Schools out...Summer is (finally) here!

Schools out and summer has arrived. Congratulations on surviving yet another school year! Your reward? Warm summer days filled with sun-kissed children, smelling faintly of dirt, sunscreen and melting popsicles; Sleeping in and spending days in jammies; Time spent enjoying each other's company without the pressures of maintaining a schedule; Fun and unique activities; No more packing lunches and less driving. Ha!

If your children are anything like mine, they’ve already made and shared LONG mental lists of the new and fun activities they want to partake in this summer. Listening to their “list of summer fun” is honestly stress-inducing – oh, the pressure to entertain them! Isn’t that what school is for? Or technology? Ha! Ha!

There’s actually much about our Summer Schedule that I really, really look forward to and love. For starters, I’m done packing lunches…DONE. If my girls need a lunch, they pack it themselves. Further, I get a few months off from having to nag my girls throughout the entire morning routine, just to get to school five minutes late. Lastly, the thought of spending endless hours in the backyard, hanging all day by the pool...just heavenly. Truthfully, no matter how relaxing or busy the summer actually gets, I’m exhausted from the school year, so the timing couldn’t be more perfect.

A few summers ago (and inspired by some family friends), we started making a list of how we’d spend our time-off. I had noticed that when there wasn’t structured homework, after-school activities, camp schedules and/or play dates, my girls often fell into the trap of watching too much TV or being online. Yes, I was partially to blame for the encroaching techno babysitter but c'mon, we all needed a rest. So, the idea was to create a checklist of sorts, with the INTENTION of spending offline time in fun activities, either solo or as a family.

Without further ado, here’s our Summer of Fun 2017 List. It might just inspire you to get out, have fun, relax, and be a family - offline and in-person. Check back often to see where our adventures take us. And don’t forget to share your “most fun family summertime activities” in the comments below.

75. Make a food sculpture and eat it

74. Make our own popsicles

73. Make a really messy art project (of your choice)…and clean it up

72. Run on a golf course

71. Eat a caramel apple

70. Slide down a waterslide

69. See a musical on Broadway

68. See a friend in a play

67. Pet and feed our neighbor’s chickens

66. Pick up 10 pcs. of litter to help our environment (on the beach, at a park or hiking)

65. Have a tea party with the Neighbors

64. Learn how to blow a bubble (from real bubble gum)

63. Start a Foodie Journal and try 5 new foods (or 5 new restaurants)

62. Get a haircut - cut at least 4 inches off (sorry Daddy!)

61. Go an entire day without fighting with any family member

60. Cook an entire meal; start to finish, with mommy

59. Run through sprinklers in our clothes

58. Wash our car with REALLY soapy water

57. California Incline…walk down

56. Santa Monica steps…run up

55. Build a fort…big enough for all of us

54. Lie on your back and stare at the clouds…count to 500

53. Jump rope 50x in a row; who can last the longest? Winner picks dinner!!

52. Go on a (short) road trip...get lost somewhere new…in LA

51. Make lemonade from scratch

50. Walk the dog…in a different neighborhood

49. Have a picnic in our backyard

48. Night swim and s’mores

47. Japanese Tea Garden (Encino)

46. Paddle Boats @ Balboa Park

45. Search for sea glass in Oxnard

44. Give the dog a bath…outside…on the grass

43. Sleep over at Nanny’s and another at Uncle Matt’s

42. See fireworks at the Hollywood Bowl

41. Jump/dive off a diving board

40. Bake cookies and bring to firemen (stations 88 AND 83)

39. Give a handpicked bouquet of flowers to a homeless veteran

38. Jump through the waves while exploring a new beach

37. Walk across a bridge

36. Make a new friend at camp and promise to be pen pals (with written letters)

35. Write a fan letter to a youtube or Disney star

34. Touch the bottom of a friend’s pool

33. Hike to a waterfall

32. Bake brownies for the mail carrier (that’s their new official name)

31. Make up a song (lyrics and tune)

30. Enjoy a picnic in a park with friends

29. Sleep under the stars in a tent

28. Blow bubbles with Cousin Shiloh

27. Read a story to Cousins Millie and Leo

26. Have a siblings dance party

25. Slip ‘n slide with the neighbors

24. Ice cream with mommy and daddy…everyone in their PJs

23. Explore a new Farmer’s Market and try a new fruit

22. Stay in PJs for an ENTIRE day

21. Family Book Club: Read 4 books (The Gold girls will read 4 books each, so 12 total)

20. Bring fresh-baked cookies to Daddy @ work (do they have to be gluten-free?)

19. Outdoor Shabbat with a family we’ve never had over before

18. Write a letter to a living author

17. Eat dinner for breakfast and breakfast for dinner (kid’s choice)

16. Nighttime Glow in the Dark Bowling

15. Learn all the words to “America the Beautiful”

14. Paint a picture on an easel

13. Paint a picture with hands

12. Learn to meditate

11. Bake a NEW recipe with plumbs from our tree

10. Build a sandcastle (and pee in the ocean)

9. Climb a tree

8. See a movie with candy, popcorn and ICEEs

7. Make a time capsule

6. Water balloon fight

5. (Learn to) fly a kite

4. Learn to do a cartwheel

3. Learn to bike ride (once and for all…no more excuses!)

2. Complete a REALLY hard puzzle

1. Give every member of the family loads of hugs and kisses…accompanied by lots of “I LOVE YOUs”