Summer O Fun

So somehow we've found ourselves at the END OF MAY WHAT THE HECK. And everything is rounding up. Mother's Day Out is over. BSF is over. Even one of my favorite monthly ministries (with child care, wink wink), The Nest is on sabbatical until the Fall. 

All of G's teachers were like: "Are you so excited about summer? Any big plans"??? And I was over here like: "Well, let me tell you Mrs. Frances, I'm freaking out." Until Greyson turns the magical age of 3, we are not qualified for VBS or any of the plethora of summer camps that the area has to offer. So for the next 55 (ish) days, it's ALL on Mama. I'm his show monkey. All day, e'ry day.  Don't you judge me. I can hear you....."So you don't like spending time with your toddler?" My answer to that question is "Do you have a toddler?" Listen. I love my child with every ounce of my being. He is the best thing (aside from salvation and my hubby) that has ever happened to me and hanging out with him IS my absolute favorite thing to do! But, let's face it, child is rowdy and needy and on the developmental fast track, which means his mind (and body) is on the GO. I SO wish I were like a child and got MORE energy the more tired I get......can I get an amen?! By the end of the day my mind is like Jell-O and my biceps feel like they are on FIRE. Up down up down. 

But ya know what??? I kinda had a mental switch and realized there is a huge bright side of Summer, (aside from the smoldering ball of fire extra close to Texas) and that is the fact that there is NO schedule! No routine, no specific place to be on specific days, no boundaries! For me, this thought got me really excited! And with that...I came up with a theme, a title......because I'm more dedicated if I slap a cheesy name on something.

So I decided this summer would be....the "SUMMER O FUN".  And then I'm like...well, we NEED  banner, right??? Duh....so at 10:30 last night, my hubby was helping me hang this...

Internally, he was probably rolling his eyes, but it made mama happy, and you all know the saying....

I think I felt extra excited for this summer because last summer was more like "The Summer Mama Went off the Deep End."  We were moving out of the apartment and into a hotel with a 7 month old because our house wasn't done but our lease was out, etc, etc....you can read about that here and here.

So I got ALL PINTERSTY and even found a free printable. (Jeremie had never heard the term "free printable", bless him.)

First I decided to make a summer bucket list and once a week, go somewhere in the DFW area that we've never been. Those are in the left column. On the right, I started jotting down just fun, off the cuff activities we could do anytime. For the in-between, we'll do our regular play dates with friends and hit up our favorite parks, arboretum, etc. 

On the flip side of doing lots of outings, I decided I wanted our home/backyard to just be a fun place to spend the afternoon. I tend to feel like we have to get out and about to entertain ourselves, but that is simply not the case, or necessary! So I started by cleaning up our back patio! It was a bit of a mess folks! Don't let this pick fool you!

Our Nona bought the slide when she came last week and I snatched the water table for SEVEN DOLLARS on a FB Swap Site!!!

I also threw all the outdoor stuff in an extra plastic hamper....a BASKET O FUN if you will. ; )  We've got a ball, sprinkler attachment, sidewalk chalk, and the EVER popular bubbles! That way, everything is in one place and ready to play!

Getting the patio straightened up instantly gave me the Summer O Fun spirit!

Since I started drafting this post, we've checked off TWO of our items! Yesterday, we played with sidewalk chalk, which lasted way longer than I anticipated! SCORE! 

Is it just me, or do ALL pictures of your children with their father make you want to cry? 

I'm SO tickled at the difference between me and Jeremie's art. I'm over here with BOLD and BIG colored flowers, professing my love for "her boys", and J's drawn a tree, a car, a boat, and a cloud with lightening coming down. I have no idea how we even stay married.

    Then today, we braved downtown Dallas and went to the Perot Museum!                                          

We spent most of our time in the Children's Museum area, which is a darling toddler/young kid friendly area. Greyson LOVED it, they had a huge water feature, a "produce market", campsite, art tables and jungle gym type areas. We briefly went to a couple of the other floors to see the bird and dinosaur exhibits, but they were really crowded due to field trippers and really just too old for G to be interested.

My official review: Logistically, the museum was SUPER easy to park, get in and out, and spacious. The toddler area is perfect for G, but he probably won't be ready for the rest of the museum until he's 6 or 7. It did cost $19 for my ticket (under 2 is free) and $10 to park, so definitely a more costly activity. 

I'm SO excited to tackle the rest of our list and make this summer super fun! If you're feeling a little reluctant about the summer, make your own list and feel free to steal my ideas! Activities don't have to be complicated or expensive! Everything in my outdoor basket came from the dollar store! And watch or join some kid's swap sites to find some great used treasures!

Also-I'd LOVE to hear any ideas that you have, big or small! 

I CAN'T WAIT to see how I'll feel about the "Summer O Fun" come August when all of our activities start back. I'll bet you twenty bucks I'm completely over it and tired of coming up with new activities! LOL!!!!

                                   HAPPY SUMMER!