Barbies, books, and Overboard – my sister and I used to dress up in our dance costumes and reenact the movie Overboard. True life. And that’s what I remember about long summer days as a kid. I remember VBS, of course, beach vacations, and Swim Camp for two summers once I got a little older; but for the most part I remember the days stretching on forever, suppers around the table with floral wallpaper as the backdrop, and a modified version of softball in our backyard.

What I very distinctly DO NOT remember is being busy.

It’s the question we all ask one another: “What are y’all’s summer plans?”

My firm answer this year has been, “To allow my kids to experience boredom”

Boredom always precedes a period of great creativity. – Robert M. Pirsig

We do have some summer camps planned and a fun family vacay, but for a solid six weeks of this summer, we will be doing nothing special at all. We will be carving out space for their little minds to rest and roam and tumble and breathe. We will be breeding gratitude and imagination and maybe a little entrepreneurship. We will not be worried quite so much about cultivating discipline and regimen and hurry. There’s quite enough of that during the school year, thanks very much.

That being said, I would head straight for the looney bin if there were no parameters to our freedom. We all know that the children will never stop asking what we are doing next and can they do a lemonade stand and can they for the love of all the land get on electronics.

No, sugar lumps. No you cannot. Nor can you stand over my shoulder or whine incessantly or keep the cat you found. Just no.

So, here’s our very loose daily summer schedule. Maybe it will inspire a few of you to embrace boredom while providing inspiration for them to create within that boredom. Maybe it will help you give yourself permission to create your own schedule and also deviate from it whenever you darn feel like it. Either way, here you go!

These are our afternoon activities. Mondays will be for crafting. Tuesdays will be for letting them explore their little entrepreneur spirits. Water Wednesday will likely be an all day deal! Thankful Thursdays will be for writing Thank You notes and finding ways to connect with our neighbors. Fridays will be for play dates! Again…we will be loosely holding to this schedule because…life.

I’m curious…what rhythms work for you during the summer? Do you prefer to fill their days or build in slow time? Are you a schedule person or a wake up and go wear the wind takes you mama? Either way, summer is great time to enjoy your kiddos! Do what you need to do to create the space to do so…because we don’t get very many more of these before our summers with them will be over.