I like to refer to my girls as the “girls of summer” because they are ready for any summer adventure anytime, anywhere. Unlike their Yankee mother, who thrives in the cool breeze and skinny jeans of fall, my girls are game for water activities and no rules each time June rolls around and alarm clocks are turned off.
How we stay ready for summer adventures
My girls are so ready for whatever summer may bring that we keep a summer go-bag at the ready, fully stocked with summertime necessities. Swim time at the pool? We’re ready! Picnic lunch at the park? Count us in! Air-conditioned movie date followed by lunch on a patio? Yep. We’ll be there too!
Long-gone are my days of diaper bags and onesies (my youngest is 5), but I do have a large open tote packed with items that make us ready to go at a moment’s notice. Yep. An entire tote. Every year I seem to forget exactly how much stuff a ready-for-anything summer break requires!
What we keep in our “go bag”
- Bathing suits and towels for each kid
- Sunscreen
- Bug spray
- Bottled water (at least 3)
- Juice boxes (at least 3)
- Snacks (applesauce pouches, raisins, granola bars, chips, dried fruit, Uncrustables)
- After-sun spray/lotion
- Sunglasses
- A few dollars in cash
- A wet/dry bag
- Wipes
- After-swim shampoo (to get my girls’ blonde hair squeaky clean after chlorine!)
Teaching the kids to take responsibility for the bag
Each morning, I have my girls check the bag and make sure snacks and drinks have been replenished. It drives me bonkers when we arrive at a destination and the “I’m hungrys” start. So each morning the girls go to the cupboard and make sure each snack has been properly restocked so our adventures aren’t sidelined when hunger sets in. The girls are also responsible for making sure wet/used bathing suits and towels are placed in the hamper to be washed and replaced with dry ones. Last summer, my oldest forget to pack a dry bathing suit for herself one morning and learned the importance of helping repack the bag the hard way. I feel certain she won’t make that mistake this summer!
I love having our bag ready to go. Some days we don’t need it. And some days it’s a lifesaver. It always use to get moving quickly if a friend texts about meeting up (and saves my sanity if the girls start climbing the walls!). As my girls get older, I also love having them help me out with the bag and taking responsibility for the items therein. It may not always be fun being left out of pool fun because you forgot your bathing suit. But sometimes, the lessons you learn the hard way are the ones that stick for life!
