Well Hello, End of Summer! You snuck up on us! We get a little anxious when this time rolls around because it means that our favorite season is coming to an end. As lake lovers, that takes some wind out of our sails, because we are just not ready for Fall. We are still over here trying to maximize our water time before it gets too cold and fall sports schedules start interfering with weekend getaways.
Just so you know, we are not slowing down enjoying this last month of Summer. As a matter of fact, we have made a bucket list for our fellow outdoors people and lake lovers. Here are 8 things we are trying to squeeze in before it is too late. We plan to socialize with family and friends all the while taking in as much sun and water as we possibly can. I hope you don't stand on the sidelines and observe. Dive right in and get some of these on your list as well.
1. Girls Weekend At The Lake - This month, we rounded up the girls of the family for an all-girls weekend. That is right ... no kids ... no hubbies! We float, sunbathe, jump off diving boards (even the Anchor Dot - Kim's Momma will jump), take pontoon rides, take golf cart rides, eat too much, sing karaoke, and any other wild ideas might pop up. Getting to spend a weekend with mom, sisters, daughters, nieces, and grandma is more fun than we can even describe. It is so nice to get a break from all the day-to-day responsibilities that ladies and mommas typically manage. Even if it gets into Fall before you can get this on your calendars, I urge you to DO IT! The laughs and memories that are created are priceless and you will return to your family reenergized and ready to take on the upcoming school year.
2. Ski, Tube, and/or Wakeboard -
You must do one before Summer is over just so you can say you did it. Kim, the Anchor Woman, is 58 years old (did we just put that in writing?) and she pulls out the slalom ski once a year just to prove/say she can still do it. For those of you that are not skiers or boarders, tubing still allows you to check the box, and I promise you that it will make you laugh and will provide for great pictures to look back on and smile. Don't say you can't do it .... even the Anchor Dot ... my 77-year-old mother tubed for the first time this year!
3. Barbecue Gathering
We campaign that all meals in the Summer should be cooked outside. While we are not successful in this negotiation for every meal, we love it when we do convince the guys to engage in the cooking responsibilities. Honestly, they enjoy it too and take pride in their grilled/smoked masterpieces. Not only do we love the help, but it is also just hard to beat all the wonderful tastes of outdoor cooking, like grilled hamburgers and steaks, barbecued chicken, smoked pork tenderloin, brisket, and ribs, and I could go on and on. Now, my mouth is watering!
4. Host a Backyard Game Day - We love to play games ... outdoor and indoor for that matter. What is more fun than a little friendly competition? You can make it all formal with tournament brackets and trophies/prizes. Or, you can keep it casual and just play for the fun of it. At the lake house, we have a cornhole set, wiffleball equipment, the large Jenga set, a large Four In a Row (Connect Four) game, and we just purchased a new game called QB54. QB54 is a great family fun all-ages game of football without all the body contact. Even the girls/ladies of the family like to join in on it. For a fun twist, throw this at night when it's dark and add glow sticks to all the games!
5. Bike or Walk A Trail - Do you have a pretty trail you like to frequent? When we are at the lake house, we love to go for a walk around the lake. It is great to see and visit with the neighbors in our lake community, get some exercise, and experience nature. If you go early in the mornings, you are almost always going to be treated to some live creatures. When we are not at the lake house, there are a couple of really great trails within 10 miles of our house. One is a state park called Watkins Mill consisting of a paved trail around a 100-acre lake, and the other is a county-owned lake, called Smithville Lake. It has 25 miles of paved hiking/biking trails around a 7,200-acre lake. Not only is it beautiful to get glimpses of the lake views as you walk the paths that surround bodies of water, but it is also energizing to see all the families out enjoying the fresh air and the beauty of nature.
6. Geocache - Have you heard of geocaching? We have not gone for a bit, but this is a really great outdoor activity that involves an app you download on your phone and then use GPS coordinates to find hidden containers called "geocaches". These hidden containers are put there by other geocachers once they catch the fever and want to participate at a level of contributing to the game as opposed to just playing it. Our grandsons absolutely love this activity because it is basically a game of finding a treasure. After you have downloaded the app, you follow the GPS coordinates that direct you to exactly where the cache is hidden. Once you find the container (typically waterproof to withstand the weather), you see what is inside and sign the logbook so that the person that hid it will know when it was last found. With the pandemic spiking again, this would be a great safe family activity to get you out of the house to do something fun.
7. Throw an End of Summer Party - We just received word that our lake community is hosting an end-of-summer party on Labor Day weekend. It will consist of a cornhole tournament, a food stand, drink stands, and a band for dancing. We are excited to get together with our community friends and celebrate the wonderful piece of paradise that we share and all the memories made there over the past summer. If you don't have a Labor Day weekend party on your calendar now, what are you waiting for? Be the host and have some fun with your family and friends before the weather gets too cold.
8. Visit a New Park - In the town where our primary residence is, Kearney, Missouri, we have a new Splash Pad complete with new playground equipment. A great way to spend a day burning some energy is to take the kids, grandkids, or your neighbor's kids to a park they have not yet been to. This is a great way to put a smile on their faces, enjoy the great outdoors, and the best part is ... it is free of charge!
9. Make Homemade Ice Cream - Have you made it yet this year? This past weekend, we hosted family at the lake house, and I made a triple berry cobbler with homemade vanilla ice cream. Yum!! If you don't have a favorite homemade ice cream recipe, here is a link to our super-simple, fail-proof recipe. To make this more of an event, serve up a bunch of topping options and let the family make their own tailored ice cream sundae. Some suggestions: marshmallow cream, powdered malt, sprinkles, maraschino cherries, gummy bears/worms, crumbled candy bars (heath, Butterfinger), crumbled Oreo cookies, chocolate syrup, and caramel syrup.
10. Backyard Stargazing - Grab your favorite lawn chair, find a hammock, or relax on an outdoor blanket and start exploring the night sky. According to Sky and Telescope's Stargazing Basics, the best way to do this is with the unaided eye. This website is packed full of interactive astronomical tools to help make stargazing a little easier and more fun. Our kids also enjoy using the SkyView Lite app on our phones to find the constellations. The very best place we have found for stargazing is on night boat rides. For some reason, all the stars and constellations are so much brighter when you are in the middle of nowhere.
The tans will fade, but the memories will last forever.
Before you bid farewell to the warm and sunny weather, we hope you are able to take advantage of at least one thing on this end-of-summer bucket list. It would make our day if you let us know which one of these you are going to try and fit in. Whatever it is . . . make each day count!
