5 Things You Shouldn’t Neglect Just Because It’s Summer

Summer vacation is quickly approaching for many schools across the nation, from pre-K to college. And as your students are coming home for the summer, it’s an exciting time to plan family outings, barbeques, road trips, vacations, and more. But in the midst of all the excitement, there are a few things we just want to remind you of in order to keep the fun going all summer long.

Drinking Water

This should seem like an obvious one, but as soon as summer rolls around and the gatherings start – soda, lemonades, and juices (and cocktails for the adults) tend to be the go-to drinks that we all default too. As the sun beats down and the days get hotter, it’s important to drink lots of water to avoid dehydration.

So make sure you and your kiddos are drinking plenty of water. Of course, treat yourself now and then, but be mindful of how much water you are taking in too.

Health Checkups

In the summer, we get busy. But let’s be honest, we’re always busy. So, take a few minutes to schedule important appointments like oral cleanings for your children and physician’s checkups if the time is coming up for that. One thing you can do is schedule all of your family’s appointments in the same week or two, and then plan your fun activities outside of that so the appointments won’t interfere.

Car Maintenance

This one is especially important in the summertime. If you plan on taking any road trips, or even a lot of day trips, you want to make sure your car is going to hold up for the fun. The last thing you need on your family vacation is for your car to break down.

A good plan for this is to take it in after school gets out for the summer and get the basic checks done on it – check brakes, fluids, windshield wipers, air conditioning, do an oil change, etc. This is the time to take care of any car troubles you’ve been having so you can go through your summer knowing that you don’t have to worry about your car and you can focus on the fun.

Meal Prepping

If you’re one to prep meals for the kids for school every day, the summer is not the time to stop. In fact, summertime might be even more crucial for prepping healthy meals for your family with all of the family trips and fun activities you might have planned. You should feel good about the food your family is consuming on your trips and not worrying about getting yet another meal at a gas station convenience store. That’s not to say there isn’t a time for eating out now and then, but try to keep up with your good habits throughout the summer.

Bedtime Routines

Speaking of habits, this is a big one that many families let slide in the summertime (we’re all guilty of this one). Bedtime routines – or any routines in general – are important to keep implemented even when your child doesn’t have to get up at 6 am to get ready for school. For one, when a kid’s routine gets thrown out of whack, they can get CRANKY. So try to keep some semblance of normalcy for your child with continuing their regular routines as best you can with your summer endeavors. It will also help them get back in the swing of things more smoothly once school does start up again.

Take these into consideration to help keep your family happy and healthy, but remember to have lots of fun too!