sunset
- Overcome a fear
- Eat a snow cone/slurpee
- Go to a farmers market
- See a magic show
- Play catch
- Make a summer journal/scrapbook
- Have a relay race
- Movie night with snacks
- Play jump rope and hopscotch in your driveway
- Visit a local farm or petting zoo
- Learn to ride your bike
- Attend a parade
- Make and fly paper airplanes
- Play I-Spy (on every single car trip LOL)
- Random acts of kindness
- Send someone a post card or letter in the mail
- Back yard tent camping
- Go fishing
- Go Paddle boarding
- Go kayaking/canoeing
- Bible Study
- Lemonade stand
- Ride a train
- Go tubing down a river
- Bake cookies
- Clean/organize your closet
- Pizza making party
Have fun, and enjoy your summer!
