Our Summer Re-cap & a 30-Day Prayer Challenge
SO WE ARE BACK!!! You may have noticed that we have not published a post since June(May’s Book Shelf). Well this was due to a couple of things. For one we wanted to develop our YouTube channel (SUBSCRIBE HERE because it’s LIT!) AND to really just enjoy our summer. I thought it would be interesting if I gave you guys a RE-CAP of our summer AND invited you all in on an EXCITING OPPORTUNITY at the end of this post!
So we’ve been very open and transparent in our previous podcast episode and blog post with just our ups and downs with parenting. To say that I was excited for school to end would be an understatement! I felt like the teachers needed break, my child needed a break and most importantly… I needed a break LOL! So around the end of the school year, I wanted to make sure that my oldest, Farrah, was encouraged throughout the summer but still stayed engaged with learning opportunities and REAL TALK…had fun! I truly felt that as much as I was discouraged by some of the events that happened during the school year, I could only imagine how she felt as a little 6 year old. The goal was to ensure that we built her up and poured into her. I took this thought to Melvin and he of course agreed and I started to construct what I like to call and “Enjoyable and Engaging summer.” Starting on the last day of school, we kicked off the summer by going to a waterpark and really letting our hair down. My girls and I are really water babies and love all things water. Melvin? Not so much…LOL! But he’s always on board for family time so he folds. From there, the summer just kept rolling.
So what I’ll do is go through the activities for you all and hopefully I’m able to recall everything hehe! Before I get into it, I definitely want to let you in on how I planned the summer and what tools I used to keep me organized. For anyone who knows me knows that I am an A-type personality. I love organization & systems. The A-type in me sat down and whipped up a few charts and calendars to help me stay organized and I thought would be great if I shared those with our community. If you’re interested, I’ll link them below:
August Calendar List of Fun & Educational Activities
Sample Brainstorm Chart Brainstorm Chart
The GREAT thing about these FREE PRINTABLES is that you can use them for any time of the year. They were real lifesavers because I stayed so organized without getting overwhelmed.
ENRICHING & EDUCATIONAL ACTIVITIES:
Musical/Theater Camp— Now it was very important that we had fun but I definitely wanted to build upon Farrah’s knowledge throughout the summer. One of things was having her attend a week long Theater camp. Farrah LOVES to sing and dance and at the Dallas Children’s Theater, she was able to put together a musical production with her peers. They were able to pick out their own costumes, make up songs and dances all organized by their instructors. She loved it! She was able to meet children from all over the Metroplex. We will definitely come back next summer!
Summer Reading Program— Reading is fundamental! If you think about, our knowledge is built on one key factor…how well we can read. If you don’t know how to read well, it will be hard for you to comprehend and apply what you are reading. I wanted to do something more that the library programs where you log how many books you have read for a prize at the end of the program. I wanted Farrah to really grow in her speed and comprehesion. One of the local colleges offers a 5-week classroom program that does just that. There is online work and great class interaction.
Swim Lessons— Because we love to swim, it’s crucial my girls know how to swim and are comfortable around the water. This is yearly activity for us.
2. FUN ACTIVITIES:
Our summer consisted of a TON of fun activities! I cannot tell you how much water play we had. We host a couple of cookouts in our home and we attended a few free community family events. Disney is on a roll with the movies they are putting out and still haven’t gotten to all of them. So far, we have gotten around to Aladdin, The Lion King, and through Farrah’s summer camp, she went to the movies a couple of times as well. Speaking of summer camp, Farrah was in a summer camp LOL! I cannot say enough about this camp. They kept those kiddos BUSY. They went on a field trip weekly and to fun places…the COWBOY stadium, the skating rink, the local arcade/amusement center, and so much more! They also took the kids swimming every week as well. There were LOTS of educational activities for them, my favorite being their STEM program. It was money WELL spent!
3. STAYCATION & VACATION:
The height of the summer was our vacations! Our church had a local conference and we thought it would be a great idea to make it a staycation. We booked a hotel at the site and filled ourselves with good food and fellowship, family time, movie watching in the room, and of course…SWIMMING! The conference also had Vacation Bible School for the kids and the girls had a WONDERFUL time. The highlight of summer was the beach vacation to Galveston. We booked an Air BNB with dear friends of ours who have kids the same age as ours and we went to the beach. Talk about GREAT seafood, beach fun and new experiences! PLEASE TAKE ME BACK!!! This was Fallan’s very first time at the beach and she loved it! If you are interested in learning more about our time in Galveston, we recorded an EPISODE detailing it. We had such a great time with our friends that it inspired us to do a whole YouTube series over Christian Community (See Below):
Why You Need Christian Mentors
I’m not going to even lie, I’m a bit sad because we had so much family fun! So many new experiences and it’s ALWAYS a joy to see life through your children’s eyes. I’m just so grateful to God that he drop those ideas and thoughts onto Melvin & I. It really confirms that a little bit of investment on our part has returns a huge benefit with our children. I am so excited for the months ahead though. My favorite season, Fall, is upon us. Shortly after is the holiday season and January is Farrah’s and my birth month so we have exciting times coming up!
So on to even more EXCITING NEWS!!! We are starting a 30-DAY PRAYER CHALLENGE to cover our kids for the upcoming school year. A lot of children started school last week, some start this week, and other’s start next week. My daughter starts 1st grade today (Wednesday, August 14) so we are kicking this challenge off right now! Here is how the challenge works:
-Download the FREE PRAYER CARDS here: www.soulsenseministries.com/subscribe
-Each day will have a guided scripture and a specific prayer for that day.
As stated previously, the duration of the challenge is 30 days and for the first 10 days, Melvin and I will walk with you with snippet videos to demonstrate. Let’s all unite in prayer and cover our children, teachers, and schools. Again, click the above link and join the challenge!!!
Join US for the CHALLENGE!