Hello everyone,
With school ending and summer beginning, I found myself having nightmares about having kids home for the summertime… and all my kids are grown and out of school now lol.
That’s how deep that summer anxiety used to run for me.
I was a stay-at-home mom for most of my kids’ lives, and when summer hit, the anxiety would start creeping in hard. I would worry about:
- how to keep them entertained,
- how to feed everybody all day long,
- getting burned out and overwhelmed,
- fighting with my husband because I was jealous he got to leave for work,
- and having absolutely no alone time to recharge.
And for me? Alone time is a big deal.
Anybody who has stayed home with kids full-time knows exactly what I mean. People act like staying home means relaxing. Meanwhile you haven’t peed alone in 7 years and somebody is always touching you, hungry, fighting, crying, or asking questions every five seconds 😂
Throughout the years I tried a bunch of different things trying to survive the summers, but eventually I found the most effective solution:
BOOTCAMP.
Now before y’all start panicking—no, I didn’t send my kids away somewhere. I had six kids. I couldn’t afford that even if I wanted to lol.
I created my own BOOTCAMP.
And honestly? It saved my sanity.
A few weeks before school ended, I would go to the library and grab their summer calendar plus any flyers about free city programs, events, camps, activities, meal programs—anything free or low cost happening around town.
That was step one:
Make the summer plan.
Not a perfect plan.
Not a Pinterest-mom color-coded binder situation.
Just a plan.
Because kids with no structure all summer long turn feral real quick 😂
Step two was getting a big poster board and writing all their names down to create a reward chart. I added stars, stickers, milestones, bonuses, and rewards.
And listen carefully to this part:
Pay attention to what your kids actually like.
The rewards only work if the kids genuinely care about earning them. One kid might want extra game time. Another might want snacks, money, skating, sleepovers, or picking dinner.
Know your audience lol.
Step three was creating the summer schedule and rules.
Pro tip:
Always wake up before your kids.
I’m serious.
Even if it’s just 20 minutes to drink your coffee in silence, stare at the wall, and remember you’re a human being before the chaos starts.
That little bit of alone time matters.
I would schedule entire days around:
- playing outside,
- exercising,
- reading,
- survival skills like building fires,
- volunteering,
- library trips,
- free city events,
- learning activities,
- chores,
- and random adventures.
We volunteered at local churches once or twice a week, and we went to basically every free event we could find.
And let me say this because somebody out there probably needs to hear it:
There is absolutely no shame in using food programs to feed your children.
Some years we worried about feeding everybody. During those times, we went to libraries, schools, churches, and food pantries that gave out meals or groceries.
And during the years we were more fortunate, we donated, volunteered, or both.
That’s community.
That’s what people are supposed to do for each other.
Now back to BOOTCAMP.
Step four was consequences.
Because let’s be honest… kids are absolutely going to act up eventually 😂
I used things like:
- extra workouts,
- wall sits,
- push-ups,
- losing stars or stickers,
- extra chores,
- writing assignments,
- reading,
- or losing privileges.
And I always posted the consequences where everybody could see them so there were no surprises and nobody could say, “That’s not fair!”
But this part matters:
The punishment has to fit the crime.
And you also have to pick your battles.
Because if kids feel like the game is completely rigged, eventually they stop trying altogether.
That applies to adults too honestly.
I used to wake those kids up earlier than they wanted, keep them busy most of the day, and by the time dinner, chores, and cleanup were done, they would disappear into free time quietly like little exhausted ghosts 😂
Most of the time they didn’t bother me because they knew if they did, they’d end up reading, writing, exercising, or cleaning until bedtime.
And they definitely didn’t want that.
At first they hated BOOTCAMP.
Hated it.
But then neighborhood kids started joining. Cousins started joining. Friends wanted in. Eventually it became this whole thing every summer.
And now that my kids are grown, they talk about BOOTCAMP like it was some legendary childhood experience.
Now they want me to put my grandkids through BOOTCAMP too because they said they learned discipline, survival skills, teamwork, structure, responsibility, and actually had fun doing it.
And honestly? That makes me happy because when you’re in the middle of parenting, especially during the hard years, you always wonder if you’re doing anything right.
Most days you’re just trying to survive without losing your mind.
So if you’re a parent stressing about summer coming up, hopefully this helped you feel a little less overwhelmed and maybe gave you a few ideas.
You do not have to spend a ton of money to create memories, structure, or meaningful experiences for your kids.
Sometimes kids just need consistency, attention, boundaries, fresh air, and something to do besides destroying your house all day lol.
And if you need more ideas, help creating a summer structure plan, reward systems, schedules, or activities, I’m always here to help.
I also linked my store below where you can download worksheets, templates, and workbooks to help you help yourself.
https://payhip.com/HelpYourselfHub
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