The Roanoker July/August 2022 - 14

the home front
That Summer Feeling
written by Christy Rippel Recapture the joy of summer with some simple house rules and goals, for your kids and yourself.
W
e are wrapping up the
school year right now,
though when you read
this, we'll be into the heart
(and heat) of summer. It's
been a hectic spring, and in the last few weeks
I've watched two band concerts, a fourth grade
presentation, and attended end of the season
tournaments and parties for four sports teams.
Like every other family I know, we are ready
for a break and the more flexible schedule that
summer brings.
The idea of a summer " break " stays with us
throughout childhood until we're post college,
or whenever we join the working world, and
are rudely expected to work in June, July and
August. The idea of a summer off eventually
fades into the background, another casualty of
growing up.
I transitioned from work life to being a stayat-home
mom, and summer freedom from the
preschool schedule wasn't exactly a welcome
change, either. When I had four children under
the age of eight, summer became more about survival
than enjoyment, and I don't wish for those
days back.
Now that my kids are older, I'm starting to
welcome the idea of summer again, and the possibilities
it brings for rest and rejuvenation. But
to make it a true respite, a real departure from
the hustle of the school year, I've learned that
a little advance planning allows us all to have
some freedom within a loose structure. Here's
my summer plan for my kids, which will be
hung on the fridge. My kids are 16, 13, 11 and
14 JULY/AUGUST 2022
nine, so I recognize some of this isn't possible
with younger children, but sometimes we also do
more for them than we should for longer than
we should. Steal from it freely if any of it suits:
Rippel House Summer Rules:
1. Breakfast and lunch is on you. Make your
own, clean it up.
2.
3.
Family dinner at seven. If you are at work,
it will be in the fridge.
Electronics in the house are paused until
two o'clock. In the morning you should
eat breakfast, do your chores, summer
reading, play outside, meet a friend, etc.
4. Use one cup a day for drinks. Keep it on
the counter.
5. Afternoon TV is in the basement only.
Just five guidelines keep things from getting
too chaotic, too noisy and too messy. If they
make their own breakfast and lunch, they can
eat what they like and I don't feel like a short
order cook. The first two meals of the day can
occur on their own schedule, which gives them
a feeling of control, while a set dinner time lets
everyone know (including my driving teen with
a job) what time a hot meal will be ready. Dinner
also gives us a chance to gather as a family when
we're able.
Last summer my kids woke up and tried to
immediately get on their devices, and I got tired
of regulating screen time for each kid. Keeping
their devices paused on my Xfinity app makes it
easy, and if they don't start until two, they can't
overdo it as easily. The cup rule might sound
like overkill, but I've learned that four children
can dirty approximately 316 cups in a single day
of summer. That is only a slight exaggeration.
And, finally, the afternoon TV rule is for
me. The YouTubers they watch have voices that
make me want to come out of my skin, so that
drivel must be enjoyed on the subterranean
level of the house. These rules keep it loose,
but not unraveled. And in that structure I can
have a summer plan for myself, so I can capture
some of that summer feeling I so miss. I plan
to unplug, catch up with friends in meaningful
ways and move my body.
Here are my plans:
1.
Read an hour a day. It can be in the middle
of the day, when the dishes aren't done
and the house is a mess, or at the end of
the day with my feet up on the deck, but
I'm making one of the things I love most
and don't do enough of a summer priority.
2. Take a break from social media. To
find more reading time, I'm deleting
Instagram and Facebook for the summer.
I don't need to know where people I
went to high school with are vacationing.
Instead of scrolling, I plan to call a friend
once a week.
3.
Swim on Sunday nights. I'm on a summer
swim team with my kids, and we
have an evening adult-only practice on
Sunday night. It resets my week to swim
in a quiet pool at dusk.
Whatever your house rules and goals, I hope you
and your family have a joyful, restful summer. I
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The Roanoker July/August 2022

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