We had a really great summer and this year my husband took off every Friday, which was excellent - highly recommend. This enabled us to check off a lot of bucket list items and we're hopeful that summer 'fun family Fridays' will be a yearly thing. Without further ado, here's what we managed to accomplish besides slothing in the backyard, hitting up the pool and beach.
An easy one to check off the list, and I highly recommend these Smitten Kitchen muffins.
Another gimme for the summer!
Christopher Robin was the consensus this year, and it did not disappoint. I have a huge crush on Ewan McGregor, so this was a win win for me!
We ended up enrolling in the national Kids Bowl Free program and went at least once a week, which was pretty fun! It doesn't end up being free, exactly, because I paid $30 for my husband and I to have unlimited bowling with them, and I spend $12 on shoes each time we go. But, all in all, it's a pretty good deal for keeping entertained during the summer months and it's still good through September.
My husband checked this one off with the kids, while I had a day of relaxation for my birthday. Ahhhh.
Another year, another successful and strenuous hike for the kids! We finally hiked the skyline trail after a 12 year hiatus, waiting for the kids to be old enough to handle it. They had some setbacks, there were bouts of whining, but when they were done with over 8 miles of walking for the day, and well over 1500 feet of elevation gain, they were really proud - as were we!
We did Big Four and happened upon a hike and sketch program which was really awesome! Additionally, my husband took the eldest on his first Rattlesnake Ledge hike.
Nope. Just as with the school year, and even more so in the summer, I am stick-a-fork-in-me DONE by the time evening rolls around and am not super motivated to leave the house. Oh well, I'll put it on the list again next year, I'm sure!
Annual Car Show
My daughter had a birthday party on this particular day, but my boys went and enjoyed!
Art Project
Well, we didn't do an art project per se, but the kids did their Amazon STEM kits, as well as National Geographic fossil kits and they discovered paint by sticker books
- which were a HUGE HIT this summer!
Our first visit to MoPOP was so much fun, and we are now working our way through all of the Marvel movies with the kids (they had only seen the Guardians films and Black Panther). They mostly geeked out over that, while my husband and I also enjoyed a lot of old school sci-fi memorabilia - Aliens, The Fifth Element, Battlestar Galactica, the list goes on!
Deep Clean/Purge and Rearrange Kid's Rooms
We did this the last week of summer and my boy actually said it was FUN. I mean I enjoy a good game of keep, toss or donate, so the apple must not fall far from the tree.
My son and I are nearly done with The Order of the Phoenix, but I got a late start on Prisoner of Azkaban with my daughter, since we spent the first part of summer reading Anne of Green Gables! YAY! She really enjoyed it and that makes my heart so HAPPY. And, of course they completed their summer reading challenge!
Visit Wild Waves
NOPE. Another thing that I keep telling myself I'll do with the kids that I'll put on the list year after year. One day, when I'm feeling brave...
Yoga Breaks
Cosmic Kids Yoga is so darn cute and I highly recommend! We even did some in the backyard!
Have Each Kiddo Pick a Meal to Make for the Family
This didn't happen, but since it's not necessary for warm weather/an outdoor activity, I'm hopeful that we will do this sometime during the school year!
Theo Chocolate Tour
The day that I chose to do this, the tickets were sold out online! Boo! Again, something that could be done during the school year, so maybe we'll try again and plan well in advance.
Redmond Night Bazaar
See above re: outdoor concert.
We've had bad timing in the past with ferries, so we didn't feel up to Bainbridge. Instead, we hit up Whidbey Island, visiting Coupeville and Fort Casey avoiding the ferries. Thumbs up for this as a day trip!
Try a New Cocktail Recipe
I tried this Escape From Alcatraz and made quite a few Aperol spritzes, but I kept coming back to last year's Gold Rush cocktail of bourbon, lemon juice, honey syrup and mint: so easy and delicious!
Try a New Restaurant for Dinner
We tried two new restaurants in Enumclaw during our summer road trip and both were excellent! The Historic Mint Restaurant and Ale House was really trendy and cute with tasty food and wikki stix for the kids! Il Siciliano also had excellent atmosphere, delicious pasta and pizza, as well as a nicely done Aperol Spritz. I wish we had a similar neighborhood Italian joint!
Unexpected bonus summer accomplishment number one:
My husband and son do a twenty mile supported bike ride every year, and this year I got a great pic:
But the real accomplishment was getting my daughter up and running on her bike! She was really determined and proud of finally hitting this milestone, and we are, too.
Unexpected bonus summer accomplishment number two: enroll my son in joining me for my boot camp class! He asked to come with me and I thought maybe he'd try it a time or two. And, lo, he loved it and dutifully came with me every Tuesday without fail this summer!
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