What I’ll Do On My Summer Vacation
Summer is the best time for vacation. Daylight lingers, delighting us with sun-soaked rays. My husband, Nick and I stick to this timetable, although it’s not every 12 months we can afford to pack up and caravan to a distant place. Big vacations are sprinkled in whenever we can swing them.
Even though we budget, often our travel plans put us in the red. Nick and I don’t mind. We know memories are worth more than hefty bank accounts. Past summers have been spent horseback riding in Kauai, boating on Lake Tahoe or rafting down the American River in Sacramento. My family has picnicked near the Golden Gate Bridge, taken a cruise to the Bahamas and trekked to Pittsburgh for a family reunion. We have photos of us in front of the Liberty Bell, the St. Louis Arch and the Statue of Liberty.
But more often than not, we staycation, devising our own (reasonably priced) entertainment. In spite of financial reality, I’m not quite ready to do away with family vacations all together. There are a few places I’d like to see before the days get shorter – Washington, D.C. and the Grand Canyon to name two. But in between the major getaways, there are still plenty of ways to enjoy the lazy, crazy, hazy days of summer. So, before it’s time to turn the clocks back, I’m hoping to:
- Lick toasted marshmallows and melted chocolate off my fingers after a barbecue.
- Really listen to the words of “America the Beautiful” when it’s sung on the Fourth of July.
- Watch Mary Poppins (for what might be the 63rd time).
- Make do-it-yourself Chipwiches. Use vanilla fudge ripple ice cream.
- Avoid full-length mirrors while wearing my one-piece “slimsuit.”
- Score big time in a water balloon fight.
- Hit an exacta at Del Mar.
- Recall the fun I had as a little girl after dark, catching lightning bugs in southwestern Pennsylvania.
- Smile at the memory of my mom’s voice telling me to let them go.
- Hug my family every chance I get.
- Hit a wiffle ball over our backyard fence for a homerun.
- Use a lot of SPF 30.
- Mix up bowls of Candy Apple Salad (equal parts: Granny Smith apples, Snickers and Cool Whip).
- Take in an afternoon Angels’ game. Sing “Take Me Out to the Ballgame.”
- Buy some peanuts and Cracker Jack.
- Keep quiet when someone ate the last Twix ice cream bar.
- Buy a new sun hat.
- Win a game of Monopoly – or get sleepy trying.
- See the summer blockbuster movies. Crunch buttery theatre popcorn.
- Tempt fate and try my luck on the Slip ‘n Slide.
- Avoid travel brochures touting romantic getaways to Rome, Paris or Athens.
- Eat cotton candy and grilled corn-on-the-cob at the fair.
- Dust off our telescope and be amazed at the jewels found in the night sky.
- Learn to swim. This may take several summers.
- Fill my phone’s memory with lots of pictures.
- Ignore that Y-shaped tan line my feet get after wearing sandals.
- Taste the tomatoes, zucchini and green peppers, Nick grew in our backyard garden.
- Shun the Halloween and Christmas displays already at the stores by early August.
- Enjoy the extra hours of sunlight.
- Curl up on my patio glider and read, read, read.
- Sing along with Carly Simon: “. . . these are the good old days. These are the good old days. These are — the good old days.”
Woman@Heart 