Summer To Dos

School's out and I've been thinking about our summer plans. The kids will be in camp the first half of the summer until lunchtime. The second half we have nothing planned and I did that on purpose. My inlaws will be coming in for a week, but we don't have a trip planned. I'd like to do a short road trip as we haven't really explored the area with the kids yet. Door County Starved Rock, Galena, Indianapolis to check out what is supposedly the country's largest kids museum.

While our schedule of activities during the school year isn't super crazy, I am looking forward to some unscheduled time, and not having to drag the other two with me to the other kid's activity (although for the next 6 weeks my pickup/dropoffs will be a little crazy.

So here's the work in progress summer to do list.  I have the kids adding their options as well, my ideas are below.

Go berry picking - we go apple picking every year but have never gone berry picking

Catch fireflies

Ride the ferris wheel at Navy Pier

Take the train downtown - my son's request

Ride the Water Taxi - 14 years in Chicago and even I've never done this

Go to the Lichtenstein exhibit at the Art Institute

Picnic lunch at the park

Picnic dinner at the park

Go to a baseball game

Go to the zoo

Go to the Arboretum
Watch the Olympics

Watch fireworks
Roast marshmallows

Teach the kids how to play tennis
Teach the kids Danish
Teach them geography in a fun way
Nature Scavenger Hunt
Take them somewhere to sketch


Little Hugger wanted to make a paper chain link to count the days of summer similar to ones the had made at school to count other things. I suggested that she also write on each link one fun thing that happened that day on each link. At the end of summer we'll have a fun chain of memories.

Rather than adding a link each day, she wanted to make a full chain at the beginning and countdown and write the fun things we did each day on a link. Either way works for me although it is a little trickier to write on the links when they are already attached.

It's a little hard to read the "Kindergarten spelling" but I'd rather they write it themselves. In this case the first link was "Fireplace" aka the Fire Department Open House.

While I do have a few outings planned I hope that there will be a bit of the lazy days of summer fun included - Popsicles in the backyard, playing with friends etc.