Summer Bucket List

 

I've never made an official Summer Bucket List.

So, here goes:

1. Take a road trip.
2. Take swim lessons.
3. Visit two of the city's pools.
4. Paint.
5. Blow bubbles.


6. Go to an ice cream shop.
7. Go to the beach.
8. Fly on an airplane.
9. See a parade.
10. Go to the zoo.

11. Go to an aquarium.
12. Go to the park.
13. Go on a nature scavenger hunt.
14. See the summer kid movies: Monsters University, Turbo, and Despicable Me 2.
15. Attend Vacation Bible School.

16. Eat sno cones.
17. Play outside in the sprinkles.
18. Play outside in the evening in jammies. Look for fireflies.
19. See fireworks.
20. Have a picnic at the pool.

21. Eat s'mores.
22. Go to the public library story time.
23. Have a pool party.
24. Play with glow sticks.
25.  Go to Sea World.

What are your favorite childhood summertime memories?

One of those days...

Ever have one of THOSE days?
The days where nothing is easy.
The day begins long before any alarm is due to go off.
The baby wakes up at 1:00am for no apparent reason, other than to just be wide awake and ready to babble talk to you and jump in her crib.
At 3:00 you hear your preschooler cry out, "Moooo-meeeeeee?"
So you tell yourself it MUST be important, so you drag your lead legs out of the duvet tumble and stumble down the hall to his room.
He is sitting up straight, waiting with a smile.
"What's up, buddy?" you ask.
"I love you and the best part of my day today was digging in the wood chips." he says.
Ummmm, he woke you up for that?
But it's so sweet and innocent so you hug him and stumble back to bed.
You go to work, where of COURSE nothing is Easy.
You rush to the daycare to pick them up, and head to the grocery store.
With two kids. At 5:30pm. Hell hour to be in a grocery store.
But they beg for the "race car" shopping cart.
And you hope it will give you Peace as you shop.
But, if you've ever driven one, you KNOW it will drive like anything BUT a race car.
Strangers in the store roll their eyes and sigh as you take wide turns to get out of every aisle.
You inwardly sigh (because you're busy being a role model and remembering the list you left at home AGAIN, and because you don't want a Scene) because people are standing in your way.
And Hell-o! This is a tank I'm driving people, I didn't WANT to drive it, but they made me drive it. And two tantrums would have been more than I can handle.
So......Move it!
You get all the groceries home, finally.
After fighting rush hour traffic to just turn left on the one street that will take you home.
As you unload the groceries you put the beer in the fridge so hubs will have a pleasant surprise.
You decide to open that little flap thing so they'll be more accessible.
Easy access in case of emergency is a must.
All the sudden all 12 beers roll out of the easy access opening and onto the garage floor.
So you lose it.
And yell, "Why is nothing Easy?! Please God, let it be Easy!"
Then your preschooler approaches you.
And says, "Mommy, why are you mean?"
And you cringe, but you recover, so you say "I  was pretending to be the Hulk, did you like it?"
He cocks his head, looks you up and down and says, "I like it!!"
Then he runs away laughing.
I think God listens.
Thank you, God.
10 seconds of Grace.
I'll take it.

 

Fourth of July

I love a holiday, I really do! Howevs lately I've noticed they are....um...judge me, but a BIT of a beating.  Even before kids I would feel the need to make sure we had Events. Fun Stuff. And I felt like a failure of a holiday if we didn't go out and make the most of every minute. I like to think it's because I just like to have fun and spend quality time with my people.  It also has gotten worse with the online era, Pinterest invading me with the idea that all of my friends have got it going on with fabulous family parties and DIY decor and activities. And surely, everyone must be having more fun than us. And cuter fun too.  What a buzzkill to find yourself napping on the couch. Just as you doze off into a nice daze of holiday relaxation it hits you that your mantle is a mish mash of random vase, candlesticks, and kid art instead of bunting and holiday subway art. You flip through your holiday pinboard and think "Oh yeah!!! I was going to DIY this! George Washington and John Adams would be v. disappointed at my lack of festive patriotic decor! Oh God, I'm a Bad American!"

 Hubs has no such guilt. Hubs would prefer the couch and relaxing and a good hour or two of family quiet time. Me however? I'm fighting off Pinterest Cancer. Hardcore. I don't think it's in the Bill of Rights or Ten Commandments that you must have custom made bunting, meals where every food item is color-coordinated to the holiday and has cutesy little custom-font nametags so you're eating red-white-and-blue-Betsy-Ross-blueberry-muffins and drinking your chia seed organic pomegranate Star Spangled Smoothie and then lead your family outside to play 13 Colony Cornhole, followed by your DIY pyrotechnic show. And mason jars. Everywhere.  Tons of mason jars that have been custom painted and filled with your own homegrown basil,d lavender and baby's breath. Oh, and a burlap wreath with your monogram on the front door.  All of that? Friends, that is what we call B.S.  If that is your house I'm so sad I didn't get a custom made Cricut invite to come play. Because I'd walk in and love every second and pretend to live in your little Pottery Barn life.

But if you're like me, you need to know the cure for Pinterest Cancer? A big healthy dose of Whatever.

Whatever looks like extra time in your jammies on the couch with a cup of coffee and the Today show on. Sister, you need those minutes to figure out if Matt Lauer is still sexy or if he's a royal man club ass  because jeez- who would ever want to make Ann Curry cry? Who I tell you?! THAT is life.  Because you can interrupt those internal debates with yourself to play with your kids, talk with them, answer the millions of Why's and How's. You can kiss their bare tummy and tickle their toes, because when they're fifteen you won't want to do that. At least I don't think so. I reckon they will still be cute, and you will still love them so much it hurts. But they're be smelly.

So instead, you wake up, you look at your husband and appreciate  him them. You swallow your Whatever with your coffee, and appreciate how green your grass is. THEN wake up the kids and let them have good ol' fashioned fun. Donuts on the side of the road? Yes. Playing catch with Daddy so you can sip your water and play Candy Crush as you wait for the parade to start. Bubbles, chalk, poppers, playing catch, Capri Sun, and glow sticks. That's fun. That's life. That's Keeping It Real.  And the kids will never miss the mason jars. Or baby's  breath.