Memories of childhood were the dreams that stayed with you when you woke.

Julian Barnes

I have always had grand dreams of being “that mom”. You know, the mom that always has the fun activities planned, the one who has a box of snacks in the car and creates these huge over the top experiences for their children? Then reality set it. I worked. I worked a lot and I was tired. My husband works a lot- well over 40 hours per week, and he’s tired. I left my job to focus more on our family and we very quickly experienced the loss of a pregnancy due to medical complications, and I didn’t handle it well. A short time after that we found out we were expecting our youngest, and believe me when I tell you that I am not a glowing graceful expecting mama. It takes everything I have while pregnant to even get out of bed. Needless to say, being “that mom” hasn’t happened and the majority of our time has been centered around me and what I had the capacity for. It was out of my control, and while I do feel guilty about it, I can’t change it. Now I am set on being “that mom” in my own style, because let’s face it, the over the top Pinterest mom is not me. I do have some fun up my sleeve for the summer though, and I wanted to share it with you.

Set Your Budget

This needs to happen before any fun is planned. Unless you don’t have to worry about a budget, but if you are anything like our family, do this first.

Listen, summer fun can get expensive VERY quickly. Trust me. I started mapping out some fun adventures for our summer and got jerked back into reality right away. I was pretty disappointed that some of the things I wanted to do with the girls cost so much money, then I thought back to some of my childhood memories. The ones that really stick with me to this day, and aside from travel and food, they probably didn’t cost much. So, I got to work. I search free and budget friendly experiences in my county and surrounding areas. Our local library, right here in our hometown has a weekly family story time, plus many other fun activities throughout the summer including making and launching rockets! Sign us up for that!

We live in a beautiful area with so many outdoor things to do, and I sometimes take them for granted having grown up here. The hiking, parks, access to the sound, it’s everywhere, and we plan to take advantage of it this summer. I sat down with my oldest daughter and we picked 8 parks that we want to go to. They are either new to us, or a couple that are favorites. We will be going to a park per week for July and August and soaking up all that the Pacific Northwest has to offer. Some of these parks are state parks, so here in Washington we do have to purchase a Discover Pass, which is $35 for the one year. It allows us access to any of the state parks and I find that an affordable option as opposed to some other things I looked into.

Set Yourself Up For Success

Planning outings for littles can be stressful. Let’s be honest… sometimes it’s so much easier to stay home. I know for me that is so true, but I am determined to get out of this house this summer and have a great time with my girls. In order to have the best time possible, here are a few things that I find helpful to think through before we head out:

• Clothing Check the weather before you go and make sure everyone is dressed accordingly. I also like to pack extra clothes, and a whole set from the tip of their heads to their toes just in case of accidents. Here in the Pacific Northwest our weather can change rapidly, so I also like to have clothes for the opposite weather of what we are expecting.
• Sunscreen Make sure to apply before leaving and bring the bottle with you in case you need to reapply. Nobody wants to end a fun filled day with a sunburn.
• Food and Drinks Depending on the length of your adventure, bring snacks and some water! Well, water always should be in your bag. I am also planning on packing some sandwiches and having lunch on some of our outings, picnic style!

Roll With It

Just go with the flow. I say that with a big smile on my face because I am NOT a go with the flow kind of person. I want to be, and I am trying to retrain myself to be more flexible, but I am not, by nature, a flexible person. If I make a plan, I expect to follow the plan. However, now that I am a mama I realize that doesn’t always happen. I have a toddler, and boy oh boy, is she a toddler. She’s also working on getting the rest of her toddler teeth, she still very much needs a nap, and things I think she will love send her into a toddler spiral. If you end up with a picnic in your backyard instead of the super fun park you researched and would have to drive half an hour to get to, so be it. The memories are still being made, and adventures are still happening. I promise, your kids will remember that time you hauled all the lunch outside and threw a blanket down and ate pb & j’s with them in the sunshine.

Superheroes, We Are Not

My final bit of advice to you, and to myself if we are being honest, is to not over do it. I don’t want to have a schedule so packed full of “fun” that it causes stress, brings out my mom voice, and just turns into a job. Nobody will be having fun if we are stretched to our breaking point. That’s why we chose one park per week, and sprinkled in a couple story times at the library. We do have some other trips we want to do, like our local wildlife park and a trip to the beach at the end of summer, but those will be family outings and I will have reinforcements with me… named David (my husband)!

Whatever you plan for the summer, I hope you focus on the memories for you kids and enjoy them in the stage they are in.

~Tara