The weather is supposed to be pretty great this week. So I made plans to go to the beach...or whatever...with the boys and their friends...maybe a round or two of mini-golf even.
Then I made the mistake of balancing my checkbook...ooookaayyy...beach is out, no $ for parking or gas or even food to pack the cooler with...if the beach is out then mini-golf is definitely out, as well...Hmm?
This is quite frustrating! Once I began working full time...I had the $ to do things with the kids, but very little, to no time at all, to spend with them...now that I am not working and have the time...I have no $ to do anything with them! Argh!
So what's a broke mom of teen boys to do? Summer vacation is here...the sun is brightly shining and there are no funds available to make the most of these summertime youth filled days?
No worries I am not looking for anyone to feel sorry for me...there is an upside; the mortgage is paid...well until the 1st anyway, the utilities are paid and even, over-paid at that! So things could be worse, but still...summertime is but a short window, to make, what quite possibly could be, the best memories ever as a family!
So it would seem that, through circumstance, I have another summer challenge to take on! Not looking forward to this one as much as the other. Ugh! So the challenge is: How to have fun with teen boys, with no $...and I mean no $!
I guess that will mean evenings of kick the can or manhunt...but what about the days? How do I keep them motivated enough...about what the days hold, in order to rally them up before noon each day, so that they don't sleep their summer days away? This my friends, is where I pose the challenge to you, to help me, come up with free and I mean totally free ideas that would interest teen boys?
When they were young it was a no-brainer. I'd go to the dump and bring home eclectic pottery, plates etc...the boys would spend hours smashing the glass and we'd do mosiac tile on anything and everything we could get our hands on...or we'd take drives to feed the ducks...or fill up the kiddie pool and get the sprinkler going...or have picnics on the front lawn...or get out their fishing poles and spend almost the entire day untangling them and about 1/2 hour fishing...or we'd go to the park...or take hikes and catch frogs...but what on earth, can you do to have fun with a teenage boy, that doesn't cost $?
Now for those of you who are screaming at their computers "tell them to get a job"...or..."let them make the money for the funny..." Or shaking your heads in frustrated disgust...let me just remind you, that this summer was originally scheduled, to hold its own set of memory making and maturation for this family, by way of a new baby. Sadly as most of you know our precious Isaiah passed away after only 10 days...
So I really want this summer to be a refuge and time of healing for us all...and while yes, a job might help them to organize their days and is still something we are working towards...at the same time...I want the fun stuff...the really fun stuff that make memories...I want that to be a totally separate blessing from life lessons and summertime maturation...just for this summer! So bring 'em on! What are your totally free, totally fun, totally memory making, ideas for totally bored teen boys and their totally desperate mom?!
This is a great idea. Not being a creative thinker by nature (aka lazy thinker), I might have to really put some thought into this to come up with some ideas. But I think you are on to something...
ReplyDeleteWell, Chris, another summer challenge! If gas was free, I'd say visit the grandmother in Maine who lives near a nice size lake, or if you already hadn’t said that your checking account was without funds; I’d say what my daughter always used to say which would cause me to grin and chuckle inside, “You can write a check!”.
ReplyDeleteI guess you could go to the Milford library (Manchester and Nashua both have pretty nice libraries) or Nashua museum or Manchester art gallery or visit nearby friends or family who have a pool and maybe kids the same age as yours or - well, I guess, I don’t really know. Even those things need some gas money. Except, you could walk to the Milford library - but that sounds kind of boring.
You are the creative one. I bet you can think of something fun. Do they offer music on the oval? You do have that old garage which could be useful for something. How about, you and the boys starting your own band? It doesn’t have to go anywhere, but it could be fun. Do you remember the TV show ‘The Partridge Family”? Well, I guess that’s the end. You probably thought of those things already. Keep us updated on this dilemma.
Perhaps Brenda you are on to something there...I could just ask my mother to write a check! LOL :)
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