Oh What Do You Do in the Summertime? (Teach Life Skills to Your Kids)

Is anybody else excited for summer?

It is hard to believe that there are only a few more days left of school. I can’t wait to have my kids home with me for a few weeks. I look forward to sleeping in, breakfast in bed that the children lovingly make, time to kick my feet up with a book while they clean the house everyday, hearing phrases like “Yes, Mom,” and “How can I help you, Mom,” on a routine basis, family game time where nobody fights or cries when they don’t win, and patient and joyful children who wait excitedly for their turn to practice piano.

What? Isn’t that how summer is at your house?

OK, I will admit…I am really excited for the relatively unstructured summer time. We are constantly running all year long with kids at three different schools where buses are not offered. Life is busy, and unstructured time sounds like heaven to me. But, let’s be honest…my kids don’t always see the joy in having absolutely nothing to do. This is more likely what I will hear:

“Mom, I’m BORED!!!”

“I have NOTHING to do!”

“Can we please do something fun today?” (Translation: Can we do something that costs a lot of money today? That is the definition of fun, right?)

“I already read all of those books…and I don’t want to read anymore.”

“Can I watch TV…all day?”

“Can I play on the computer or the iPad…while I watch TV?”

“It’s TOO HOT!!”

“None of my friends can play…my life is so boring!”

Sound familiar?

They may even attempt some board games to pass the time. However, I can guarantee that one of them will throw a fit before it is over because somebody “cheated.” (Translation…they did not win, so it must be somebody else’s fault.) My favorite experience with this happened last summer when one child decided to throw the Monopoly game in the garbage and post a note on all of the bedroom doors that said: “I hope you’re happy. I just threw the game away, and we will never play it again!”

Drama!!!

I never thought I would actually have to ground my kids from playing games, but Monopoly (which I retrieved from the garbage) was banned from the house for a few weeks because they could not play it without fighting over who was winning.

Seriously!!!

This year is going to be different. Maybe if I hold my breath and say it three times to myself that will make it happen. I will let you know how that works.

I do, however, have a plan to make summertime productive.

With the school year being so busy, there is often little time for teaching life skills. Consequently, we are going to be hitting those skills hard during the summer. After all, Jordan only has three summers left before he leaves home. Andrew has four. My time to prepare these kiddos to take care of themselves is slipping away.

With that in mind, here is a list of skills that each child will be working to master over the next two months:

Jordan (15 years old):

1. Paying bills and budgeting (I’m SO excited to hand this one over…I hate doing it!)
2. How to change a flat tire
3. Put together a recipe file of favorite recipes
4. Menu planning and grocery shopping
5. How to write a check
6. How to plan and execute a party (he’s excited about this one)
7. Sewing buttons

Andrew (Almost 14 years old):

1. Learn to cook 5 complete meals (entrée, salad, dessert)
2. Menu planning and grocery shopping
3. Recipe file of favorite recipes
4. How to upload and print photos from external website
5. How to write a check
6. How to plan and execute a party
7. Take a babysitting class
8. Sewing buttons

Elise (11 years old):

1. Learn to cook 5 complete meals (entrée, salad, dessert)
2. Learn to bake bread/rolls
3. Take a babysitting class
4. How to upload and print pictures from external website
5. Start a recipe file
6. Sewing buttons

Kate (9 years old):

1. Learn to cook 3 complete meals
2. Start a recipe file
3. Practice and perfect sweeping and mopping floors
4. Sewing buttons
5. Learn to wash and vacuüm car

Carson (5 years old):

1. Learn to pack own lunch (He will be doing this daily starting in August)
2. Vacuuming
3. Learn to clean bathroom sinks and counter tops
4. Memorize phone numbers and address
5. Practice making phone calls

As you can see, there is quite a bit of overlap on skills between kids. If I am going to be teaching a particular skill, I may as well teach it to all who are capable of mastering it. We will see how it goes.

It is going to be a fun (and hopefully productive) summer.