Dear Summer,

I’m so glad you’re here. My daughter who is so very literal would remind me that you just recently officially begun, even though we've been out of school since late May.

I almost always have a to-do list near me. If a notebook isn’t physically near me, I’m emailing myself something I want to remember or making a mental list. One of my greatest fears is I will forget. So I make lists.

But I don’t want to forget to live with you, Summer, either.

I look at our calendar and your days are filling up. We've been working on getting our new-to-use lake house ready, preparing for an adoption that's going to bring a baby girl into our home in late September, and trying to plan not to have plans. My husband, 8-year-old daughter and I are going to serve with a local mission team in Guatemala for a week in July. We have a weekend involving an amusement park and St. Louis Cardinals baseball game planned for later in July.

And, of course, the kids and I want to spend many, many afternoons at the pool with our friends. We want to pack our lunches and explore. We want to eat ice cream and read books. We've picked blueberries and are looking forward to blackberries.

These big plans mixed with these ordinary days are why I love you, Summer. You welcome a break from routine and foster adventure. In an effort to embrace this freedom and truly live with my kids, I want to write a not-to-do list that fosters joy and peace and grace and freedom.

Christ alone brings those things, but, you, Summer, help give me perspective on how to live.

The Summer Not-to-Do List

Don’t cry over spilled milk … or crumbs that cover the kitchen floor.

Don’t get on social media until I give the day to God.

Don’t always work. Close the laptop. Lay down the phone. Go play.

Don’t yell. Speak softer and kinder.

Don’t drive everywhere. Walk where I can.

Don’t plan every moment of the day.

Don’t hold on too tightly.

Don’t always say yes.

Don’t always say no.

This kind of list will prompt different kinds of check marks and I hope the victories spill over into your friends Fall, Winter and Spring. I want to grasp hold of truth so I can live more abundantly regardless of the season.

Sincerely,

A Momma in Kentucky

What are you looking forward to about summer? What does your Summer Not-To-Do List look like?