Let the Wild Rumpus Start

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Allegra

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I don’t really have any questions, but I just want to say, I’M SO STOKED ABOUT THIS SUMMER! (which, coincidentally started today in my unique school district!)

From now until the second week of August, I intend to educate my children in the fashion similar to that of Auntie Mame. (Maybe a little cleaner language, since they’re 4 and 2.)

We are going everywhere from the public library to concerts, picnics, creekbeds, Silver Dollar City, carnivals, museums, gardens, waterparks, canyons, rivers, forests, mountains, caves, cathedrals, chocolate factories, zoos, Wisconsin Dells, train yards, ampitheaters, and all the while devoting a significant amount of time to watching PBS.

We will grow our own zucchini and live on salt water taffy. We will finger paint and side walk chalk. We will read all day when it rains. We will forget what time is bedtime and embarrass ourselves with plaque-y teeth at our dentist appointments. (which we will also do this summer)

Our floors will be covered with wet towels, dry play-doh, and so much sand! When it get’s too freaking hot out to get into the car, we will sleep in and eat Cheerios out of the box for lunch. We will spent the mornings drinking coffee on the patio while the kids play in the same clothes they fell asleep in the night before.

We will attend patriotic parades with sunscreen in our eyes and eat Ted Drewes frozen custard out of little yellow cartons at 10AM in the morning, even though it’s over-priced and not nearly as good as getting it fresh with hot fudge. (the proceeds go to charity, or something)

We will attempt to catch fish. (but we don’t know how, so we probably wont, and even if we do, we don’t know how to make them edible so we’ll just say ‘sorry’ and put them back.)

We will take photos in front of strange-looking statuary. We will ride dubious-looking carney rides. We will pick a favorite movie and watch it twenty-seven times. We will swim in the public pool, rivers, and lakes. We will go canoeing and pontooning until we are sunburned beyond belief. We will buy incredibly expensive bags of dirt that the kids will wash though to find the same stones they sell five for a buck inside the gift shop. We will fill jars with frogs and fireflies. (Sorry PETA people.)

We will have a very loud argument that will probably disturb neighboring campsites about why after an hour of trying and a half bottle of lighter fluid, we still don’t have the campfire started. We will finally get that fire started and sit around singing the inappropriate version of “The Ship Titantic”. We will spend time together and create memories. We will return to school in August, peeling, bug-bitten, with maybe an impressive scar, and completely off our sleep schedule.

Does anyone have any favorite summer memories to share?
 
I have not. I can’t even think of anything good to write inside a card. I usually just write, “<3, Allegra”.
 
But I’m in the southern hemisphere - it ain’t even summer here 😦

Have to write my own winter version.
 
You could try daily mass if there’s a cry room or if they can handle it in the sanctuary. I’d do it with my 4-yo if I could.
 
Good point. I’ve heard that during the summer, one of our local parishes has a “kid friendly” Mass on Wednesday morning. I think by “kid” they mean “school-aged child”, but it sounds pretty cool. We could actually walk there if it isn’t too hot by 8AM.
 
PS- So far, we’ve had a play date at the children’s museum, Pentecost Mass followed by a picnic in the park and a festival held in honor of the 100th anniversary of a local theater, and our first call to poison control! (2yo ate an unknown berry. It’s so nice that his “food aversion” is getting resolved.) I even made a nice supper using a plant I’ve managed to keep alive in our yard for the last three weeks! (basil) We’re off and running!
 
Sounds fun.

I used to watch PBS a lot when I was younger as well.
 
My kids aren’t old enough yet. You have to be going into kindergarten.
 
Why weren’t splash pads a thing when I was a kid? We just got back from the Missouri Botanical Garden, where I went many a time as a child. The same exact fountains that they used to have signs that threatened to throw you out without out a refund if you as much as dipped your toes in the water and employees would come by and yell at you if they caught you splashing your brother with your hands are now “water features” where children are actually encouraged to splash and play. Meanwhile, the big fountains downtown where bathers once risked a citation as well as e coli infections now have a life guard! My mother believes this is a sign of the apocalypse or the inevitable degeneration of society. What parent would just let their kids get their clothes and shoes wet in the middle of a park?! I for one, think it’s amazing, as long as my husband in there with us to hold my phone!
 
If you are doing Silver Dollar City, I’d suggest going on over to NW Arkansas to Crystal Bridges, a world class museum!
 
Darn. You literally posted this while we were already at Silver Dollar City! It’s okay though. We ran out of money anyway! The place literally looks the same as I remember as a kid! The only thing is they’ve added a few (tastefully hidden) roller coasters on the one side and a new district on the other side for younger kids with an emphasis on cooling down! Such an awesome place! We loved the cave! We also took out a pontoon for the next day. The best breakfasts are cinnamon rolls on a boat. The best swims are around rocky islands. The best picnics are boat picnics and the best naps are boat naps! Plus we collects almost 50 pressed pennies!
 
Nevermind. I skipped your first paragraph and thought you were talking about doing all this stuff personally.

Lucky kids in your school though - must be some ritzy private Catholic school?
 
I am doing all those things with my husband and children this summer. I work in a public elementary school. We typically get out the last week of May, but we didn’t use any of our built in snow days, so they let us out seven days early.
 
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