Summer Plans

I have been wanting this summer to be a lot of fun. I don't want to hear Aidan say, "Mom, I'm bored!" a hundred million times. So, I have made some plans. Lots of plans. And I want to share them. Feel free to steal any and all you would like to and make them yours. I got all of these ideas from one of my favorite craft blogs A Girl and a Glue Gun. And I freely stole them.

Aidan's To Do List

Jeremy and I decided that Aidan is big enough to start taking some responsibility around the house, aka CHORES! So, I made this cute chore chart with a magnetic whiteboard and magnets. Everything is interchageable and he can move the big magnets from "To Do" to "Done." I also have added things like, Store, Homework, Piano Lessons, Church, etc., so he knows what we are going to do today. He also has a weekly thing that he is going to work on learning, tying shoes, making different foods, telling time, money values, things like that. He got to choose the paper and the buttons, and so far, he has really liked it. I hope this system lasts for awhile. I actually like this so much, that I think that I am going to make me one!

I Know What We're Going to Do Today! envelope (Title courtesy of Phineas and Ferb)I want the kids to do stuff this summer, not just sit at home and watch TV or play Wii. I also knew that if I didn't plan ahead, I would allow us to do just that. So, I created this envelope and about 75 cards (the glue gun girl cards are much cuter than mine, but I didn't want to spend days on this project) and each night before I go to bed, I will select 1 and place it in the envelope, and the next morning, after Aidan has done certain chores, he can open the envelope, and we will do what it says inside! The cards are labeled crafts and science projects, outings, activities, and Theme Days. I am sure that I will be writing future posts about things that we do. There are all sorts of different things to do. Aidan helped me choose some and some will be suprises. He is really excited to do more (right now, we have just had an outing and an easy craft). Look for more in the future!

Summer Scrapbook

This was Aidan's 1st craft. We are going to keep a scrapbook of our summer adventures. I will help him write and he can draw pictures and keep track of things. I am not sure how this one will work out, but I hope we can keep it up. I think it could be a really neat thing for the family to look back on.

The "Mom, I'm bored!" Jar
I am excited for this one! When Aidan decides he is bored (usually while the babies are napping) he can pick a slip out of the jar. The papers are labeled with fun things to do (read a book with Mom, jump on the tramp, etc.) and not-so-fun things to do (clean up toys, pick weeds, etc.). It is the luck of the draw and he has to do what he picked out. I will help/do with him everything. I want it to be time together. For example, he decided he was bored today and picked out a paper. It was "Pick up downstairs toys." Well, that is a several hour chore for Jeremy and I, but I put a timer for 10 mins and went down and helped him. He didn't like it, but with me hanging out with him, it was much better.

Well, I know like that sounds like a lot, but we have done all of those things today, and there are still many hours left of the day. I really hope that this is a fun, happy, eventful summer for the Barnes Family!