Hello Monday: Signs of Summer!

Hey friends!!

Happy Monday!!!

How was your weekend??

Our's was good!

Aaron had to work- but the weather ended up being really beautiful and that made for some great time spent outside.

He had to go to the hospital twice on Father's Day- but we still managed to go to church as a family, spend some time in the pool and grill out a yummy steak dinner and enjoy it al fresco!

And now here we are...MONDAY! The last week of June! HOW?!?

 We are in the full swing of summer and I thought it would be fun to just show some "signs" of summer at our house!

I absolutely LOVE summer break and having my kids home. With that being said, I am extremely OCD about how I keep our house...so every summer, I REALLY have to work on relaxing and being ok with things not constantly being picked up and tidy. 

One way I have really come to surrender myself to the messes is, instead of getting cranky or grumbling under my breath about "this house is a MESS"- I take note of the disarray and tell myself- "It's a SIGN of summer!" While this doesn't always make me less cranky (HA!)- it has helped me TREMENDOUSLY in my outlook and definitely helps me SEE the good in what I typically view as a nuisance.

So here are some not great quality photos of "signs" of summer at our house!

LOTS of muffins cooling on the stove top.

I know I am not the only one who has kids that are HUNGRY ALL DAY LONG. 

In the summer, I am baking a batch of muffins or making some homemade granola/cereal every day! I am not a huge fan of making big messes in the kitchen on the regular...but when I see these muffins it makes me so happy to know that my kiddos love what I make them and are always begging for more! :) 

LEGOS. TINY LITTLE legos EVERYWHERE. HA!

Friends. I have a love/hate relationship with legos. My kids LOVE them...especially my youngest daughter and two sons. I try to keep them tucked away for rainy days...because my boys would stay inside ALL day and just play legos if I had them out all the time! Always. I can't handle all the tiny pieces. I am literally ALWAYS stepping on one of them! HA!

I was walking in from our pool, into our sunroom and all of these legos were on the floor....another SIGN of summer at our house!!

Puzzles! LOTS of puzzles! My girls have gotten into puzzles this summer and it's actually pretty cool to see them work so diligently to put together an intricate puzzle!

My not so favorite part of this new found hobby is that they have all of their puzzles on our dining room table :) It's not really a big deal since we eat outside every night as long at the weather allows it...but gone are the days my dining room looks tidy and ready for a dinner party. HA!

Just another SIGN of summer!

Trips to the grocery store with ALL FIVE kiddos in tow.

This is absolutely a MAJOR sign of summer since I always do my grocery shopping while they are in school during the school year. COVID has made grocery shopping extra interesting...and Aaron and I are trying really hard to only go by ourselves...but there have been a few times where logistically- the kids and I had to go.

Luckily, my girls are awesome helpers and if I bribe my boys with food WHILE we are shopping, I can manage to get out of the store with minimal screaming fits. HA!

RANDOM stuff EVERYWHERE. I know this "mess" probably doesn't look like much- but to me- it is. HA! A leftover plate of crackers from lunch, CUPS galore, toys, cut up pieces of paper, tape, books...you name it...you will find on top of my kitchen counters.

I have really had to work on not nit picking all day long to have my kids pick up and really stay focused on my mantra of "this is a sign of summer!"

The house is always picked up the end of the day and my kitchen is spotless when I go to bed...and I have learned that that is good enough during this season of summer and young kiddos at home!

I have to be totally honest...having the kids home an extra three months early to COVID has definitely made me feel stretched in ways I have never experienced as a mother. Summer break, while a welcome reprieve from remote learning, has brought it's challenges, just due to the fact that we've already been home together for a long period of time (I am hoping some of you are nodding your head in agreement with me?!?)

And when I read this quote...WOW. It resonated with me SO much!

Here's to all of the moments of motherhood...let us honor ALL of them and trust that no matter what our day looks like...our kiddos KNOW without a doubt we love them :)

Even if they are the messiest creatures EVER.

HA!

I'd love to know...what are some "signs" of summer in your home?

Hope you have the BEST day!

Linking up with Tanya, Lindsay, Heather and Johannah!