It is summer time! School is out and the children are home for the most part.
I often hear people say how hard the summer is and how they didn’t enjoy an outing or trip with their children from hard places! I thought I would share some thoughts and tips of some things that work for us so that the summer can be more enjoyable for everyone!
Let me say we enjoy summer…even though it is busy in a different way then school, we enjoy it. Here are some of the things that make summer bearable 🙂
1. Have a “summer schedule” These children do well with a schedule of wake up, meal times, out door play, indoor play, chores and bedtime routine, loosened up a bit from school year.
2. Don’t pack the children’s summer.
While they still need structure, they don’t need to be busy away at some activity or other all the time. They enjoy being home and having chunks of time where they can just play with their toys.
3. Use this time for family bike rides, hikes, swimming and water play.
Keep in mind what the children can handle to help summer be enjoyable. Sometimes these children can’t handle all the over stimulation of an amusement park. Maybe it is best to skip it.
Swimming pool, outdoor water play can be a great incentive to reward good behavior toward late afternoon, early evening. (Remember the child is not perfect, so do they accept redirection, are they trying hard and making progress.)
When planing a trip, keep in mind what the child can handle. Do they need a break during or after a long car ride? I stop after one and a half hours in the car to let them stretch, run and have a potty break. Is it best to stay in a hotel, especially if Aunt Sue’s home is not childproof? Can they handle the whole zoo in one visit or is that too much? It is better to see part of something and have everyone enjoy it rather then have melt downs because too much was packed into the day.
We have “travel only toys” these toys only come out on car rides longer then the usual 45 minutes. They haven’t seen them in a while so they are fun and interesting.
Remember that children from hard places need much more supervision then other children. They don’t always know how to play, so playing with them is important. I look around and count children often, to be sure none are missing.
They love to “help” with the garden. I get things ready and they help plant, water, weed and harvest! Even young children notice that some weeds are harder to pull then others.
These are just some idea’s to help the summer be more enjoyable for everyone!