I had every intention of writing this post about a month ago, but…life happened and I have been pretty busy since my school year started! Either way, it technically is still summer time so I guess I’m not too late with this post!

My summer vacation/maternity leave is officially over. I even had an extra month than what I normally would have had and it still seemed too short. Ryan had a busy few months of emergency medicine rotations (his favorite), so it wasn’t near as easy to get out and about and enjoy the outdoors this year since I had both kids alone most of the time and Brax was too little to be out in the heat too long, but we did what we could. Kinsie still got to have a lot of fun swimming and running around outside with lots of help from our family. Here is somewhat of a highlight reel of some of our favorite things we did this summer.

Family Reunion at the Dunes

In early June, we went to the Dunes State Park to meet up with my dad’s entire family. We loved getting to catch up with family, and Kinsie loved the beach!

 

Anniversary Fishing

Ryan and I had our first date night since Brax was born for our fourth anniversary. We went out to eat, then went fishing. It was SO nice spending some time just the two of us and doing something we both love doing. The kids were in good hands…and Kinsie got Ninja Turtle ice cream from the ice cream truck!

Field Trip to the Fish Farm

My cousin Sarah is engaged to a fish farmer, and they agreed to take us all on a tour of the fishery. Joe did an awesome job teaching us all about the fishery, and the kids loved seeing all the fish, tadpoles and crawfish. Afterwards, we ate lunch at my aunt’s house. It was a great afternoon of fish, family and fun!

Time at the Lake

I know I already posted about our “Lake-cation,” but it was definitely a highlight of our summer. We love our time at the lake!

4th of July Parade

Every year we go to the 4th of July Brownsburg parade. Ryan had to work, but Kinsie, Brax and I still went with the rest of my family. Brax took a little nap and Kinsie loved spending time with her cousins and getting candy!

Movies, bowling, and more

On the days that it rained or was too hot, we had to find indoor activities to do. I took Kinsie on a date to see Finding Dory and she loved the movie and the popcorn. We also went bowling, painted pictures, worked out, and just played inside. Kinsie is good at finding fun in whatever activity we do!

Swimming

This was probably Kinsie’s favorite part. She LOVED swimming. I couldn’t always swim with her since I had to feed Brax so often, so thank goodness for my parents and Uncle Ryan for taking Kinsie swimming for me. Going into summer, I didn’t expect Kinsie to become so independent in the pool, but with her floaties on, she could swim by herself. She could (and often did) spend all day in the pool. Especially when her cousins were with her! We even got Brax in the pool once. He didn’t have much of a reaction…probably because the pool was so warm. I think he just thought he was in a big bath tub.

Other Outside Fun

Like I said, I tried to get outside with the kids as much as I could. I loved taking morning walks with them before it got too hot, and the kids loved it too. Ryan would join us when he could, but I still tried to take them out even when he couldn’t join us. We played a lot of “I Spy” and played in the sprinkler, and Brax just went along with whatever adventures we would take!

I survived my first summer vacation with 2 kids. It wasn’t easy, and it took a lot of patience, adjustments, and help, but I still think Kinsie had a fun summer and that is all I really wanted. I didn’t want her to have to miss out on too much because of the baby. I got to spend some time with each kid individually, and we spent a lot of time together too. Even though I was sad to see my summer vacation end, I was more ready to go back to work than I thought I would be. Don’t get me wrong, I love my kids and I loved my time with them, but I need a little break from mom life! Maybe someday I will quit teaching to be a stay-at-home mom, but I’m not ready yet. I still have other children who need me too. I still feel lucky to even get this time off every year to relax (as much as what is possible with two little ones) and recharge my battery. Now I’m back in full swing of mom life AND teacher life, but I wouldn’t have it any other way!