The summer routine... sort of

Before school got out, we sat down and figured out a basic daily routine.  (The kids and I do better if we have a plan for the day.)  We also planned out some new lunches and snacks to try and Emily helped me schedule them on our master calendar.  But we wanted to leave some room for fun and spontaneity as well.  And this week has definitely been all about spontaneity!

So our original schedule plan was:

Wake up, eat breakfast, get dressed
8:30    Workbooks
10:00  Science lab
11:30  Lunch
12:30  Quiet reading time
2:00    Daily activity (crafts, games, cooking)
3:00    Snack
Free time until Dinner
5:00/5:30  Dinner
6:00     Clean up and pick up
6:30     Baths, stories
8:00     Bed--lights out

Here's how it's really gone...

Monday we got up and got moving with every intention of following our schedule.  Everyone started on workbooks with a minimum amount of whining.  They had a little play time while I set up the science stuff.  My mother found some really awesome Magic School Bus Science kits, so we're working on one a week as the summer goes on.  This week is all about magnets.  We tested lots of objects around the house to see if they were magnetic, then took iron filings and made beards and hair on faces.

While we were working on our science, I got a text message from a friend saying they were going to the pool and inviting us along.  So we threw on our swim stuff, packed a lunch, and went to the pool.  The best part of that was Ben deciding that maybe the pool was pretty fun after all.  After sitting on the edge for quite awhile, then finally got in with me.  By the time we left, he was playing in the water (the shallow end was only a foot deep) and he was the one most upset when it was time to go home!  It was so fun to have him actually enjoying the pool and playing, instead of just sitting on the edge.

We got home, got changed, and just as we were putting our stuff out to dry, we started hearing thunder.  We ended up having a massive Texas thunderstorm, so we had chosen the right time to leave the pool!  All of us were tired from swimming, so Emily and Jonathan went up to have some reading time in their room while Abby, Ben, and I read some books and had some quiet snuggle time downstairs.

Jonathan was in charge of Family Home Evening treats for the night, and wanted to make chocolate chip cookies.  I had seen an article about the science behind chocolate chip cookies, so we decided to start an ultimate chocolate chip cookie search.  We're not going to get as crazy as all that, but figured we'd have fun with trying some different cookies.  So Jonathan made a batch of one variety, Emily made another, and Abby and Ben helped with another.  3 types of cookie dough later, we were ready to make dinner!

After dinner was Family Home Evening.  Emily was in charge of lesson, and she wanted to play a game, so we had a massive game of Sorry.  We had mostly good sports.  Mom and Ben won, but it was a super close game.  Then we taste tested our cookies, and Emily and Jon gave them ratings.  Cookie #3 moved on to the next round.

We already knew that Tuesday was going to be a different sort of day.  Tuesdays are Jay's regular day off, and one of our local movie theaters does free movies on Tuesday and Wednesday during the summer.  So the kids got to do abbreviated workbooks, then we were off to see How to Train Your Dragon.  We had seen that movie approximately a thousand times, but it was really fun to see it on the big screen.

After a quick stop at Momo's house to pick up some stuff, we went home for lunch and decided to hit the pool again.  Benjamin loved the pool again.  Abby is starting to kick her legs, and we're trying to get her ready to start swimming on her own.  Emily loves the water and was happy going down the big slides and was swimming everywhere.  We ended up having a huge game of family tag in the pool, which was pretty funny.

After baths and dinner, Emily had Activity Days with her girls group from church.  And they were....  having a pool party!  So she and I packed up and I dropped her off for more swimming fun.  I then went to the library and Michaels ALONE.  When I got back, she was having fun, and I had other moms to talk to, so she stayed a little later to swim more.  By the time we got home and she took a shower, I'm kind of amazed she made it to bed before falling asleep.

Over the weekend, we had purchased a case of apricots to be turned into jam (23 pounds worth).  I spent Tuesday night pitting apricots so I could start jam on Wednesday.

Wednesday morning, Emily and Jonathan negotiated an exchange of workbook pages for writing a story.  Emily is writing a "chapter book", so she wrote the first two chapters.  Jonathan wrote a short story.  Then the three younger kids disappeared to play while Emily helped me work on jam.  I taught her how to operate the food processor and we talked about how jam is made.  She stirred occasionally too while I was moving laundry and emptying the dishwasher.  After a couple batches, we took a break to make lunch.  We had planned to have pizza monkey bread on Monday, so I had made the dough before we got invited to go swimming.  With Tuesday's craziness, we hadn't made it then either, so that was on the menu for Wednesday.  Emily helped roll the dough, put together all the ingredients, and put it all together.  Everyone except Benjamin thought the end result was delicious.

After our lunch break, it was back to jam.  We ended up making four batches before running out of jars.  And it was time to get early dinner before Emily and Jonathan needed to pack up for gymnastics.  Jay came home from work and the three of us ran out the door.  After their classes, we stopped at Momo's house for more jars so we could finish the rest of the apricots (it turns out that 23 pounds makes A LOT of apricot jam!) and for some leftover chocolate cake.

Thursday ended up being weird again.  Abby had a rash on her back that didn't seem to be getting better, so we scheduled a pediatrician appointment.  The other three didn't really want to go sit at the doctor's office, so they went to play with Momo and Popo and Rebecca while Abby and I trouped across town.  The verdict on the rash was that it was "one of those things", so we left with a prescription for some antibiotic cream and headed back to pick up the others.  Emily and Popo were sitting down to lunch when we got there, so we fed everyone and sat and talked for awhile before going home.  All of us were tired when we got home, so Emily and Abby took a laptop to Abby's bed and Jonathan and Benjamin took a computer to Ben's bed and they watched movies for a little while.  I took a nap!  After an hour or so of quiet, we were all feeling happier and made smoothies for a snack.  Then I got back to jam while the kids played.  We finally finished all the apricots Thursday night.  56 jars ought to last us awhile!

Ben loves sitting in Popo's chair,
whether Popo is in it or not!

Friday my mother had scheduled a play date at the splash pad for the kids, and I needed some study time for a certification exam I have next week.  She picked them up a little before 10 and they were ready and excited to go.  They spent the day playing and making Father's day gifts with Momo and Rebecca while I studied at home and cleaned up the canning mess.  Friday night, Jay and I went for dinner and Father's Day celebration.  It was a great evening, and the kids were tired and happy after their fun day with grandparents and auntie.

Jonathan and Popo

Emily and Rebecca made
a super cool board game
for Popo to play with the
kids when they visit.
Emily spent all day
decorating the board.

Abby and Silver Fox being
elegant together.

Our routine mostly went out the window, but it's summer, so that's ok!  We had a great week and so much fun together!  I love being home with my kiddos!