When I think of summer, it conjures up visions of a good book, a sweating glass of lemonade and a hammock. Unfortunately, I don’t have a hammock (or shade trees to tie a hammock to, which is the real reason I don’t have a hammock.) But even if I did, I’m not getting much opportunity to use it right now.
We have an upcoming surgery for one little person + we’ve had a extra doctor & therapy appointments + one little miss is enrolled in hula class and one little man in martial arts = a whole lot of time either in the car or in a waiting room.
While none of those things exactly screams SUMMER FUN, it hasn’t been all bad. We’ve gotten to spend a lot of time together and we’ve found things we enjoy doing while we wait, which far beats out aimlessly flipping through out-dated magazines in the doctor’s waiting room.
For the car – We all like to listen to these Sparkle Stories. They are soothing and enjoyable, which makes morning rush hour traffic much more palatable. We also like StoryNory. When traffic isn’t as hairy, a bunch of songs from here make for good car sing-alongs. Make up imagination-filled silly stories about what you see (Do you see that green car that got pulled over? I bet he was going too fast because he forgot his….)
For the waiting room – I Spy books; lacing cards are both good therapy and a great calming tool, these portable Lego activities are fun; free face drawing printable; draw a half of anything and have your child finish the other half: robot, face, truck, etc…,
For the driver/mama – podcasts, podcasts, podcasts. These are great not only in-route but also for the dinner prep and dishes, etc… that await you when you get back. I’ve been listening to: The Art of Simple, Lisa Grace Brynne’s MAPP Gathering (amazing!!) and TedTalks.
Learning to wait well is an acquired skill, one that most adults are still mastering (thus the prevalence of screens and exasperated sighing in waiting rooms across the country). If you have an energy-bursting-from- the-seams, can’t-be-contained-child, you probably don’t look twice when you see us doing group jumping jacks at 7:30 AM in the dimly lit Shriner’s underground parking lot. For anyone wearily whispering, “I hear you”: 4 self-regulation techniques you can do anywhere and this calming exercise. When all else fails, you can step outside and go all old-school VBS revival with I’m Going to Sing, Sing, Sing and I’ve Got the Joy, Joy, Joy. If you’re not feeling quite as Spirit-filled, try the Hokie Pokie.
