Summer Fun!

What does summer mean for you? Some words that come to my mind include: Barbeques. Beaches. Summer camps. Sunscreen. Sunglasses. Icecream. Lazy days. Long walks. Sandcastles. Swimming. Boating.

Notice any words missing from this list? How about over-scheduled, computer, cell phone, conflicting schedules, harried.

What makes summer unique from the other 3 seasons is an opportunity for all of us to toss caution in our schedules to the wind and let loose a bit. If we continue at the manic pace of the school year, we'll pay the price for that eventually. We'll become stressed, snippy, moody, unhappy, unable to have fun, even get sick more often. So, don't let that happen to you or your family. Let the warmth of the summer days truly take you away a bit and try and unwind. Sure, there's work and we all have that here and there, too. But, when not working, we have choices for our time. And, we have choices for our kids' time while we are working. Resist the temptation to over program them and keep the pace of the school year. What kids really need right now is down time and time to just do what they want.

Along the lines of this theme, here are some links to help you get into the mood of the season:

Dr. Gwenn's Review of The Daring Book of Girls
Dr. Gwenn's Blog Post: Don't Forget the Fun and Freetime This Summer

As Ted Reinstein said recently on The Boston Channel's Chronicle:

"Let your kid skip the soccer clinic or the computer camp. Yeah, someone has to basically be around, but cobble that together between parents.Summer’s here; let ‘em make some memories from something they discover, not that you have planned.So what if they flood a village?"

Here's to a wonderful summer filled with great memories and days of what I love to called "planned nothingness"!

Cheers!

Dr. Gwenn
July 2008

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Last Month's Editor's Corner: 7th Inning Stretch

My family LOVES the Boston Red Sox. We follow the scores and flip on games constantly. And, create a great many family days all with a Sox theme. We've had Sox nights with Fenway Franks at home and created incredible barbeque meals knowing the Sox will soon be one.

For us, baseball season translates into family season because of how much time we all end up spending together. Our collective love for the Sox gets us all in the same room and we just run with it. Sometimes we'll watch the game but more times than not we'll have the game on while we do other things with the kids - play other games, talk, cook a great meal on the grill. It is a consistent time the computers are off and not being checked and we let the answering machine earn it's keep!

If the game is on at home, my girls will often sing "Sweet Caroline" when the 7th Inning Stretch comes along, a Fenway Park tradition. I started thinking "wouldn't it be great if we could have a 7th Inning Stretch each and every day?" Actually, why not!

Why can't we pause some time from the zaniness of athletic events, performances, class picnics and social events? Why are we running ourselves ragged at the expense of family time?

We can and we should! There is no reason we can't have some baseball magic in our daily lives if we become a bit more thoughtful over how we spend our time. Perhaps we need to start saying "no" to those extra things that we don't have to do, don't want to do, and don't add value to your family' life.

What you want to strive for is some niche of time that is just for your family - even if it ends up being a nice dinner on a Tuesday night before your daughter zips off on an extended class trip the next day (like we just did!). Be creative - and create your own 7th inning stretch. You could even serve up Fenway Franks and sing "Sweet Caroline" if you want to...but the point is just to regroup as a family regularly.

Cheers!
Dr. Gwenn
May 2008