10 Tips to Survive the Summer with Your Kids and Actually Enjoy It
Summer is on the horizon. My mind is equal parts planning and slowing down. It can be an uneasy time for parents when we sense the endless days without a consistent schedule or rhythm. If that’s you, here are ten tips to survive the summer with your crew and actually enjoy it as well.
Anchor your day.
Decide on one activity to use as your anchor. For our family we have three anchors that help us on the days we are at home. Morning time - our family devotion and prayer time starts us off on the right foot. Quiet time - I prioritize thirty minutes to an hour of quiet time that can include any quiet, independent activity, usually in the afternoon. Clean up time - this is a must to keep my sanity even through the summer. Around 5pm every day we pick up and get ready for dinner. That leaves the evening hours for family fun!
Give them a job.
Our children need jobs and a way of participating in the work of the family. Whether you have a toddler or a teen, look for ways they can show ownership this summer. A few things on my list are sorting through school bins, organizing closets, creating a photo album for the past school year, painting the fence, helping with yard work, and babysitting. These are above and beyond their chores and provide an opportunity for them to earn spending money for the summer or save up for a bigger item of choice. Even toddlers can help put Tupperware away, help you bake, or match socks! Work is an important part of keeping the mind and hands occupied even in slower seasons of rest.
Have one academic focus.
For our family, school doesn’t end completely in the summer months, but we drastically change our rhythm. After our morning devotion time, we use one hour to focus on one area per child. My oldest daughter will be learning Python - a computer programming system. My twelve year old will be learning Pre-Algebra to prepare him for the fall course load. My ten year old will be focusing on a poetry unit study and typing skills. My seven year old will focus on reading with me and some fun math games to keep it fresh. We limit it to an hour so that it feels like the whole day is still ahead! If it’s hot where you live, you can always get out and about in the morning and come back to do one hour of school focused work in the afternoon when you need to cool off.
Change the routine.
A must for me as the mom and the teacher is to change up where and how we spend our days. We prioritize outdoor time, reading out on the porch or by the pool, and adventuring more just because. For our family evenings, we enjoy walks together, playing tennis, and eating dinner outside. On excruciatingly hot days we will watch a movie during the daytime hours because we can, and save our outdoor activities for the cooler temps in the evening. These small changes still allow for all of the summer vibes and fun memories.
read more fiction.
If you are like me, I love non-fiction. In fact, they are usually my go-to during the school year to better my own heart and mind along the way. However, in the summer I go straight to the fiction books to keep it light and enjoyable for our summer travels. I love matching up books with our travels. For example, for our upcoming London and Paris trip I have started a few books set in those locations respectively., and it increases the anticipation of our fun family adventure. Heading to the beach? Grab a good beach read. Visiting the mountains in Colorado? You get the idea. Try it and see what you think.
keep summer notebooks.
Something I’ve done for years with my kids of all ages is to help them keep a summer notebook. Read HERE for some ideas and downloadable pages you can add to yours, but these help keep track of nature walks, calendar schedules, and any reading lists. It also helps manage expectations for the kids to see what is planned that week and to look forward to what’s coming up in the future. Hopefully it will eliminate the incessant, “What are we doing today?” questions.
keep it simple.
Of course, we all know it to be true, but in the summer less is always more. I intentionally leave weeks for our family with nothing planned. That means no camps and no commitments. There is something freeing about spontaneous gatherings with friends and family, ice cream jaunts, THEME DAYS, or fun projects. We must leave margin for the down time, friends. If this is hard for you, or you are a working parent who feels the need to have the kids occupied most of the summer, think about leisurely evenings, or saying no to something so that you can feel the downtime in smaller but still soul-filling ways.
stay near water.
In Texas, this is a must as we always have a month or more of near 100 degree temps. Even if you don’t have a pool, water balloons, sprinklers, or trips to a water park are in order. My kids loved a water table when they were younger and it entertained them for a while, which was a win/win! Water makes everything more fun, even in frozen form. Have ice cream nights and evening swims for something fun and different.
picnics for everyone.
Picnics were a lifesaver for me when I had babies and they remain a fun treat even now with my big kids. There is just something about a good meal al fresco on the blanket. Use your muffin tins and pretty trays to create an outdoor feast of finger foods that the kids can come and enjoy in the midst of their free play outside. Bring a book just in case that moment presents itself where you can get a paragraph or two in before the next interruption! Picnics at home in the yard are easiest, but don’t stay there. Bring that blanket to the park with you next time and invite the sweetest memories with your crew.
don’t be afraid to use incentives.
Every summer we have competitions. Reading is a big part of our summer, so we have used BEADS to create a competition for who can read the most pages/chapters/books. I also use a family flourishing jar full of pom poms to encourage hearts to be cheerful. When I notice someone helping a sibling, picking up without asking, or helping with a meal, a pom pom goes into the family flourishing jar! We have also use an ACTIVITY JAR with activities written down on craft sticks for those times when everyone feels “bored”, we use those as boredom busters and spontaneous treats. Let your kids participate in creating them and it’s great fun for all.
I hope these tips help you get excited about the summer with your kids.
Be sure to visit THIS SUMMER ROUND UP POST to read more details about the summer notebooks, reading challenges, and theme days we love to do.
Believe it or not, we really can find rest as moms and still engage and create memories along the way with a little thought and flexibility.
Have something you love to do as a family? Share a tip below for the next person to try.