Berries, Schedules and Other Aspects of Summer

The tricky thing about the school year ending and open-ended summer beginning is that kids actually do well with structure. Well, my kids do....or maybe I do...its hard to separate that kind of thing...its a little like spaghetti. The good thing is that there is so much change and freedom, both of which are stimulating and make your brain work.

I spend a week or two after school lets out spacing out a little....and just about now the need for routine and normal and order starts to kick in in a driving sort of way. Just sat down with the boys and worked out a new plan for picking up the toys today. Have also been plotting summery field trip type destinations for the next couple of months. Time to make fun, that has a shape and a structure happen....as well as certain necessities like clean toilets and scrubbed hair.

I am doing very well with hitting my goal daily for water consumption and am feeling so proud about that still. Change does happen. People grow and new habits get formed. Tell that to all the people who love to sag around quoting that line about old dogs! Ha! I am making some serious headway on the goal of 8 hours of sleep a night. I am still not hitting it yet but....I have managed to move from the 6 hour range up into the 7's! Every little bit helps and its so fun to see tangible progress.

Strawberry picking round one went down this past weekend and we have almost finished eating the two lugs we brought home. So much love for fresh berries in our family. I hadn't made a single thing with them yet (just watched them being wolfed down out of hand) until tonight when I slammed out a recipe for strawberry pie and popped it in to chill while we ate dinner. So. Good. Strawberries are one of my most favorite foods. If you're looking for a great recipe for your fresh pickins, here's the link to the delicious one I used. Thanks to Michelle over at Gluten Free Fix for sharing it with the world, my boys are all fans now.

Now that the strawberries are almost gone I am starting to think about going back for another round. The boys and I are planning fortifying ideas for the next Daddy Business Trip Week and strawberry picking again together might make it into the calendar. I love going as a family but I love the leisure of going mid-week with just the boys and I....fewer crowds, slower pace, less scheduling to work around. Just have to get those lug boxes cleaned out again!