That's a Wrap: Our Fun Friday Review

The summer’s end has weighed on me more than usual this week. Tonight my kids backpacks are packed. (I think.) The final few minutes of summer vacation ticks by as rain pounds outside. I imagine the weather throwing its own tantrum over the end of vacation. I stand by my opinion on the “18-summers” craze, but I continue to feel the pressure to make each moment of these days count.

We had one of the best summers this year. The kids learned the value of doing their chores right (continued electronics) and the consequences of saying you did your chores when you did not (not being able to spend the night with a friend). We also spent time together, traveled and tried some new experiences.

I’ve posted about our Fun Fridays on my Facebook page and I think I’ve written about it on here. A friend asked me where I found the idea. I wish I had a better story, but Fun Friday was birthed from my working-mama guilt.

When my son entered kindergarten I started picking him up from school instead of sending him to daycare. In the summer he stayed with his younger sister at the sitter’s house. He did go outside some, but not as much as he was used to at school and daycare. I felt guilty over “abandoning” him every day. His sister was little and enjoyed playing with her toys inside, but I felt like he needed something more active.

I thought if I could at least take off on Friday afternoons we could do something fun together. It began with trips to the splash pad, the pool, and a local children’s health center. Over the years we’ve expanded our trips as the kids grew and their interests expanded. Last year we began adding friends to our trips and made it even more fun.

At first I avoided mentioning to my clients that I took off on Friday afternoons, then I realized how many other small and mid-sized business owners did the same thing! It’s a privilege to be able to take the time off, but I’ve made sacrifices along the way.

As we move into late April every year the kids begin naming the activities they want to do for Fun Friday. I’m thrilled they look forward to it so much. I pray regardless of how my parenting may ruin them in other ways they will remember our Friday afternoons together with a smile and know I love them.

Enjoy a few pictures from our excursions this year! I know I’ll enjoy remembering our adventures!

Biking the Tanglefoot Trail

We hit the bike trail early this year before the temps got too hot. We managed to bike around 11 or 12 miles round trip. I also learned the advantage of having teen-aged boys around. They insisted on loading and unloading the bikes.

Our Disney Vacation

We include our vacation in our Fun Friday list because we're gone at least one Friday and it's a lot of fun!

Library, Sweet Treats, & a Movie

We had surprise guests for our most laid back Fun Friday. My kids love our local library. We check out some new books and then headed to Endville Bakery for sweet treats. They let us play a game of cards while we ate. After my niece and nephews headed home, we met Josh for Toy Story 4 on opening day.

Girl's Spa Day

While Malcolm was at church camp, Katie and I opened the tween spa for one day only. The girls had fun with face masks and a foot soak. We also painted nails and did make-up.

Dismals Canyon

Finally! After years of placing this hike on our Fun Friday list but never actually making the trip, we convinced Josh to take the day off and headed into the Canyon. We will for sure go again!

Children's Camp

We left for children's camp on a Friday. We had an entire weekend of fun with friends and some great worship too.

Kayaking

We borrowed kayaks from some friends and headed to Hernando where my sister lives on a lake. We don't have any other pictures. My sister's family fosters several teen boys. We want to respect their privacy and they were a part of this Fun Friday. So I'll let you imagine the three of us plus my sister and six of her eight kids one the lake.

Fayette Aquatic Center

I put out a call for friends to join us for our final Fun Friday. We had some great friends who agreed to go with us and it was the best time. We may have decided this needs to be a tradition. Every tradition starts somewhere, right?