Mindy Carlson

We have 7.5 days of school left here in Switzerland and the boys are counting down. I am counting down too, but instead of checking the calendar 18 times a day and jumping around the house shouting about how I’m almost free like they are I am coming up with strategies on how to save my sanity.

One of the banes and yet saviors of my child-rearing existence is the iPad. It can hold their attention for hours, giving me needed time to myself, but it is such an attraction that they whine and plea and beg and generally make themselves 10th level nuisances until I give in. My thoughts lately have been how to use the iPad as a tool, but keep them from needed a 12-step program at the end of the summer.

A friend of mine recently posted a great meme from YourModenFamily.com about rules for summer.

I think this is a great template for me/us.  It keeps some routine, responsibility, and non-iPad stuff in our summer days.

However, I think I need to expand on this list for my older son.  He is older and is capable putting more time into things.  This is what I’ve come up for him.

Accomplishing this list could take anywhere from 3.5 hours to 4 hours, depending on how quickly they can make their beds and do their two chores.  I think half a day without screens is ideal.  And if we go to the pool that’s even longer without screens.

I am hopeful that the Swiss culture of letting kids have their freedom will allow them to have a fun and free summer.

I also am hoping to be able to do some day trips with the boys and really take advantage of our location in Switzerland.  Who knows where we’ll go? Maybe a weekend in Paris? Maybe to the Matterhorn?  We’ll see what the boys choose.

Also during this summer the kids and I will be going to Scotland!  I am extremely excited!  We will be seeing  Loch Ness, Glen Coe, and Hadrian’s Wall just to name a few places.  Our base of operations will be Edinburgh so we will be seeing a ton of things in Edinburgh, too.

And we are having visitors!  My brother-in-law and sister-in-law are coming in the first part of July and then my parents are coming back to visit in the later part of August.

As I read through this post I am seeing that we are going to be packing a whole lot into the scant 8 weeks that they boys have off from school.  Now maybe I’ll be checking the calendar 18 times a day!