If you are anything like me then you probably find that the day has come and gone before you could squeeze in any good old fashioned family fun! My biggest issue is that I don't deal well with stress. I try to avoid it by keeping things simple, but sometimes the smallest things are so much for me to handle that I stress and instead of doing what I need to do I do nothing at all. The simplest solution I have found is to have structure... but I'm a spontaneous person, so that too is hard! But, I have found a way to make this summer fantastic! All thanks to a friend of mine. She suggested 100 THINGS TO DO THIS SUMMER!

So, I made a list - STRUCTURE - of 100 things that I wanted W to do this summer. They range from the very SIMPLE (blowing bubbles, stargazing, and making shadow puppets) to more complex (visiting the carousel in Montana, watching a movie in the park). Some of these things were things I knew we were going to do (stay in a hotel, go on a road trip) and some were things I knew I would have to make time for on any given day (write and send a letter to Grandma and Grandpa). We don't do them in order, we just pick something each day that sounds fun - SPONTANEITY - and do it. Then we take a picture and put it in a little book and write just a small something to remember the experience by! If your kids are old enough - have them dictate the words to you or even write it themselves! What a great keepsake, huh?!?

This doesn't just have to be a summer tradition, do this at Christmas or over the whole boring winter! Make Spring even busier! You make the rules! You create your own structure! Doesn't matter how you do it - JUST GET OUT THERE AND DO IT!

The great thing about it is that I am creating so much Family Fun that I now have things to continue to share with all of you! My next post: A Family Stroll Down Memory Lane!

I thought it would be fun to have a Read with Me Monday with nursery rhymes so I started looking for ideas.  Don't you just love the Internet?  I found some fun ideas and put my own spin on things for a truly enjoyable Read with Me Monday all about the nursery rhyme...

Humpty Dumpty

We pulled out my husband's childhood nursery rhyme book The Real Mother Goose and read Humpty Dumpty several times.

Then using another idea I read about we gathered blocks from the toy box to build a wall and using our Humpty Dumpty Cupcakes retold and acted out the nursery rhyme.

 There is nothing better in July heat than finding a way to cool down. And there is also nothing better than spending quality time with your kids. Get outside and have a water fight!! It doesn't have to be spontaneous. Plan it ahead of time, let everyone know the "rules" and maybe even go get dollar store water guns for everyone! Create some memories! Don't forget to take pictures!! Just don't get your camera wet!