The Summer Reset

As we near the end of school every year, we have all these hopes and dreams for what our summer will look like. We make check lists of fun activities, plan out our yearly traditions, and romanticize the long, sunny days ahead of us. It’s going to be all fun, exciting, Leave it to Beaver family moments that will forever be engrained into our child’s mind, right?

Well, no - of course not! That’s just not how life works. Sure we have exciting activities and vacations and the like, but those are just special days that are sprinkled in the regular days. And regular days are just as important, if not more. 

Your kids are creating memories in the simplest of moments when you’re just at home, together. The “big days” and “adventures” sometimes get lost in the mix, but the consistency and security of the day-to-day is the very foundation of their childhood. 

Carving out time to cook or bake together, watching them do their tricks in the pool or trampoline and cheering them on, nightly supper around the table, craft days, game nights, berry picking, walks around the neighborhood, and long drives with good conversation that seem to always wind up at the ice cream shop....

Simple, special moments. 

So often we lose our grasp on the days flying past, telling ourselves, “we’ll do that next week,” and before we know it we’re faced with back-to-school commercials and school supplies lists filling our inbox. And that’s when it’s easy to panic. 

But wait! We haven’t done this! We didn’t go there! We have memories to create! It can’t be over yet! 

Remorse! Mourning! Franticness! 

First, breathe. 

Don’t put that negative pressure on yourself. We all know it’s easy to get caught up in the highlight reel of social media and the comparison game creeps in your mind, but don’t let it! It does not matter that Susie was climbing a new summit every weekend or that Bobby learned how to ride a unicycle while juggling fire sticks on the rim of the Grand Canyon. 

Your family summer is YOUR family summer. It can’t be replicated because it’s yours! And that’s the beauty and the freedom of it! 

A conversation with a friend this week sparked these thoughts, and I wanted to encourage you that time is not up! Summers not over. Create that space for the little moments with your kids that can’t be bought. Memories that cost nothing but that that they will cherish and take with them throughout their life. 

If you feel discouraged that you haven’t been the “fun mom” or are feeling guilty for losing your patience one too many times, know that those aren’t the things your child will even remember. 

They just want you present. They just want interaction. They just want you to there. They just want YOU! 

We’ve got a couple weeks left to make the most of this summer with our children. Let’s be intentional with our precious families the Lord has entrusted us with and finish strong!