Good morning and happy Caturday!
I know it’s only the first week of July, but it already feels like summer will be over soon — at least it does for our family’s calendar, which currently revolves around the school year schedule.
It’s weird, but I guess it’s because when I was in school back in the ‘90s, I remember summer feeling like it stretched out forever. Somewhere between July and early August was when it felt like the days were twice as long, but maybe that’s because I was a latchkey kid and spent most of my summer days holed up in the house, LOL!
Raise your hand if this was your summer experience growing up. I don’t think it was uncommon for the era.
Also, my parents didn’t really believe in extracurricular activities unless they involved playing the piano. If you had to pay for an activity or if said activity didn’t enhance your chances of getting into a good college, (according to the Filipino grapevine in the Bay Area during that time), forget it, ha ha ha!
I honestly don’t even remember how I spent my days during the summer. I think there was a lot of watching MTV and “Divorce Court” (remember that show?), reading magazines and calling friends on the phone.
Anyway, my point is, now summer feels like it goes by in a flash, and on my list of things to do today are buying new uniforms for Connor and searching for a water bottle for her that hopefully won’t get gross quickly and will not get lost (where do all the lost ones go, sigh).
How’s your summer been so far, by the way? I hope that it’s been good to you, and that you’re getting some time to do some things you want.
Speaking of summer, is it just me, or does it feel like social media puts pressure to “make the most of the summer” and “capture all the memories” and do “all the things?”
I keep seeing posts that say that you only get X amount of weeks per summer, and you only get X amount of childhood summers for your kids, so this is the time to make it the best you can. And then I see people doing “all the things,” and, I’m like, well, I guess that looks like fun, but does every weekend have to be some sort of epic Instagrammable adventure?
For example, yesterday Connor, El Hub and I hung out in our front yard and read for a couple hours in the shade while Marnie hung out with us. And then we drove to a nearby picnic spot, ate lunch, read some more and then hung out on the grass next to a pond. And then we got soft serve.
Yes, adventure is fun, but I also think some time spent where one can just be is nice, too.
Hope things on your end are good. What’s your plan for the day? Connor and El Hub are fishing right now, so I’m going to finish up some writing and then Marnie and I are going to do a little dog training.
Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,
Karen
As a young kid I probably had more freedom than I should have had. We lived in a remote desert town for 4.5 years. I was allowed to run around unsupervised (but I never went more than about half a mile away from the house). I even sold Girl Scout calendars by myself (for some reason we didn’t sell cookies in 1970 in CA) door-to-door, something I find unthinkable now. For fun, I’d roller skate on the sidewalks and ride my bike around the neighborhood and the new construction area close by. I also spent a lot of time watching TV as 100+ temperatures get old even to kids.🌞 I also taught myself to knit, crochet, and do embroidery. And I did a lot of realistic pencil drawing.
I remember “Divorce Court” in the 1960s. I probably shouldn’t have been allowed to watch it at such an early age. My father was such a covert narcissist (who did not enjoy being a parent), that at the age of 8 I really wanted my parents to divorce. However, even if my mother had wanted to, she wouldn’t have as she could not make enough money to take care of 4 kids.
When we moved to TX, they had a different school year – for some insane reason it started a week or two before Labor Day, and ended a week after Memorial Day. What drove us crazy as kids was that TV commercials for “back to school” started by July 1st. 😝
Oh my gosh, I can’t imagine going door to door on your own! I would never let Connor do that now. How things change…
I think reading, a picnic and ice cream are quite an adventure! Picnics have always been my favorite!
Me too. I’m planning on doing a few more for us this summer!
If you are looking for a water bottle that is:
1) Easy to clean
2) Perfect size (not too big/not too small)
3) Rubber bottom for less noise in the classroom
4) Color choices
The Takeya 18oz is a great choice. My kids were in 4th and 5th grade last year and took these. You can also buy from Target or the Takeya website. They make them in steel or plastic. Straw or spout. Different size options. We prefer the 18 oz, steel, with spout lid…
https://www.amazon.com/Takeya-Actives-Insulated-Stainless-Midnight/dp/B071K1DMPS/ref=sr_1_2?crid=2TWPSY4DHX7NP&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.S9iM4wcPnCjDMR-iAb02IfI2RKGiM-Af5_LZKt6TBPSGbCiG8JrUGVET4orO7jPXEZd4c98fpKC3gOyHrQun_o2CeJ4cPgvUIab-w1-ZyQ1Z4ynQdEtWLn-hxyM_oz_-N-j-mLtbwSaNIJbkEcjSJ7n6ZjaDNSJCJ6T1CGd-04hO9ZZ3qptYHG2wCz_s-woe76WFcU_IdLYaJFr8iEriAY218wRgHaAQQzH0qkaOix7OjDRyjqODBwckP8zFg3QrbsQrYOnyE60BYBIOQgG7AXqknDgvDaFz8LKr9Iq0tmg.53rn2xKCKMU3LdTM7ORJZ9aB20U8FouC8jFmH_OSuxg&dib_tag=se&keywords=takeya%2B18%2Boz%2Bwater%2Bbottle&qid=1720443504&sprefix=takeya%2B18%2Caps%2C108&sr=8-2&th=1
Good luck!
And yes…summer seems shorter than ever🤪
Oh my goodness, thank you! I have a Takeya pitcher that I use for doing fruit infused water and I love it. I bet these are great!
The High Sierra Swoop SG Backpack has the best water bottle pockets. I had trouble finding one deep enough and these are great. And both of my kids approved them 😜. Different websites have different color options:
https://www.macys.com/shop/product/high-sierra-swoop-sg-backpack?ID=16192694&tdp=cm_app~zMCOM-NAVAPP~xcm_zone~zBROWSE_ZONE_A~xcm_choiceId~zcidM90RUP-68285884-d554-494e-865b-426d216f3f8a%40HB7%40You%2Bhave%2Bgreat%2Btaste%252C%2Bhere%2527s%2Bmore%2Bto%2Bconsider%24290756%2416192694~xcm_pos~zPos1~xcm_srcCatID~z29722