This summer we are living on a pretty tight budget (what's new). Christopher and I are renewing our wedding vows this August, and it is taking every penny that we have to do it right. Being cash strapped doesn't mean that I am not putting any effort in to make our summer the best that it could be. I want this to be the best summer that I can create for my kids. I've decided to make a bit of a game of it. What can we do for nothing or next to nothing?
I really do try to make summer memorable for the kids, but I am not a martyr (not anymore anyway). I have spent every Thursday having coffee with my ladies, and I would miss that over the summer. I love my kids more than anything on earth, but I need adult conversation. I need my coffee time! I have come up with a pretty darned good solution if I do say so myself.
Last Friday my friends and I packed picnic lunches, and all met up at the Madoc Skate Park with our kids. Our kids are all different ages, and none of them are school friends, but lets face it, kids are kids and will enjoy almost any other child's company. As we arrived it began to rain, but that was alright because there was a covered picnic area. We set up a buffet for the kids, combining all of our foods. There was LOTS. My guys love food, and get pretty darned excited for a buffet. The kids all chowed down and we adults talked... it was nice.
The rain let up after we were done our lunch, and we headed over to the splash pad. I love the Splash Pad because it is all fenced in. I also love the Madoc Splash Pad because they have umbrellas and lawn chairs. We sat in the corner so that we had the best vantage point of the splash pad. It was really fun to see the kids all tearing around howling with laugher. It was funny because like I have already said, our kids are not school friends, but at the Splash Pad they all traveled together in a clump. At one point the boys made a fort out of towels and lawn chairs, as the girls all lay on their blanket trying to catch some rays (they were all sunscreened before we left). It wasn't long before the girls saw what the boys had done and wanted in on the action. They together created a towel village.
We had an amazing day. The kids had a blast, and we adults enjoyed the conversation. We stayed all afternoon. At 4:00 we rounded up all of the little rug rats and loaded them into our vehicles. As we were leaving both of my friends kids asked if we could do this every Friday. It think that they have the right idea. My goal is to try to find as many fun and different things that we can do, with minimal or no cost... wish me luck. Friday's adventure cost me a donation to the Skate Park and gas money... a good deal!
p.s. If you are wondering why only Elly is featured in all of the pictures no it is not because I love her the most. These pictures were taken at Elly's junior kindergarten class trip to the Madoc Skate Park. The sun did not shine that brightly for us Friday. It rained on and off the whole time that we were there. We didn't care, the kids were playing in water anyway, and we had an umbrella to huddle under. Because of the water I did not take my camera.
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