Amazing Summer

Mike and I have started putting together an Amazing Summer for our kids.  Well, lets be honest, Mike has all the good ideas.  We are hoping that this will take awhile to set up, then be easy to keep up.  The kids have their daily checklist of chores to do.  Basic things like making their bed, practicing the piano, reading for 20 minutes, getting dressed . . . we had to put getting dressed on there or they would stay in their pajamas the entire summer!  There is also a daily schedule that tells them things they will have to leave the house for. (Swimming, YM/YW, Drivers Ed - yikes!)

The coolest part of their ticket is the race info.  Mike has all kinds of crazy things he puts up there.  This is going to be the hardest part to keep up.  On the race info he has detours & roadblocks.  Here are some examples of detours.  Paper or Plastic Paper - Learn how to self-publish a printed book on Amazon by visiting www.createspace.com. Plastic - Learn how to self-publish an electronic book for Amazon Kindle by visiting kdp.hostedbywebstore.com.  If you couldn't guess, those were Maysen's challenges.  This one was Jorja's.  Grind the Flour or Move the Flowers Grind the Flour - With a parent, grind wheat into flour and then make 2 loaves of homemade bread.  Move the Flowers - Transplant at least 3 purple Iris flowers from the backyard to the front of the house.  Don't worry, we aren't planning on having a detour everyday!  On days we do, they sure will be fun!

Here are some examples of roadblocks:  Handwriting Challenge - Do the attached handwriting page as neatly as you can.  Scout it Out Complete the requirements for Citizenship in the Nation and make an appointment with the merit badge counselor.  Get as much done on your own and Dad can help you when he comes home.  Drawing - Draw dad a picture to give to him on Father's Day.

Anyway, we are hoping this will keep chores interesting this summer. Also, we are hoping that by doing this the kids won't end up spending their entire summer in front of the computer!  Have I mentioned how awesome my husband is?

We have also started a Speed Bump jar.  If the kids don't get their tickets done before bed time they can't get on their computer until all of the tasks for the next day have been completed.  They will also have to pick something out of the Speed Bump jar to complete.  Some of the tasks are hard and boring, some are more fun.....

Anyway, I'm excited for the kids to find their tickets tomorrow.  We introduced this to them last Sunday.  They have been waiting and waiting for it to start.  Well, Jorja is the most excited about it.  I hope this summer is awesome!