As of today we are officially on the one week countdown to our Summer holidays from school and I could leap for joy! As you can imagine we are not only very tired and completely ready for this long break, but also super excited for 6 weeks of adventures and fun times together. We have been making plans with friends old and new, plans with their cousins and booked a huge family holiday to Scotland (in a castle!) towards the end of August! We have been talking about camping, beach trips, walks, museums, food and swimming. And with all of that chat, we just know that whilst it’s going to be a busy few weeks, it’s also going to be absolutely brilliant too!
I love the Summer holidays and I am especially looking forward to this years as we are now settled in our new home and lives. I have also been thinking of how we are already so very much in the Summer groove with this glorious weather we have been having. That in itself has meant that we have had lots of beach trips, country walks and adventures that have really put us in the mood for “the six weeks holidays” and helped us enjoy Summer right now in the moment! I find that Summer is such a joyful time of year and I do not fear the school holiday’s as I know some parents do – yes of course it will be tiring and nuts, but in a different way to what the school runs are and I love the freedom that time is ours!
Living where we do now, we have nature walks on our doorstep, friends in every other house (just about), and the beach a stone’s throw away. Whatever happens, or however tight money may feel some weeks, we are surrounded by potential free adventures and that fills me with more confidence than I have ever had in the lead up to the Summer Holidays and consequently makes me so happy!
With that in mind, this years Summer holiday plans are way more sporadic than how we have planned it in previous years. Last year and the year before in 2016 I wrote about how our plans for each week were very much structured and themed day by day. This year however we haven’t done that. We know what we want to do and we are going to go and do it – if not we will stay home and explore the fields or play with friends!
The only planning has been in a calendar to give an idea of when! There are lots of things we have chatted about what we want to do and lots of people we want to spend time with and so, we simply sat down together and brainstormed what everyone’s ideas were. From there we have made a spreadsheet calendar to track the possible days we can fit it all in, so that this way Mr Smith has an idea of what we plan to do (when and where) and can hopefully book some annual leave around it to join in the fun!
Last Summer was great – having a bucket list enabled us to do, see and experience so much. So yes, we now have 5 more days of school following this weekend, so whilst I sort out their worse for wear school uniforms and prepare to tackle one more week of school runs, I will leave you with our 2018 Summer Bucket list – perhaps it will inspire you?!
Summer Bucket List 2018
Go Camping (more than once)
Go to Flamingo Land
Go Swimming with Slides
Play Pirate Golf
Climb a Mountain
Swim in a river
Go to The Deep
Rock Pooling on Filey Brigg
Medical Museum in Leeds
Tropical World in Leeds
Chatsworth House
A boat ride
Fort Paull
Dalby Forest
Go to Scotland with the Family
Toast Marshmallows & make smores
Withernsea Lighthouse and Spurn Point
Williams Den
Play in the Water fountains in Hull
A countryside walk
Have a picnic in a field
Wharram Percy
Build Sandcastles
Eat a Waffle on the Harbour
Eat Ice cream sundaes at the seaside
Go on some seaside rides
Ride the Steam Train to Whitby
Play on Grandma’s water slide and make pizzas in her garden
Go to Scarborough
Seems like a crazy holiday Mary. Safe travel and best wishes for you and your kids!