Ah, the first day of summer vacation.   I am ready for a change in routine, some travel and hopefully some swimming soon. The weather has been very odd, I still haven’t turned the a/c on for the summer. Our pool is only up to 75 degrees ( I am a wimp who needs it at least 85, preferably closer to 90). I am sticking with my prediction of a very rainy summer.
I am prepared though.

I have a list of things to do, projects and activities. My list is divided into four categories: things we can do daily, cleaning projects, craft projects and special days.

• Daily
  some sort of cleaning (wash the car, dust, vacuum, picking up etc)
  swimming (if the weather cooperates, if not we can play badminton, ride bikes or go hiking)
  spend about 20 minutes doing worksheets or educational computer games to prepare for 2nd grade
  Play some sort of board game (most likely after lunch)
  Also looking at once a week combining grocery shopping and bowling with a trip to the base
• Special Cleaning projects
  wipe down the kitchen cabinets (I figure E should help since most of the dirt is from his hands)
  wipe down doors, door jambs and light switch plates (ditto)
  paint a very short hallway
• Craft projects
  latch hook kit
  soap bubble pictures (where you add food coloring to soap bubbles and then try and get them to pop on paper)
  decorate pickle jars with dyed glue (use q-tips to paint on dots)
  make bookmarks and then hide them in random books in the library
  an embroidery hoop mobile
• random special days
  stay up late and eat ice cream outside
  reverse roles (I can’t wait to be the kid for a day, very ‘Freaky Friday’)
  paint at ben’s bells
  neighborhood scavenger hunt
  picnic on the summer solstice
  make simply crackers candy
  “Little House on the Prairie” day (no electricity, swim in the “creek” etc)
  Christmas in July (watch a holiday movie and read Christmas books, turkey for dinner and I have a Snoopy Christmas magnet kit)

I don’t know if we will get to do everything on the list.  I recognize the need for unstructured time too.  But I am prepared for when the I’m bored whine comes out or he wants to spend all his time on the computer.

We also have three trips planned, one to the beach, one to the mountains and one to visit the Grandparents.  Let the summer commence!!