“You are the light of the world. A town built on a hill cannot be hidden. Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven.”
Matthew 5:14-16
Last summer sucked- so hot, no swimming, no beach vacation, just two energetic toddlers with a sweating and tired mom holding a newborn. Postpartum sticks mommas into a season of stillness and reclusion necessary for a slow recovery time. As a summer lover who enjoys water recreation (swimming, paddle boarding, waterskiing, boating, etc), last year I felt the sacrifice of newborn stage more than with my sons born in spring and fall. So, this summer, now with an almost one year old, and our oldest about to embark on his big-boy journey to elementary school as a kindergartner, this season symbolizes a shift in our household as our children grow and flourish. Thus I embrace a super summer full of adventure with as much swim time as possible. Therefore, we plan adventures to the lake house, the beach and even great grandma’s house. Furthermore, we embrace smaller activities such as pool days with friends and finding time with family to live this super summer to the fullest as we shift into two toddlers and a kid in big-boy school.
However, I still must shift away from summertime sadness with not enough stimulation and not cross into summertime madness with too much stimulation I practice three “Ns”:
NAME your season: what is your vibes for this summertime- time to adventure? Time to relax? At home or on the go? Sometimes picking a summer theme might aid in focusing your energy. Some alliterative examples: SERENE summer (more laidback), SUPER summer( more activity focused), SIMPLE summer (home focused), SPONTANEOUS summer (less planned but random outings) and/or SPECIAL summer (a large vacation to a magical place locally or internationally). Personally, we seek a simple summer with water tables time at home and lazy easy days; as well as a super summer with trips to the beach and to visit great grandma.
2. KNOW your limits: recognize the age and needs of your children. With younger kids more equipment and time for naps may limit longer adventures as well as the type of activities they with height and ability such as swimming requirements. With older kids the physical limitations may decrease but the emotional needs may increase (I.e. the lack of desire for family time and/or the need for a summer job/ sport). Plus with your own temperament- your own need for planned activities and unplanned time also must be factored into as the main facilitator for parents. For example, I personally enjoy going on trips but not the planning and packing part. So I pace myself for one longer trip to the beach in June and another longer trip to Tennessee in July. Also, I factored into a spiritual retreat to rest and recover from my roles as well in July. We begin with a more slow pace in early summer with swim lessons for the boys and weening baby girl in early June. So by planning according to my children’s’ needs and my own capacity, we seek a superb summer season.
3. Say NO: summer offers so many possible activities between local town events, pool gatherings, and/or birthday parties. However, my sticking to your summer theme and knowing your limits, saying “no” to activities out of line with your goals and capabilities allows for a serene summer season. For example, I tend to avoid activities in my younger children’s’ nap windows and seek to not throw off our schedule two days in a row. Also, I leave some weekends unplanned to allocate more simple at home rest time and/or a spontaneous adventure if the entire family feels up to exploring.
So as you NAME your season, KNOW your limitations and say “NO” to activities unaligned to your theme and/or capacities, may you avoid summer sadness, deter summer madness and seek only summer serenity.
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