5 Questions for a Smoother Summer

Holy, moly the interwebs are exploding lately – and everyone’s abuzz with this question: What are the secrets to creating a fun and fabulous summer for me and my family?

I see it all the time – parents lament that they want to enjoy the summer months with their children but it’s just so challenging at times. Which makes sense. There’s more time together, less structure, and lots of “I’m bored” said in cringe-worthy tones. Answer these 5 questions and kick your summer into high gear!

1. How do you want to feel this summer?  

Decide how you want to feel, and identify what it’s going to take to move you in that direction and then make it happen. Whether it’s down time each week (or day!) for each parent to fill up and get re-charged, a date week (or day!) for each parent to fill up and get re-charged, a date with your mate, one-on-one time with each child or quality family time, schedule it! It’s easy to think, “But it’s summer, we want to leave it loose and open ended.” I understand. And in my experience, I see that people have a much easier summer when they do take the time to think about how they want to feel, then work towards THAT as the goal. (*For an added bonus, once you identify how you want to feel and what will get you there, schedule it on the calendar!)

2. What rhythm do you want to create for the days?

Think about the typical summer day. What feels easy breezy? What feels sticky and hard? Decide what needs to happen to bring more flow to it all. For example, if you know that the hours between 4-6p are challenging for you, think about making that craft time or pool time or a little tv time. Be thoughtful about how you can make it work for everyone, then create a rhythm around it. Invite your people in and let it flow!

3. How can you bring in MORE WATER?

I say it as often as possible – water is the elixir. The great neutralizer. Whether it’s time at the ocean, a neighborhood pool, setting up the sprinkler, a couple of kiddy pools on the lawn, or just tossing the kids in the tub at 3 in the afternoon, remember that water is the thing that can bring calm to an overheated family. Think about how you can make water work for you, then really crank it up!

4. What’s your plan for the dreaded, “I’m bored,” complaint?

If you have a plan in place, awesome. If you’re wondering what to do, here’s an experiment to run. When your little one says, “I’m bored” look them in the eye, nod, give a big hug and then say, “Ooh, excuse me, I have to go to the bathroom.” Go off to the bathroom, stay in there for a few minutes and then just see what happens. In my experience “I’m bored” is often a precursor to some wild creativity. Instead of engaging right away with suggestions and trying to get them to find something to do, run this experiment and see what happens. You might be pleasantly surprised.

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5. What are you renaming your family travel this summer?

You know by now that calling a family trip a “vacation” is actually a misnomer. “Vacation” connotes leisure, free time, doing what you want when you want to do it. When you have growing people with you it’s likely that you will have moments of this but probably not the whole time. So instead of saying, “We’re going on vacation,” what can you call it that more accurately describes what you’re about to experience? “We’re going on a juggle family time outdoors adventure!” “We’re having an all hands on deck family reunion!” Embrace what it truly is, and let that be the impetus to discuss what you need. Talk with your partner/family about who is on kid duty and who is off kid duty when. Work together to get time to yourselves and time as a family. Be creative! Give each other breaks and be proactive and thoughtful about the days when you are away. Figure out what it’s going to take for your unique event to feel the way you answered #1!

Feel free to leave a comment with your answers below. Or let these questions swirl in your mind as the summer unfolds!

As always, I send you so much love and love and love,

Carrie