Ninety-four days.
Did you know that’s how long summer is this year?
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| Go to a concert at the Pine Hills -- Check! |
It most certainly is – from the Summer Solstice to the Autumn Equinox. And guess what? We still have about 2/3’s of summer left to enjoy full days, free days, days that we race through and those that we laze through. Every day this summer can become that much more pleasing by spending time dipping into a Summer Bucket List. And, I am so thankful for that!
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| Ride a boat -- Check! |
Now, as we reach the third-of-the-way-through-summer mark, I think it is fortuitous that I rediscovered the Summer Bucket List that Luke, Nina and I created last month in a notebook while sitting under the shade of a tree in our front yard. Looking at our list makes me realize that, just by having written our ideas down, we became more likely to actually experience them. For, indeed, we have already enjoyed over half the items we had listed, and I know we’ll have opportunities to enjoy a plenty more:
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| Party before the bonfires -- check! |
Our Summer Bucket “Done” List
1. Giggle at the Splash Pad at Nelson Park in Plymouth (Nina, Luke and Mom)
2. Go to the beach. (Nina)
3. Run at Grammy and Grampy’s. (Nina)
4. Jump in puddles. (Nina)
5. Run around on the beach. (Nina)
6. Put water in cracks. (Nina)
7. Go for a bike (trike) ride. (Nina)
8. Splash at the Wading Pool at the Freetown State Forest. (Luke and Nina)
9. Go to a concert. (Nina)
10. Make sandcastles. (Nina)
11. Climb rocks at the beach. (Nina)
12. Go to Auntie's house. (Luke)
13. Have Jack’s birthday party. (Luke)
14. Go on a trip with Grampy and Daddy (Luke)
15. Learn about outer space. (Luke)
16. Make tunnels at the beach. (Luke)
17. Look for shells. (Luke)
18. Go to Luke’s first movie for the first time at a movie theater. (Luke)
19. Go to a concert at the Pine Hills. (Luke)
20. Go to a waterfront concert. (Luke)
21. Explore the jungle or the woods or the Blue Hills because they are just better. (Luke)
22. Catch bugs. (Luke)
23. Jump on Auntie’s trampoline. (Luke and Nina)
24. Go to the pool at Daddy’s work. (Luke)
25. Ride a boat. (Luke)
26. Watch the leaves dance above our heads in the wind. (Mom)
27. Listen to the birds singing. (Mom)
28. Lay and look at the clouds rolling by. (Mom)
29. Spot airplanes in the sky and track them with our eyes. (Mom)
30. Inspect flowers in our yard. (Mom)
31. Eat berries off the bushes in our yard. (Mom)
32. Picnic for dinner at a playground. (Mom)
33. Go to White Horse Beach. (Mom)
34. Watch a thunder and lightening storm. (Mom)
35. Swim in the rain. (Mom)
36. Do a Passport Hike. (Mom)
37. Have a picnic at the Fish Hatchery in Sandwich. (Mom)
39. Enjoy our front yard during Stay Days. (Mom)
40. Make a “bucket elevator” over a tree branch. (Mom)
41. Host a family party. (Mom)
42. Enjoy a dinner picnic in our front yard. (Mom)
43. Eat meals on the back deck. (Mom)
44. Go on a family walk to a playground after dinner. (Mom)
45. Make juice wigglers. (Luke and Mom)
46. Meet old friends at the beach over the July 4th weekend. (Mom)
47. Party with our extended family at the annual family cook out and auntie’s birthday party over Independence Day Weekend (Mom, Luke and Nina)
48. Watch the flames dance in a bonfire at the boat ramp on the 3rd. (Mom)
49. Participate in a bit of Americana by attending the North Middleboro Fourth of July Parade. (Mom, Luke and Nina.)
50. Ooo and aaah at the fireworks at the Plymouth Waterfront. (Mom, Luke and Nina)
51. Read lots of books as we participate in the library’s summer reading program. (Mom)
52. Follow bunnies, turkeys and other creatures through our yard. (Mom)
53. Go for a boat ride. (Mom)
54. Let the kids get up on Seaweed Rock. (Mom)
55. Look for crabs. (Mom)
56. Play in our sensory sandbox. (Mom)
57. Spend a TH night at the Farmer’s Market in Plymouth, enjoying a beach picnic and time at the playground. (Mom)
58. Go to Organization Day at Daddy’s work. (Mom)
59. Spend time in water as much as possible. (Mom)
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| Look for crabs -- Check! |
Our Summer Bucket “Opportunities” List
60. Go to Grammy and Grampy’s for family time. (Nina)
61. Make cookies (Nina)
62. Camp. (Nina)
63. Make popsicles. (Nina)
64. Go to a park we have never been to before. (Nina)
65. Check out a new splash pad. (Nina)
66. Have a party at Grammy’s. (Luke)
67. Make a tree house. (Luke)
68. Do worksheets on rainy days. (Luke)
69. Eat a crab. (Luke)
70. Go see Winnie the Pooh at the movies. (Luke)
71. Learn to swim. (Luke)
72. Go to the big kid skating park to ride our bikes and trikes. (Luke)
73. See a dog at a pet store. (Luke)
74. See a kitty at Uncle and Auntie's house. (Luke)
75. Sit around a fire in our fire pit. (Mom)
76. Wash the minivan together. (Mom)
77. Go berry picking. (Mom)
78. Ride bikes and trikes at the Cape Cod Canal. (Mom)
79. Sketch blooms in the yard. (Mom)
80. Collect starfish and shells at Scusset Beach. (Mom)
81. Explore Ellisville Harbor. (Mom)
82. Sing in the rain. (Mom)
83. Send homemade boats down rain rivulets. (Mom)
84. Paint with rain.
85. Attend Elephant Day at Buttonwood Zoo. (Mom)
86. Explore Center Hill Preserve. (Mom)
87. Eat popcorn at a concert. (Luke)
88. Stroll along the Water Fires in Providence. (Mom)
89. Use our Buttonwood Pass to enjoy reciprocal locations, such as Science Museum. (Mom)
90. Spend a day at Capron Zoo. (Mom)
91. Enjoy play dates with friends we have not seen in a while. (Mom)
92. Picnic for dinner on the town hall lawn on a free concert night. (Mom)
93. Go whale watching. (Mommy)
94. Lie on a blanket at night and gaze at the universe. (Mom)
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| Picnic after the Farmer's Market -- Check! |
(For the record, Daddy was consulted about this list and added that he just wanted to have as much time outside and at the beach as possible. We’ve been doing the former weeknights and the latter mostly on our Sabbath Days!)
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| Enjoy the front yard during Stay Days -- Check! |
Perhaps some of our ideas will inspire you to enjoy intentional, mostly free fun over the 60+ days that are still left to Summer 2011. Or, maybe you’d like to write your own list. It’s not too late to do so. You can even click on over to my How-To Make a Summer Bucket List post at Signature Moms for some easy pointers.
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| Make a bucket elevator -- Check! |
Whatever you choose to do this summer, enjoy! I know we have been appreciating Stay Days, taking breaks between appointments and savoring Sabbath Days with our list. We’d also love to hear some of your ideas for summer fun.
Since I feel so incredibly blessed to be able to slip fun, intentional living in between appointments, home upkeep and the other more mundane parts of life, I am sharing this post at Thankful Thursday. Please browse the links there to be inspired by what others are grateful for today.
Thanks for visiting me. I love your bucket list, we are making a short list called Things to do before we leave Illinois. We have include a boat ride.
ReplyDeletewhat a full summer!!! enjoy the remaining 1/3rd!!
ReplyDeleteWhat an absolutely brilliant idea. I wish I had thought to write out a summer bucket list. perhaps I will do one for the fall. What a great idea and I loved reading your list and the photos. Awesome.
ReplyDeleteHappy TT. Rejoicing in the Lord this day. Hugs, Lynn
How can it be that we still have 2/3 of our summer left when it always feels like a fast downhill slide after July 4th? I always feel like summer ends when school starts back up and for us in Nebraska, that starts in less than a month. YIKES!
ReplyDeleteI love your idea of a summer bucket list and praise God you've been able to accomplish many of the activities on your list. Way to make the most of your summer!
I really like your idea of a summer bucket list. Like you said, the summer's not over yet, there's still time to enjoy a list of our own. Thanks!
ReplyDelete