We have been waiting in anticipation for weeks. Sun-filled days lazing around the pool, hitting summer camp and breaking free from routine. Vacations. Ice Cream. Picnics in the Park. Fireworks. Bike rides. And, the list goes on… Boredom does not even enter our minds as a possibility as we know that just being out of school is enough. Or is it?
Inevitably, 95% of Mothers and/or Fathers will hear the words, “I am bored” at least once this summer. And, those same Mothers and/or Fathers will begin counting down the days until school begins again. They will have seen enough Disney channel, heard enough beeping from video games and they will likely have implemented the “1 hour of screen time” per day rule.
Well, friends (I dedicate the use of that word to our dear preschool teacher, Miss Beth, who always spoke to Eva and her classmates with “friends, let’s think about how we do this differently” or “friends, what do you think we should do?”), Eva and I are here to help (and we thank one of our most devoted Glitter Girls, Katie, for urging us to write this post) with some of our ideas to battle summer boredom as well as some recommended internet sites to peruse.
Now, to get started, we had to have a fancy template for recording our list; what fun is it to create a list without a fabulous template. Of course, we looked for something glittery but alas, did not find. So, we settled on this super colorful fun template: http://www.activityvillage.co.uk/summer-planning-printable.
Next, Eva and I sat down and discussed some fun things that a) she could do on her own, b) some things I would like for her to do and c) a few things we could do together. And, here they are:
- Eva to find a new recipe to try every week with my help
- Eva to research and help write two blog posts per month
- Together, we learn one new guitar song per month
- Read at least six books
- Surf at least one time together
- Make a photo journal/yearbook
- Volunteer at the Senior Support Center
- Have a family picnic
- Catch lightening bugs
- Stay up all night (gulp, ok)
We mostly came up with ideas that melded with activities we are already doing however for a bit of inspiration, we did take to the internet. There are literally hundreds of ideas out there for battling boredom in the summer including:
Now, some of you may protest to the list-making. I mean summer is all about freedom from routines, goals, lists, right? YES! and….no for us. We tend to do better with lists 🙂 However, we love the idea of creating a jar labelled “I’m Bored” to place in the kitchen that is filled with ideas for those days that boredom sets in. Or maybe a popsicle stick bouquet that can be made out of tissue paper flowers attached to sticks with messages written on the bottom and placed in a jar with pebbles to keep the sticks standing. Bored? Pick a flower.
Now…Moms, Dads, Grandmas, Nannies, Guardians, etc. – in order for this to work, you need to plan a tiny bit to make certain if “make brownies” is chosen, that you actually have eggs in the house (Eva actually decided to make some brownies last weekend while I was taking a nap and decided to substitute applesauce for the eggs. Well, honey, it doesn’t quite work that way – the applesauce is substituted for the oil. Needless to say, the brownies never actually came together 🙂 Point is stock up a tiny bit at the beginning of the summer and stash items needed for the boredom busters so that you can pull out easily if something is chosen.
Well, that’s a wrap, Glitter Girls. If you decide to make your own #boredombuster list, jar or other fun idea, please share with us here, on Instagram (tag #loveglittergirl) or other social media (just remember to tag us).
xo,
Hilary and Eva