Planning for a Safe & Healthy Summer

Creating a to-do list for the summer

My classes have ended and I’m nearing the end of the semester (nearly all of my grades are submitted). In my mind, it is summer.

Summer is a time to get outside, create new routines, and encourage our kids to participate in healthy activities. It is also a time when many of us travel. With summer on the horizon, I am beginning a six-part summer health and safety series today. Today I’m sharing my summer plans. And some of the best practices our family uses to plan our summer activities and ensure that we are all moving our bodies, engaging our minds, and resting this summer.

Plans for May…

One of the perks of my job as a professor is that my summer begins a month before our kids are done with school. So my theme for May is always — get $hit done. I am cleaning closets. Cleaning out my email inbox. Cleaning my office. I am ticking items off of my to-do list for work (writing reports, drafting proposals, and making to-do lists for students). I have created a reading list for the summer. And I am creating a power list for the summer — the five things (yes, only five things) I want to accomplish this summer.

By the time our kids are done with school, I hope to have a clean closet, a clean office, and a clear plan for the summer. Our family functions best when we have a plan — not a minute-by-minute schedule — instead, we create these for the day (i.e., library day, pool day, bike ride day, play with friends day, go get ice-cream day, go to the beach day, etc…).

Family Vacation…

One of the many things that I love about summer is getting out of town. Whether it be for a weekend or a month — getting away (alone or with friends or family) is such a treat. Our family enjoys traveling. And the pandemic put a damper on our travel plans these past few years. When we started planning our family vacation for this summer, we started asking questions about what makes us happy as a family. We started this process by looking at pictures. And we quickly realized — we enjoy being together. We love hiking, biking, and adventures. We also love water — beaches, rivers, lakes, waterfalls.

We made the decision to plan a vacation (or two!!) that allows us to do the things we love. We also made plans to visit with friends we haven’t seen in years — spending time with loved ones is good for your soul.

While I’m not planning to share details of our trip now, I plan to share everything once we are home. But rest assured that our family vacation will include planes, trains, automobiles, bicycles, and a boat. We also plan to walk through small towns and gardens. And we will enjoy good food, good coffee, good wine, and good friends.

Moving Our Bodies This Summer…

During the summer of 2020, we made a decision that moving our bodies every day must be a priority. We actually made a rule that no one could have dinner until we each did one of the following — took 10,000 steps, biked 5 miles, or kayaked 2 miles. It was a great rule. This summer we are changing the rule a bit… everyone has to take 15,000 steps, bike 10 miles, kayak 2 miles, swim 1 mile, dance for an hour, or do yoga for an hour before we can have dinner.

Prioritizing exercise is good for our physical and mental health.

Quiet Coffee Shop Time

Another thing we are doing in our house (and continuing this summer) is scheduling coffee shop time each day. This is an hour or so each day when we are together and quiet. We drink coffee/tea, light a few candles, and we sit together and read, draw, or write. Quiet time is so special, as is being together.

Recommendations for the summer…

Whatever you plan to do this summer, it is important to —

1. Keep your to-do list manageable. Rest is important.

2. Plan trips that include things you enjoy doing.
   We know so many families that enjoy vacations to Disneyworld or other amusement parks, but those vacations are not for us. We do not enjoy crowds, rollercoasters, waiting in line, or the amusement park “vibe” (to quote K). Our family is most happy when we are adventuring. We love National Parks, forests, and waterways. So we plan trips that make us happy. We do not have a keeping-up-with-the-Joneses vacation list. We do what makes us happy.

3. Make plans to move your body every day.

4. Connect with friends and family.
   Loneliness and isolation are an epidemic. Make plans to be with your people. We commit to family dinners each evening and our coffee shop times each day. But we also commit a week each week to spending time with my parents and a long weekend each summer with our pod family. Being together is important. Connecting with others is imperative. Teaching our kids the importance of maintaining relationships is priceless.

Summertime also comes with seasonal risks — sun exposure, ticks, travel, swimming, fireworks, glowsticks, and high temperatures that can cause foodborne illnesses. Over the next few weeks, I will be discussing each of these topics — so that you will all be safe and healthy throughout this summer. Be sure you are subscribed so you do not miss a post.

And be sure your friends and family are subscribed.

Here’s to a happy, healthy summer for each of you…