HAVE YOUR BEST SUMMER EVER

HOW TO HAVE YOUR BEST SUMMER EVER!

Mama!!!!!!!!!!! Want to have your best summer ever? Then you’ve come to the right place!

One of my favorite things about summer is getting so spend so much time with my kiddos that are out of school for those few short months. It’s a time for our family to connect, friends to have sleep overs, and wonderful memories can be made. Summer Break is the Best!!

But then there is the horrible side of summer: I get overwhelmed with the house being trashed, chores not being done and kids thinking that they get to play electronics for the whole day. This righteous anger sometimes wells up inside me and lashes out the entitlement of my kids today! NOT THIS YEAR!

My summer plan this year is to get ahead of this by laying down some summer ground rules! Some Summer Expectations! You can do this too and have your best summer ever, mama!

WHY HAVE SUMMER EXPECTATIONS FOR OUR KIDS?

One of the things that I have found helpful from when my kiddos were little (2-3 yrs old) is setting expectations. When my now 14 year old was 2 & 3 years old- whenever we were going to Target or a thrift store, on the way into the store, I would let her know that we weren’t getting anything for her that day and that I expected her to not ask for everything on the shelf! She learned quickly that I was serious and that while she was more than welcome to show me things that she would *like* to have, she probably wasn’t getting it on this trip.

After a while, I didn’t have to tell her anymore. Then when her brother came along a few years later, I started doing the same thing and he learned as well. We are soon to start with our next little one. He’s pretty strong willed, so I think it might not be as easy!

I say all that to say, summer days are no different. As parents, we can’t expect our kiddos to read our minds. We must clearly lay out expectations on what needs to be done in before the fun begins! In the past, well, before my Sozo (post about that coming verrrry soon!), I had a whole list of expectations that my kids knew nothing about….but they sure knew when they didn’t live up to these SECRET expectations! Poor kiddos!

It’s a new day and I’m ready for the best summer ever!

HOW TO CHOOSE YOUR SUMMER SCHEDULE (this sounds much more inviting than a chore chart!)

Choose chores that are on YOUR list to do AND that are age appropriate for your kids. By doing this you are doing a few things: you are helping to share the load of work as well as teaching your kids responsible. Have you ever been around a person that obviously didn’t have to work as a kid? Yeah. No Fun. Here is a great free printable from livinglaughingandlearning.com that will help you choose some age appropriate chores.

By choosing age appropriate chores, we are also setting THEM up for success! We want our kids to feel confident and successful after they have finished their tasks for the day, not defeated and sad.

2. Figure out your kid’s currency. What do your kids LOOOOOOOOOOOOOOVE to do? That is your kid’s currency. When you take it away, your kids feel the pinch. Think of it like a modern day spanking. It will probably be different for each of your kids. My daughter loves to have friends over and have her phone. My son loves to play video games. They both understand that those things will go away (for a day, week or month, depending on the issue that is being addressed) if they choose something besides fulfilling the expectations of Mom & Dad.

3. Add some outdoor exercise to the mix. In order for our kids to be healthy, we must give them the give of being outside, free to run, throw balls and get sweaty and dirty. This year, my son lost the privilege of video games for 2 months (long story, for another post sometime!) But guess what happened? He’s fallen in love with this basketball hoop outside all over again! He asks to play till sundown and is getting so much better at it! It IS our job as parents to help our kids see the benefits of being healthy, being outside and loving it!

4. Create a chart for them to clearly see the expectations for each day. A great idea is to print this chart an laminate it- kids love to cross things off their list (just like adults!) Post it on your refrigerator so that they are reminded while grabbing their breakfast what is expected of them for the day (“OH YEAHHHHHH, I was supposed to do the dishes!”) Post it somewhere that they can’t miss it!

5. Be firm & flexible What do I mean by that???? On the days that you are home, and there is nothing going on, make sure to follow through with expectations and check to see if the chores are done. BUT….don’t be dogmatic about it. Give grace where it needs to be given and have fun on those busy beach days or days we go to kids camp or whatever. Just like us, our kids deserve breaks too!

6. START THE SUMMER WITH EXPECTATIONS! This one is huuuuuuge! Imposing new rules in the middle of the summer will only lead to frustration from all the people involved. If you start out the summer with these expectations, it will just be the new normal. If your kids get used to sleeping in till 12 and then playing video games all day, it will be a sad day when you take away all their fun! But…if you set out the schedule at the beginning of the summer, as soon as they get their stuff done, the fun will BEGIN! It’s a little shift in perspective that will help everyone!

This is the Summer Schedule I have created for my kiddos. I will end up printing this, laminating it and posting it to my fridge!