Summer tans and summer schedules—It’s lovely and refreshing and sometimes difficult piecing together what a fun summer is going to look like while maintaining a healthy budget and mental stability.
Late nights, the battle over screen time, to vacation or not—the constant push and pull of what to do, how to do it, and “am I doing enough?” feels challenging.
Ideas Are Great
Friends, you can find a plethora of articles out there on “Camps and activities to keep your kids busy” or “How to reduce screen time over summer break” or “All the places you should visit for vacation.”
I’m a fan of all those things BTW. I love myself some screen-free time, a family vacay, and all the tips and tricks on how to have my best summer yet.
Also…
…Can we acknowledge that oftentimes our best summers may include life on a strict budget, family members who can’t take time off work, and the possibility that we will go nowhere—we will do very little—and yes, we will in fact be incorporating a lot of screen time?
RELATED TOPIC: The Case for More Screen Time…Together
Sometimes life is full and our pockets empty. Sometimes we do what we have to do in order to survive because there just isn’t the means to fill up our summer schedules with getaways. Sometimes we need to feel no shame at the prospect that many of us still work 9-5’s and our kids’ babysitters may include an extra dose of television.
Feel No Shame
I’m not advocating for more screen time. I am, however, advocating that we give each other permission to spend our summers without the guilt and burden of what “should” be done.
Although summer may mean freedom for many of us—freedom from school schedules, waking up early, and packing all those dang lunches each morning—there are other friends who experience angst over what their kids are going to do all day when mom still wakes up early for work or dad just can’t afford that summer camp.
Maybe that’s you. And if so, I’ll say it again—feel no shame.
At the End of the Day…
Our kids don’t need fancy vacations, although it’s fun if we can take them. They don’t need a million summer camp activities, although it’s awesome to have options. At the end of the day, they need your love, your safety, your intentional presence when you’re able to give it.
Summer boredom? Bring it on. Movies for days because, why not? Let’s do it! The freedom to “summer” without the pressure of it looking a certain way? Here for it.
Feel no shame and summer on.
