Jen tells me I sounded depressed in my birthday post. I am not. I did have a pretty shit-tastic day yesterday, but I'm good now.
Now, because yesterday was, literally, the longest day of the year which means it is OFFICIALLY summer, I figured I'd put together my annual summer bucket list. We have very few things scheduled, but I have a feeling we'll all enjoy the flexibility and filling our days with summery activities.
The Two Moms to Be Summer Bucket List for 2017
1. Swim. In pools. In lakes. In rivers.
2. Spend time outside, preferably near trees.
3. Visit animals.
4. Take care of our little garden.
5. Go berry picking.
6. Get the kids helping in the kitchen.
7. Make art.
8. See live music.
9. Meet up with friends.
10. Visit new places.
11. Take waaaaay more photos.
12. Blog more.
Very general, but I figure I can go into details on all the blog posts I'll be making. Right?
Showing posts with label summer bucket list. Show all posts
Showing posts with label summer bucket list. Show all posts
Thursday, June 22, 2017
Thursday, June 23, 2016
Summer Bucket List 2016
SUMMER!
This spring went by in a whirlwind. Fortunately I finished (and passed!) the course I've been taking, celebrated my 36th birthday, and am now finally able to think about the next few months.
The Bean finishes school in less than one week and then we are pretty much wide open for two months. Well, sort of wide open; even though we really haven't made a ton of plans, the summer days seem to be filling up quickly.
I think it's time for a Summer Bucket List...
The Two Moms to Be Summer Bucket List for 2016
1. Have a picnic on the front lawn. Bonus points for having friends join us.
2. Paint rocks.
3. Pick berries.
4. Grow vegetables in our front yard garden.
5. Plan a blogger meet-up.
6. Get the finishing touches on the kids' room done.
7. Ride a roller coaster.
8. Brew sun tea using herbs we've grown.
9. Celebrate love.
10. Go to the Farmer's Market.
11. Meet up with friends. Often.
12. Collect shells at the beach.
13. Borrow books from the library.
14. Be tourists in our own city.
15. Camp in Grandma and Grandpa's backyard --don't forget the s'mores!
16. Listen to live music.
17. Take a family vacation.
18. Find some new splash pads to play at.
19. Go on at least two kid-free date nights with my wife.
20. Bake a peach pie.
21. Donate toys, books and clothes that we're no longer using.
22. Go to the zoo.
23. Ride our bikes --try to get the Bean riding a two-wheeler with no training wheels.
24. Visit a new-to-us skateboarding park.
Apparently I have a lot of ideas on how to fill those summer days! I think we'll be busy, but have a lot of fun.
Saturday, September 5, 2015
Not on the List
I had a hard time coming up with things for the Summer Bucket List. I knew we would be busy, but most of our business came in the day-to-day form of a parent keeping their little ones happy. That hardly seemed list worthy. (Though maybe it is!) As our days came and went there were a lot of list items that got crossed off, and a lot of things that we did that were never on the list, but could have been.
With school starting on Tuesday, it feels like the summer is coming to a close. I think it's been a pretty great one. We've been a lot of places. We've spent a lot of time with friends. Many mornings started with the kids asking, "Where are we going today?" There were so many possibilities.
Here are some of the things we've done that weren't on "the list" but that are noteworthy nonetheless...
The Bean got a skateboard just before we left for Paris. He was so admiring the "big kids" at the skate parks and on our street that it seemed like a perfect gift to give him to enjoy on Grandma and Grandpa's super-long driveway. Some of the novelty has worn off, but he certainly loves it. I think he would love it even more if I were more willing to take him to the skate park to practice. Sprout uses the ramps as slides (and RUINS her clothes), so I don't jump at the opportunity....
These two have become best buds. I mean, they were before, but they so clearly just adore each other. There is nothing that could make me happier.
Buskerfest. So exhausting, but SO much fun. We met up with Ashleigh and the girls for the first bit. The kids get along well and so do Ashleigh and I, so it's a winning situation all around. They left earlier than we did, so they missed out on the acrobats (which I was keen to see) and The Bean's "performance" with the trampolineists. He was called up to volunteer and one of the guys did a flip over his head, and then the other guy flipped him. He was even paid for it! He used his earnings to buy himself and his sister each a tub of cotton candy.
MudHero Kids' Mud Run. Ashleigh told us about this one, unfortunately we weren't free the same day her girls were running. Still, The Bean had a great time. He ran the course, minus the mud pit (which he hated) three times! Sprout wanted to participate but was too young. The kind ladies at the end of the race let her have a medal regardless. That seemed to make up for having to sit at the sidelines.
Niagara Falls. My friend, who lives in Boston, unexpectedly messaged me to ask if we'd want to meet up with her and her girlfriend in Niagara Falls this weekend. We love to see them every opportunity we can get, and we had a day with no plans, so it was an easy decision to make. The kids had never seen the falls, so it was a special experience for them in that regard... though the funicular trolley was Sprout's favourite part and The Bean's was the arcade. (Kids!)
With school starting on Tuesday, it feels like the summer is coming to a close. I think it's been a pretty great one. We've been a lot of places. We've spent a lot of time with friends. Many mornings started with the kids asking, "Where are we going today?" There were so many possibilities.
Here are some of the things we've done that weren't on "the list" but that are noteworthy nonetheless...
The Bean got a skateboard just before we left for Paris. He was so admiring the "big kids" at the skate parks and on our street that it seemed like a perfect gift to give him to enjoy on Grandma and Grandpa's super-long driveway. Some of the novelty has worn off, but he certainly loves it. I think he would love it even more if I were more willing to take him to the skate park to practice. Sprout uses the ramps as slides (and RUINS her clothes), so I don't jump at the opportunity....
These two have become best buds. I mean, they were before, but they so clearly just adore each other. There is nothing that could make me happier.
Buskerfest. So exhausting, but SO much fun. We met up with Ashleigh and the girls for the first bit. The kids get along well and so do Ashleigh and I, so it's a winning situation all around. They left earlier than we did, so they missed out on the acrobats (which I was keen to see) and The Bean's "performance" with the trampolineists. He was called up to volunteer and one of the guys did a flip over his head, and then the other guy flipped him. He was even paid for it! He used his earnings to buy himself and his sister each a tub of cotton candy.
MudHero Kids' Mud Run. Ashleigh told us about this one, unfortunately we weren't free the same day her girls were running. Still, The Bean had a great time. He ran the course, minus the mud pit (which he hated) three times! Sprout wanted to participate but was too young. The kind ladies at the end of the race let her have a medal regardless. That seemed to make up for having to sit at the sidelines.
Niagara Falls. My friend, who lives in Boston, unexpectedly messaged me to ask if we'd want to meet up with her and her girlfriend in Niagara Falls this weekend. We love to see them every opportunity we can get, and we had a day with no plans, so it was an easy decision to make. The kids had never seen the falls, so it was a special experience for them in that regard... though the funicular trolley was Sprout's favourite part and The Bean's was the arcade. (Kids!)
I'm sure that there were other things we did that are noteworthy, but it's late and there's only two days until school starts for our biggest little one, so I should go to bed so I am rested enough to enjoy those days to their fullest.
Friday, July 17, 2015
SBL #5, 6, 7 and 13
So, we're chipping away at the Summer Bucket List. I feel pretty comfortable crossing off #5, 6, 7 and 13 this week, but I'm sure there will be more of #5, maybe a visit to a different garden for #6, the kids are already asking to go back for more of #7, and some beans on the front lawn that we're letting get just a little bit bigger before picking (#13). (I could cross off #1 and #3 as well, but there will definitely be more of both before the summer's over, so I'm leaving them for now.)
Tuesday was rainy and we didn't have any set plans, so I decided it'd be a good day to check out the botanical gardens. I've been wanting to go to this city-operated greenhouse for years now, so I was glad to finally take the opportunity. It was very pretty, but not terribly interesting for the kids, despite my best efforts to get them smelling, touching and looking at the plants.
After about 45 minutes at the garden we headed over to the Book Bank. The kids lasted longer here. We donated a few baby books that have been getting neglected on our shelves and then I read them about 983,457 Curious George stories. They came home with two Georges that we don't have, plus a cute picture book that I picked out.
On Wednesday we met up with one of my old co-workers and her nephew who was visiting from Trinidad to pick strawberries. It was WAY colder than I had anticipated, so the kids ended up wearing a bunch of clothes that I had in a donation bag in the trunk. (That is to say, please don't judge! The adorable outfits I had picked out for the occasion are hiding under the over-sized and otherwise bizarre clothes.) The kids LOVED picking the berries; even The Bean, who couldn't be convinced to even lick a berry and had a great time at the play area afterwards. The berries, by the way, might be the best I have ever tasted. Sprout devoured about as many as she picked. We made most of them into really, super-sweet jam. (I'm going to have to cut back on the sugar if we go back for raspberries.)
All in all, a great week! It's good we got it all in when we did because The Bean was down with a yucky virus today. Hopefully he's feeling better soon so we can continue the summer fun.
---
UPDATED: The Two Moms to Be Summer Bucket List for 2015
2. Swim in Lake Ontario.
4. Spend time in nature. Look for new "nature spots" in the city.
5. Donate books to the book bank.
6. Smell flowers at botanical gardens.
7. Go to the Toronto Islands.
13. Eat things that we have grown and/or picked ourselves.
Tuesday was rainy and we didn't have any set plans, so I decided it'd be a good day to check out the botanical gardens. I've been wanting to go to this city-operated greenhouse for years now, so I was glad to finally take the opportunity. It was very pretty, but not terribly interesting for the kids, despite my best efforts to get them smelling, touching and looking at the plants.
After about 45 minutes at the garden we headed over to the Book Bank. The kids lasted longer here. We donated a few baby books that have been getting neglected on our shelves and then I read them about 983,457 Curious George stories. They came home with two Georges that we don't have, plus a cute picture book that I picked out.
On Wednesday we met up with one of my old co-workers and her nephew who was visiting from Trinidad to pick strawberries. It was WAY colder than I had anticipated, so the kids ended up wearing a bunch of clothes that I had in a donation bag in the trunk. (That is to say, please don't judge! The adorable outfits I had picked out for the occasion are hiding under the over-sized and otherwise bizarre clothes.) The kids LOVED picking the berries; even The Bean, who couldn't be convinced to even lick a berry and had a great time at the play area afterwards. The berries, by the way, might be the best I have ever tasted. Sprout devoured about as many as she picked. We made most of them into really, super-sweet jam. (I'm going to have to cut back on the sugar if we go back for raspberries.)
On Thursday, we met up with a birth group friend (from when The Bean was born) and her two kiddos for a day at the amusement park on the Toronto Islands. It was the perfect weather and the kids had a blast! My only regret was buying tickets rather than a wristband so that they could have gone on more rides. Live and learn. I have a feeling we might be back again before the end of the summer, so I'll get a do-over.
All in all, a great week! It's good we got it all in when we did because The Bean was down with a yucky virus today. Hopefully he's feeling better soon so we can continue the summer fun.
---
UPDATED: The Two Moms to Be Summer Bucket List for 2015
1. Check out new parks and go back to old favourites.
3. Visit animals at the zoo.
8. Make popsicles.
9. Meet up with local bloggers.
10. Paint rocks that we find at the beach.
11. Go to a fair.
12. Take a moms-only trip.
Monday, June 22, 2015
Summer Bucket List 2015
I thought I'd be able to post this on the first day of summer, but go figure, the longest day went rather quickly.
So, a day late, here it is:
The Two Moms to Be Summer Bucket List for 2015
1. Check out new parks and go back to old favourites.
2. Swim in Lake Ontario.
3. Visit animals at the zoo.
4. Spend time in nature. Look for new "nature spots" in the city.
5. Donate books to the book bank.
6. Smell flowers at botanical gardens.
7. Go to the Toronto Islands.
8. Make popsicles.
9. Meet up with local bloggers.
10. Paint rocks that we find at the beach.
11. Go to a fair.
12. Take a moms-only trip.
13. Eat things that we have grown and/or picked ourselves.
I can think of more things we would like to do, but this keeps it at an average of one thing a week, which seems completely doable.
And since people have been posting goals to, here are ours:
1) The Bean: Practice writing, reading and basic addition.
2) Sprout: Ditch daytime diapers. (This is a bit of a cheat, since she's pretty much ditched them already.)
3) Mama: Read. Crochet. Take photos. Organize photos.
...and Mommy is sleeping, so I'll have to get her goal in the morning.
I think it's going to be a great summer!
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