END OF SUMMER BUCKET LIST

The lazy days of summer are quickly winding down and soon the laid back, slower pace will give way to the hectic start of the school year.

Although, as a family of six, our summer wasn’t completely lazy or laidback – there were many nights spent at the ballpark and afternoons at the swimming pool and weekend visits and a vacation thrown in the mix. Our calendar was full, but not as demanding as the rest of the year.

We still had things to do, but they weren’t the typical rote items of life.

Each summer, my family creates a Summer Bucket List – a register of must-do items to complete between June and August.

Everyone gets to contribute something we can do together, and we hang the list in a visible spot in the kitchen, a daily reminder of the fun to have. (My daughter usually writes the list and it’s been fun to watch the progression of her handwriting over the summers.)

This Year's List

• Jump in a lake
• Ride bikes to Mr. Freeze for ice cream
• Climb a tree
• Go boating
• Have a lemonade stand
• Catch a Mud Hens game
• Sleep in a tent in the backyard
• Take a day trip to Put-In-Bay
• Play putt-putt
• Go to Cedar Point

We’ve checked off most of these, and it’s a good thing because time is running out.

I’m reminded daily how quickly time goes, as my kids are growing and becoming more capable and independent. Some mornings, I swear they’ve grown inches overnight.

So, in these final weeks, we plan to make the most of our time together. Afterall, most of us celebrate summer until Labor Day, so there is time to squeeze in a some more to-dos.

And here in Toledo, there are lots of fun things left to explore. We’ve added a few final items to the list:

Final Items

• Visit the new Glass City Metropark
• Play at Oak Openings
• Catch a movie at the Parkside Drive-In in Oregon

Soon, we’ll swap the swimsuits for soccer uniforms and the summer bucket list for school schedules. But I hope when we look back on the summer of 2023, we’ll remember how much fun we had working through our Summer Bucket List.