Our last day of school was last Friday and we are ready for summer!  We do some “regular school” during the summer—mostly math so the skills aren’t lost—but for the most part, summer means no formal lessons.  Instead, here’s how we’re spending our summer:

• Adventure Boxes:  I wrote a bit about these last year, so if you aren’t sure what these are, you can read about them in detail here. This year my daughter has a fairy tale box and my son has a mythology box.  Each week they’ll find something related to their theme in their box—this week they each had two new books.  I’ve also got some fun crafts and activities planned, too.  We’re going to have a lot of fun with these!

• Birthdays:  Both of my kids have birthdays coming up in the first week and a half of June, so the first part of our summer is always focused on getting things ready for parties!

• Vacation Bible School:  My son loves VBS, but it just about does me in.  After five days of getting him to church by 9:00 I am praising God that we don’t have to do this the entire school year!  ; )

• Swimming:  Last year we started going to our community center pool and both of my kids loved it.  They have several slides my son likes and they have plenty of shallow space that my daughter likes. 

• Movies:  We’re doing the summer movie club at our local theater again this year.  I know they’re not showing the most artistic, well-made films, but it’s just so nice to sit in the cool and dark and drink an Icee without listening to anyone bickering.

• Reading:  Our summer library programs started last Monday and my kids already have half their books read and all of their required visits done.  We’ll still be doing lots of reading all summer, though, and attending some of the great programs.

• Road Trips:  This is a great time of year to hop in the car and explore our great state!  There are all kinds of trip ideas on the MetroFamily site, so pick a few and have a blast!

• Planning:  I am hoping to get some major planning done over the summer.  It’s so much easier to focus on this while I’m not also trying to teach and do everything else!

With so much going on, I know this summer is going to fly by!  If you’re looking for things to do in the metro don’t forget to keep an eye on MetroFamily Magazine’s FaceBook page for all kids of great ideas. 

I hope you all have a fabulous summer!