what are you doing this summer?

This is the question that seems to be on everyone's mind these days. School is almost over. The weather is warm. So what exactly are we going to do this summer?

This will be my third summer as a stay at home mom. The first summer I had a two year old, a newborn and a healing c-section incision. Getting to the backyard was a major accomplishment.

The second summer I had a tantrum prone three year old and a one year old who enjoyed nursing, took two naps a day and was not especially motivated to walk but was to old to sit by peacefully while big sis played. Getting to the backyard was still somewhat of an accomplishment.

But this summer I have a two year old and a four year old. Two kids that can do kid stuff. Two kids that can walk and talk and eat food. We are able to travel with a minimum of equipment and supplies. We are able to stay out for a whole day, because although Claire does still take an afternoon nap most days, she does not get cranky if she misses one.

The freedom! The excitement! The pressure of filling almost three whole months with no structured activities at all. I want it to be a balance of relaxing, unstructured time and fun activities. Memorable, yet manageable.

So what are we going to do this summer?

First up, we have a trip to Storyland planned, which will involve our first hotel stay as a family of four. We will also be taking several trips to my family’s beach house on Cape Cod. We typically spend most of our time on the beach, but Abby is also very interested in going on a whale watch and visiting the Zooquarium this year.

Okay, so that covers three, maybe four weeks of the summer. What next?

We will go blueberry and strawberry picking. The kids still talk regularly about how much fun it was to eat all the blueberries last year.

Bank of America is offering free museum admission on the first weekend of each month, so we will attempt a visit to the Museum of Fine Arts with the girls. I plan to spice this up by letting them choose post cards in the gift shop and use them for a scavenger hunt.

We will make good use of our Children’s Museum membership by visiting the wonderfully enchanting outdoor Wild Place, and special summer drop in events in Boston and Easton.

An All-You-Can-Eat Ice Cream Festival to benefit the Jimmy Fund. How could we not go?

And we can't forget the Zoo, with their new butterfly exhibit and Carousel.

Or Edaville Railroad and their fun little kiddie rides.

Still more summer left? My girls would probably love one of these Disney Princess themed Children's Theatre shows.

And finally, my favorite summer day trip is Nantasket Beach. When the tide is low, there is a wide flat beach full of tide pools for the girls to play in. The water is warm (for around here) and the waves are big enough without being too big. There is a Historic Carousel, a board walk filled with shops and a playground, plus convenient amenities like showers and a bathroom all for the low price of $3 for parking.

Okay, so now we have some places to go, but what about those rainy days? I am not an especially crafty person, so I am a big fan of the craft projects at our local library. Someone else has planned them, someone else has set them up and they are free.

But since my kids really do enjoy crafts, I did also manage to find a few crafty things that seem doable at home with a four year old and a two year old:

paint with pudding
summer coloring pages
caterpillar craft
salt art
flour play
magic goo

If we get desperate, we might try making bubbles, chalk, play dough or these sand footprints.

And to balance all of this summer fun, I hope to spend lots of lazy days just hanging around in our own neighborhood playing in the water and eating pops.

I tend to feel more pressure to be out somewhere doing something in the summer months, but the reality is chores still need to get done, gas is expensive and our entertainment budget is limited.

I am going to try to remember that is okay to just stay home and enjoy the simple pleasure of watching the kids play and explore in our own backyard. Simple. Relaxing. Fun. Free.

So what are you doing this summer?

Head on over to Rocks in My Dryer to see how others plan to keep the kids occupied during the summer months.

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Edited to Add:

A few more wonderful ideas I just have to add to my list:

free movies

attract and catch fireflies

nature scavenger hunt for toddlers/preschoolers

make an alphabet book