It's been a few weeks now, but summer holidays is officially in full swing. And I use the term "holiday" loosely...because everyone knows that a holiday consists of sleeping in, relaxing and lazing around with drinks in hand--and motherhood with 3 little people is obviously anything but that most days. BUT, we're still calling it summer holidays anyways, even if we still get 4:00am wake up calls some mornings, not a second to barely sit down during the day and even though kids will still cry and lose their marbles over the smallest of things. Because little people are still little--and so holidays just mean something a bit different. Still good, still fun...just a bit different. So instead of lazing around soaking up the rays all day with drinks in hand, we're searching our days for fun family events, eating lots of ice cream and freezies, going on day trips, hitting up every park in the city and spending hours outside. So making summer memories has officially begun.
And as I glide cute little summer outfits over baby legs and catch her watching and longing for her beloved bunny blanket to finish drying in the dryer, it reminds me to take a second to stop and breathe and watch for these moments--because sometimes summer and time can fly by without us even realizing it.
So as school came to an end, I finished piping icing and hand painting fondant flowers for Mya's wonderful teachers and then waited in anticipation for that very final day of school when we could surprise the kids as they got off of the school bus...
because we started off our 'holidays' with the kids stepping off the school bus to another 'Welcome To Summer!' party on our court, just as we had done for them last year.
So we hung balloons and streamers from the trees, put the sprinkler on, filled up the kiddie pool, got the sidewalk chalk and water guns out and had music blasting from speakers on my wonderful neighbours driveway (thanks Steph!).
And the kids wasted no time finding the buckets of water balloons and blasting them at each other...
until there were absolutely none left.
And the water table? Well, it's pretty much the greatest summer invention ever.
A few kitchen utensils, spoons and some toys frozen in layers of ice means hours of fun.
Amazing what a few water toys, sprinklers, drinks and food can do for a bunch of kids who were excited that summer vacation had begun.
And so we've been working on making summer holidays feel like holidays these days and not just the normal daily routines of diapers, face wipes, peanut butter sandwiches and bathroom breaks.
So fun picnics in the parks with family have already happened...
and where kids got to meet cool turtles...
and smooth snakes.
And we had some Canada Day fun where we got to watch one of the kids favourite performers on stage and where I caught these two sneaking in a hug, mid song.
And we've hit up almost every splash pad in the city so far...
And when the kids start to fight, scream and cry with no end in sight? Well, you scribble down some outdoor stuff for them to find on a piece of paper, hand them a bucket each and send them outside to work together to finish an on-the-fly scavenger hunt...and emphasize that it's a TEAM EFFORT--so helping each other find their stuff will win both of you a popsicle.
And the crying and fighting will end. I promise.
And when all else fails? Well, bedtime is just around the corner. Bedtime, I promise, will always come. So stories together, cuddles, songs and back rubs mean (once everyone is off to dream land) that summer nights are then reserved for just Terry and I.
So happy summer everyone. Enjoy the fun times with your kids being home, breathe through the exhausting frustrating parts when siblings fight and kids are cranky, and enjoy the summer time heat.
Have a great weekend!! Go do something fun.
Erica xo
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