Change the Definition
It's the last day of school today. The last day of 6th, 3rd, and 1st grade for our kiddos (preschool was done two weeks ago for the babe 🤷🏻♀️). I'm not remotely "ready" for summer break. As other moms and I have chatted the past couple weeks about summer activities, plans, and over-all readiness, I've felt increasingly UN-ready.
Yesterday on a late-evening run however, it occurred to me that the definition of "ready" which I was basing my "unready" conclusion on...can be changed. Are the kids closets and summer clothes cleared out and reorganized? ❌, are the toy areas decluttered? ❌, have I created a summer bucket list? ❌, do I have fun reading, writing, science and math activities planned? ❌, did I create a welcome to summer gift basket for each of them? ❌....all are things I'd hoped to have done by now.
If I'm basing my readiness on having those things completed, then yes I'm failing at summer before we've even begun. But are those things my kids will use to define being ready for summer or that are necessary to have a great summer...ummm that'd most certainly be a no. Don't get me wrong, being organized and having some plans definitely makes our house run smoother. And this momma feels better when there is some organization weaved into our daily chaos (happy mom = happy home right!). Admittedly though, I'm often so focused on being productive and checking things off the preverbal list, that I am not able to just BE. The curious thing is, that list is truly never-ending. I need to give myself #grace in that space.
For me, that adorable summer bucket list concept that we did for several years, created way more stress than enjoyment. I viewed it as more "to-dos", and the goal was to check them off versus the fun we were supposed to be having actually DOING the activities. And don't even get me started on how long it took me to write out the lsit...consistent spacing, do I lay it out in an effortlessly random design or a coordinated and organized look, should there be simple illustrations next to some items, god-forbid a misspelling....the list goes on. I know, know, I could type and print it out instead to make it easier or simply not worry about any of those unimportant factors...but I would. So instead of making something a chore that was supposed to be fun, I stopped putting that expectation on myself a year or two ago. The kids have asked about the bucket list one or twice, but I've told them that we don't need to have a list to do fun things. No judgment here though if seasonal bucket lists are a must-do family activity for you, they're adorable. Maybe I'll be motivated to try them again sometime, with lower expectations or course.
As for the other things I haven't done yet in preparation for summer...my kids won't care. In changing up my definition of "summer readiness" I've asked...do the kids have some type of summer shoe, and shorts that fit? ✅, do we have plenty of sunscreen and popcicles? ✅, will we swim? ✅, will we boat? ✅, do we have legos, paper, markers, books, puzzles, games & cards, bandaids, tape, cotton balls, and empty cardboard boxes? ✅ (random? yes, essential play items? also yes), do they have a mom who will try her best, who fail, but who will also try more times than she fails? ✅ ✅ ✅.
According to that definition, we're the epitome of summer-ready! May all of our summers be filled with more enjoyment than frustration, more smiles than sunburns, more memories than regrets, and plenty of #grace