Summer Bucket List

Did you hear that?  In case you missed it, it was the sound of teachers running out of the schools and this year I may have been leading the pack!  I love summer break, all 74.5 days of it--but who's counting?!?--, for all of the reasons you may imagine, none of which may top the freedom of being the boss of my own schedule!  Summer vacation also allows this mama to cater to her traditional side and do all of those things I often wish I could do during the school year--be with my kids all day long (ask me at the end of August if I'm still enjoying this ;) ), make all of our meals, have the hubby come home for lunch, and keep our house running at a much more relaxed pace.

This is my 7th summer break with children and now with those babies being 6 and 4 we feel so much more freedom to do some of those things I loved doing as a child.  However, somehow the heat, sun, and lure of air conditioning can have a numbing effect on you and make you lay on the couch all day long and accomplish absolutely nothing, which is perfectly fine for a few days, but not 74.5.  This summer we are breaking through that feeling and making sure when that school bell starts ringing we can say, "WOW, look what we did!!" instead of, "WOW, we watched a lot of television!"  Intentionally planning activities allows us to accomplish a whole lot more!

For starters, the kiddos and I brainstormed everything we would like to do.  Everything was written down, even if it was a little off the wall.  However, these kiddos are pretty smart and had some awesome ideas!

Our Summer 2014 Bucket List
hike the Cascades (a local, amazingly FREE hike to a waterfall)
S'mores
float the creek
attend a Salem Red Sox game (local minor league baseball)
spend a week with Nana and Pops
the beach
pool, pool, pool
READ
potato stamps
colored ice drawing
create a ninja warrior course
water balloons
catch lightning bugs
feed the cows
watch the stars
deliver cookies to elderly relatives and friends
make peanut butter S'mores
$1 movies
pick flowers
"Sun cake" (some creation of Colton's...)
write a book
long walks
fishing
make a fort
homemade jelly jam
homemade popsicles
long walks
picnic
scavenger hunt
tye dye shirts
drive-in movie
finger paint
grilled pizza
dress up
blow bubbles

Whew...do I have enough energy for that?!?!  I sure hope so!  Most of these activities are cheap or even free--you don't have to spend a lot of money to have a good time!

To remind us of what we wanted to do this summer, we made this:

Nothing fancy, just a cheap poster board decorated by the kiddos.  It hangs in our downstairs hallway and we pass by it multiple times a day.  Our plan is to have the kiddos pick an activity a few times a week and then check it off when we finish!  Check back to see all of the fun we're having this summer!  What are your plans to have an intentional, fun-filled summer?