Simple Routines for a Joyful Summer
from a long-time homeschool mom
We have homeschooled for 14+ years. Today is the last day of public school in our area, which means my carefully curated routines and expectations of the time available to us are all turned on their heads for the next 12ish weeks.
I’m used to having my three younger kids (ages 15, 10, 7) around almost all the time, and we’re used to having the parks, museums, zoos and hiking trails mostly empty when we’re out and about.
We’re not used to friends being available all day, or sports practices crowding our early morning hours or so many camps, youth groups, etc. to attend. Summer is less predictable that the school year, there’s just no way around it.
Rather than resenting this, I have chosen to greet this short but sweet season with arms wide open. We spend days at a favorite secret beach with friends, we head to the pool regularly, we’re ready for neighborhood friends to be in and out and back and forth, we’re prepared for a house full of teenagers with little warning. We play a round of disc golf and hike and eat outside as often as possible.
While our summer days are much more open than other times of year, I’ve found that carrying over certain routines makes a huge difference in allowing me to feel excited about less structure to our days.
Morning Time + Smoothies. Every morning during the school year I make a smoothie and we gather for a robust Morning Time full of reading aloud, poetry, audiobooks, science, art and history study. (Side note: Because of the large age gap between our kids, for the past couple of years I have been doing one Morning Time with my 15 year old and a separate one with the younger kids).
In the summer this routine is much more simple. It generally includes a short devotional and just one or two read alouds (or audiobooks). I make a smoothie for everyone and we sit down to read/listen for 30-60 minutes depending on interest levels.
This morning we finished listening to Alcatraz vs the Evil Librarians and my younger kids begged to start Book Two that very second.
I love starting our days with this connection point.
Together Jobs. This routine is a sanity saver for me year round. We don’t do it every day, but even just a couple of times a week can make a huge difference.
Here’s how it works: I notice an area in our home that needs some attention and I declare Together Job time. We set a timer for 10 minutes and work together to tackle the offending area. You’d be surprised at what a difference several people working together for 10 minutes can make! In that time one person can vacuum inside the couch, while others dust, straighten bookshelves, clean windows, etc. It’s a short amount of time that packs a big impact.
We also have a standing Together Job in the yard every Saturday (unless we’re traveling). We all work together for an hour. Jason mows and edges the lawn, the kids and I weed and work in the garden. This is not done complaint-free, but goes pretty well for the most part.
Before Screen Time Lists. Each of the kids has a list of tasks to accomplish in order to earn screen time. Other families choose to handle this differently during the summer, and I’m so happy to let them do what works for them. But for us the pre-screen time chores are a must. After getting ready for the day the kids start on their lists which include:
Morning Time
Zone (each child has a zone in the house that they are responsible to tidy each day)
Practice Instrument
Create something
Read 30 minutes
Outside Time (at least 1 hour)
Together Job/Kitchen Job
Quiet Time (We have about 90 minutes of Quiet Time most days. Sometimes we swap this out for friend time or whatever opportunity has arisen that day.)
We’re usually done with the bulk of this list before lunch, and the afternoon includes Quiet Time, screen time and lots of neighborhood friend time. I fit my work in while the kids are doing Quiet Time and Screen Time.
This sounds more rigid that it is, and fairly often we skip the entire routine and go for an adventure with friends. But having this structure in place on the days we spend at home makes a huge difference.
On My Desk:
I’ve been finishing up the latest patterns for my June 5th pattern release.
Butterfly Bundle: Folk Art inspired butterflies in 5 different sizes.
Floral Felt Ornaments: The long-awaited pattern to help you stitch my beloved felt floral ornaments.
I’ll share links next week after the patterns are available.
Around Here
Reading: Yesterday I finished reading Sociopath: A Memoir by Patric Gagne. Holy smokes! It was fascinating and terrifying to see into how her brain works.
I also finished Sipsworth by Simon Van Booy which I am certain will be on my list of favorites of the year and perhaps of all time. It’s a sweet cozy hug of a story. I loved it so much.
Watching: Our 15 year old recently finished his assigned reading of Unbroken: The Young Adult Adaptation and so we have been watching the movie adaption. (We rarely have time to sit down and watch a full movie, so we like to work our way through them in installments).
I read both Unbroken and Devil at my Heels years ago, and the details of Louis Zamperini’s life are cemented in my brain. Such an incredible, powerful and heartbreaking story.
Listening: Mostly to my instrumental covers playlist, which is my favorite for while I’m writing or trying to do deep work with kiddos in the next room.
On YouTube: Watercolor Art Journal (Flip through + Three Easy Techniques I Love)
In the House/Yard: The garden is completely planted, we’ve had a couple of cold nights lately and everything looks great except for one tomato plant which is barely holding on. Crossing my fingers to see it recover.
In the Shop: This Daisies pattern/kit makes me smile every time I see it.
Here’s to making time for the things we love to do!
Heidi