Monday Musings: Summer Plans for the Family

It's hard to wrap my head around the fact that summer is around the corner. It feels like I was just writing about the beginning of the school year and my attempt to find a back-to-school rhythm. What a year it has been!

Our family is looking forward to the summer break after a challenging school year. Our Summer 2021 calendar is taking shape -- it resembles the summers prior to the pandemic but a lighter version.

We have two trips planned -- one in June to Florida to visit my parents, and another in July, which is a rescheduled Mexico trip from last year. We are looking forward to both vacations and we feel grateful to be traveling again!

When not traveling, we want our kids to remain active. Now that my job is permanently remote, I can be home on an ongoing basis while the girls are off from school. This is a great perk, however, I need help with keeping them busy while I am in meetings and engrossed in tasks (I don't want them glued to screens all day). I have plans for two college students to help (when their schedules allow) with this goal. These women will drive them to camps, bring them to the pool or on an outing, or serve as a driver when I can't get away from work. I'm hoping this will allow me to enjoy the flexibility of the work from home set-up without the constant stress of parenting while working (what I did so much of in 2020 and most of 2021 thus far.)

Among all three kids, our camps include visual art, film making, dance and outdoor adventure camp. They will also spend a few evenings each week dance training (ballet, jazz, tap, etc.) throughout the summer.

We also treat summer as an academic bridge to the next school year. This includes reading goals and math work. Our oldest heads to high school in the fall, so we are trying to fill in any holes from this last year of mostly remote school. I'm currently looking into online resources or tutoring to review algebra and so that she is prepared for geometry and algebra II.

The overall goal for Summer 2021 is to relax but also stay active; to visit with extended family but also enjoy being home with our immediate family.

Although this last year has provided plenty of family time, I still look forward to spending summer nights together as a family of 5. I have to remind myself that the frequency of those nights will dwindle in the coming years. I want to soak them up as much as I can.

Summer 2021, we've got big plans; please don't disappoint!