I love the change of pace in the summer. Sure for some families, baseball and swim team kicks in so there are games to watch and meets to attend. That used to be our summer when the boys were younger, but not so much anymore.
Here at the Savage household we do a lot of porch-sitting, drinking iced tea, and enjoying long games of Bananagrams. We garden a little bit and cook out a lot. I love that. We run hard during the school year and we rest well during the summer.
I’m spending most of June writing No More Perfect Moms. I’ll be posting excerpts on occasion. I write at home which allows me the freedom to keep an eye on my two teenage boys. I write about 4 hours a day with a one hour on/one hour off pattern that keeps me engaged in what I’m writing, but also allows me to throw in some laundry, take a walk with a friend, run my boys where they need to go, and on a good day…think about dinner before 5:00!
I’m going to match the pace of the blog with the pace of my summer and move from posting 5 days a week to 2 or 3 days a week. It’s a challenge for me to post daily when I’m writing a book. I have a lot of words in me…but not enough to keep that up! 🙂
A change of pace is healthy…for us and for our kids. I have one son that enjoys hanging with friends at the pool as much as possible. My other son will sit for hours on the porch with his guitar writing music.
So what about you? How does your pace change in the summer? What do you like best about summer?
I’m proud of you, Jill, for reducing your postings over the summer. We all will be fine and you need to take care of yourself. One thing I am doing over the summer is having my kids be in charge of their breakfast and lunch. They need to get it themselves (as opposed to yelling, “Hey mom, I’m hungry. When’s lunch?”). And they need to clean up the kitchen after they are done. This may sound like a simple thing, but I am already enjoying it (school has been out a whopping 3 days). And I deliberately am not telling you their ages as I should have been doing this much sooner than this summer. 🙂
Susan, that makes me laugh! You go girl!
I sign our kids up for NOTHING but the summer reading program at the library. And at their ages 7 and 4, they only have a read or have 1 book read to them to get the prize. All we do is show up once a week and claim it. We bought a pool pass to the pool in the next town over. I still babysit 3 days a week, but life is more relaxed. We will have “field trip” days, and some “homework” but I HATE to schedule too much. Even at their ages I think we run too hard during the school year and they need time to relax. I need it too 😀 My favorite thing about summer is catching lightening bugs 😉 And my birthday, it’s in August 😉
Sounds like a great plan, Heather!
Hi Jill. I’ve been reading your blog for about a year now but have yet to post a comment. This post caught my attention because I just wrote something similar on my blog I’m a freelance writer, and instead of tackling new projects that require a lot of concentration and time at the keyboard, I focus on my journals during the summer and a fun activity that I call my Six Word Summer. I simply note one highlight from my week (preferably with a photo) and describe it in six words. I’ve simply captured the moment but know the phrase/headline/six words will be all I need to write more details in the future.
Karna, I LOVE that idea! Thanks for sharing. Now you’ve got me thinking creatively. Hmmmmm….
I LOVE summer! It’s nice to have a more relaxed pace and I love having my kids home. This summer might be the last one they’re both home; Cody starts his junior year of college in the fall and Morgan will be a freshman–but has already informed me that she might travel next summer. My kids work with their dad on their cattle, so they pop in and out all day and I love that!
This summer I’m going to edit my book “Home is Where the Mom Is; A Christian Mom’s Guide” with the goal of making it available in downloadable form by the end of the summer. During the summer I usually focus on one or two goals like that.
Another goal I always have is to sit outside for at least 15 minutes a day. If I don’t make it an official goal, it’s too easy to let those beautiful days go by without enjoying them.
I am continuing to get up early as that time before everyone else gets up is Bible study time and quiet time for me.
Good luck with your book Jill! And God’s blessings as you work on it and spend time with your family.