Cross-posted from Cherry Blossoms The Blog.
Of course I couldn’t let one brother plan his own week without the other having a turn. It was fun to see the differences in their personalities, the one who planned a detailed activity list and provided me with a shopping list in advance vs. the one who changed his activity list as soon as he realized he would need to write anything or plan it out. Fortunately they’re both fun-loving guys and this week was fantastic. This second son of mine is a lad of so many interests but his primary motivation for absolutely everything is fun.
Monday: National Scouting Museum
This remains one of our favourite spots and it is closing at the end of the summer and moving to Philmont so we’ll be visiting several more times this summer. You just can’t beat a hands-on, interactive museum with all the boys’ favourite things: spelunking, canoeing and kayaking (not on open water, sadly, but you can get in the boats and practice your strokes,) pinewood derby racing, and of course a shooting range. We also had to spend a lot of time in the shop because while the museum is open till Labour Day, this was the last week for the shop.
Tuesday: Skating
You’d be right if you thought “didn’t they do this last week?” We love ice skating! It’s more fun with friends, of course, so we picked up a couple and stayed at the rink until they kicked us out.
Wednesday: Slime and Swim
Making slime never gets old, and our friends taught us some new tricks — check out that bubble!
Thursday: Chill Out
Ahh, this is a family classic I think. Chill Out Day is code for video games. They even assign homework to the mums and the friends: more video games. It seems to me there was also some nerf playing that day, but the vast majority of the afternoon was one video game or another. My 10 year old has a very high play quotient so this made for a very happy boy, and I don’t mind a marathon spree of gaming if it’s every once in a while and collaborative; when it’s a daily requirement and a solitary activity then my alarms go off.
Friday: Canadian Trivia and Storytelling
With Saturday being Canada Day, my son wanted to celebrate on Friday with our friends. After one final goodbye to the Scouting Museum Gift Shop wherein we bought a few souvenirs and spent a long time just walking the aisles we had our annual Canadian Trivia game with our friends (who also happen to be Canadian.) It was a little embarrassing which basic things the children didn’t know, but we had a great time. We also have some educating to do.
Everyone was a winner! Nanaimo Bars for all!
While the kids ate their sweets I read them “The Cremation of Sam McGee” and the “Shooting of Dan McGrew” both classic northern tales. I love these particular books because Ted Harrison’s prints are so quintessentially northern and really scaffold the poems for younger readers. Both Robert Service poems are great for reading comprehension, and the kids definitely get a kick out of the macabre content.
Service: If I don’t start the week with a clear plan for service I’m finding it quite hard to do something meaningful with the kids. Sure, I spent a couple hours helping my former boss and I donated blood (if you can, please schedule an appointment right now! Blood supplies are critically low!) but neither of those were things in which my children were actively involved. Service projects for children are harder than I thought. I have some solid ideas for some of our other weeks this summer, but welcome your suggestions as well. How do your children serve others?
Next week: Planes, Trains, and Automobiles
Disclosure:
I received no compensation for any of my activities in this post.
The opinions presented in this post are mine and have been written in my own words.
