Summer Reading Fun

If your family is anything like mine, keeping the kiddos interested in reading over the summer can be tricky. My littles have a lot of self-motivation when it comes to legos and art, and even looking through books, but not when it comes to actually reading them.

Libraries have great summer reading programs that we've enjoyed in the past, but I wanted to up the ante for my guys this year. I downloaded a simple reading chart and made a prize list with prizes that I think will keep them interested, excited, and driven throughout the whole summer. I hope. Fingers crossed.

Here's a simple summer reading chart I downloaded for free from Busy Momma Media. I like how colorful it is and how many slots there are for books. You also get to insert how many books you will require for what particular prize(s). My guys will need to read 5 books to pick a prize from a prize list I've formulated just for them. Again, I'm hoping for motivation to last the whole summer.

A Grateful Hiking Heart

Spring is just around the corner and it is gorgeous out here on the Central Coast. Everything is green right now and the wildflowers are on the verge of turning the hills into colorful visions of gorgeousness. We are so grateful to get to live in such a beautiful place. The weather has warmed up just enough for us to start our daily hikes on the trails just behind our house.

My boys call these plants in front "Couch Leaves" because they are fuzzy and soft and kinda look like our couch

After Nora was born I attempted to start exercising a couple of different times. I say "try" because it did not happen. I gave up and hoped that family life would eventually shift again and allow me to easily and naturally fit in some exercise. What da ya know, it did just that.

Nora loves, loves, loves being outside. If she sees that her brothers are out there, and she is not, she gets quite fussy. The boys also love it.

It's so good for all of us to be out on those trails. My baby gets to have her outdoor fix and I get out there and get moving regularly. 






When I ask the boys if they want to go for a walk they shout, "Yay, a walk!" It's a win, win, win scenario. Sometimes we even go out twice a day. 

Manzanita. One of the shrubs the boys can identify on the trail.

The circuit only takes about 20 minutes - 30 minutes if we're exploring. In the hot summer months Matthew comes with us in the evenings after dinner. It's one of our favorite family activities.

The boys named this stretch "The Manzanita Forest"

Almost every time we're out there gratitude fills my heart to have such beautiful trails to hike on and a beautiful family to hike with. We have our days. We TOTALLY have our days, but the hiking trails we get to enjoy call my heart to gratitude.