The end of summer is so bittersweet for us. On one hand I miss the casual days of summer with my little beauties and on the other hand I am totally ready to get back to a routine. I absolutely love spending time with my little girls but dang these last few weeks of summer they would have had Mother Teresa yelling profanities with all the constant bickering. Goodness!
So this summer was the first in a few years that I didn’t schedule the heck out of. I like to have summer fun lists and pretty constant activities- that works well for us. I am not much for sitting around the house but this summer we really took it easy. I had a few rough ideas of things to do but I didn’t make any fun lists. In reality we did do quite a bit but I think next summer I will go back to making up my annual summer fun list. The kids love looking at all the awesome things awaiting them and it was easy to just use that for inspiration in the morning without having to think up activities or search around for things to do all the time. I find when we are at home I get distracted with housework or I hear the siren song of my iphone and then poof!- the day is gone before you know it.
So anyway, we were adventurers this summer and explored lots of new places around our city. We got in lots of swimming time and art time and reading time. We took naps. We ate at wonderful restaurants. It was a great summer all in all.
And now the little lovelies are headed back to school on Monday and I am looking forward to MANY larger projects I postponed this summer for the blog! Hustle time y’all!
Oh and as you read this we will be packing up and getting ready for our annual pilgrimage to Universal Studios in Florida! We have a conference that we attend annually and it makes the trip a little more budget friendly plus there are so many fun things we get to do as a family. I can’t wait- a perfect end to the summer!
Here are a few things I am absolutely loving right now.
I mentioned awhile back that I was super into the Serial podcast. It is a true crime story that unravels the details behind a teenager convicted of murdering his ex-girlfriend. The podcast was so beautifully put together but at the end it is a journalist attempting to be unbiased that did the podcast. You are left with a man in jail for life and really no solution or end to the story. So three attorneys are following up on Serial with Undisclosed and taking a look from a legal perspective at the trial evidence, new evidence that has been discovered and basically offering more information and theories. Check it out. I bet you are hooked 🙂
I passed on the initial Orange is the New Black craze. Nothing about people in prison particularly appeals to me and once my husband turned on the first episode to check it out and it was.. cough.. graphic. So I never got into really. A friend of mine highly recommended the book and I picked it up recently and really couldn’t put it down. So interesting to hear about the year a normal suburban woman spent in prison. She is convicted of a drug charge from a foolish mistake 10 years prior. The tv show is similar but not the same as the book. It is more violent and more graphic as far as adult content. I haven’t been binge watching a show like this since the Sopranos about a hundred years ago. I highly recommend the book and the show! 🙂 Grab the book here. Be prepared on the show there are some scenes that are very adult in nature- the scenes are typically short and the actual stories of the inmates keeps the show super compelling to me.
For back to school one of my favorite purchases was this adorable backpack from Justice. It is a blue and pink sequin situation and so pretty in person. Currently it is on the back of my 8 year old but I kind of want one for myself. I am not seeing them online but we just bought ours a few weeks ago so maybe they still have them in store.
My big girl just had her 8th birthday and we did a little Harry Potter party at the house. I will post the details of the party soon but in the meantime how cute are these little HP shirts I made for them to wear? They were so simple with gold glitter heat transfer material and my Silhouette machine and cheap t-shirts from Walmart. They will be perfect for our upcoming trip to Universal Studios.
And now that fall is upon us bringing with it 4 days a week of soccer, 2 days of ballet, homework, cheer, tennis lessons, weekend Nutcracker rehearsals and more… I am trying to really get very disciplined with menu planning. I picked up this cute chalkboard at World Market for about $18 with a coupon and decided to make it into a menu board so my husband can jump in and make dinner on nights I am gone.
As I was cutting the vinyl to create the menu board my 6 year old decided to color a picture for me on the chalkboard. Heartbreaking to have to erase this masterpiece- it says You Are My Sunshine and at the bottom is an I love you Mom. Just when I am ready to pull my hair out with the kids they surprise me with something pretty darn amazing and just melt your heart. 🙂
Anyhoo- the menu board was meant as an organization tool for us but in reality the kids have loved seeing a week of meals at a glance. They really like knowing what is coming up for dinner and discuss it often. “Mom is it finally Thursday? I really want tacos!” “Mom, I am just letting you know now that I might not be that hungry on Saturday.” LOL.
This was the finished project- don’t judge us on our menu last week. Since we are leaving for a week I wanted to just make do with whatever I could scrape together from the pantry.
I hope you had an amazing summer filled with fun and memories! Did you do anything fun this summer? Happy to see the kiddos back in school or do you miss them being at home?
Happy fall y’all! Bring on the PSL!
Shellie says
Ha! I knew you would love OITNB! Don’t binge too fast. The next season doesn’t come back until summer 2016!
Betsy says
Stealing that menu idea! It’s funny how everyone likes to know what’s on the menu for the week. Thanks for your great ideas!
Charlene says
Betsy,
Right?! I guess it never occurred to me that the kids also want to know. I have two little complainers at dinner and letting them see in advance has really reduced the complaining. I guess they make peace with the chicken teriyaki on the menu or something ;).