Ten Outings for Your 2012 to Do List
One of the best things about the start of 2012 is getting to put up a new calendar. The old one is filled to the brim with events, meetings, play dates, date nights, travel plans, birthday parties, and reminders of all kinds. It was a full year.
The new calendar though... the new one is blissfully blank. There's nothing on it yet, and all that empty space gives us room to dream a bit, and even set a few goals for the year.
The goals we have in mind are family goals-things we'd like to do together. We're not sure we'll get to all of them, but it makes us happy just to think about trying.
Spend time at the beach. This is always on our list, every year. It's just the best.
Go ice-skating, sledding and/or skiing. We have so much fun in the snow with the kids.
Volunteer for a project at school. It always feels like too much, and it's always satisfying nonetheless.
Get to know a new person/make a new friend. This is a hope for both parents and kids (especially because one will be starting a new school).
Visit or get back in touch with a few old friends. Also something our whole family is looking forward to.
Keep a family journal. This is an experiment I want to try with the kids while they are still little: we'll each write (or dictate) a sentence or draw a picture about the day. Ambitious? Maybe, but worth an attempt.
Help the kids run a lemonade stand. They've been wanting to do this for years-it's time.
Go away for a grown ups-only weekend. Otherwise known as a mental health break.
Visit the new Martin Luther King memorial in Washington DC in its first year. What a great excuse to take the kids to see the capital.
Teach the kids about the political process and bring them along when we vote in the 2012 presidential election.
More from The Savvy Source:
• Is moving in your near future? We have ten questions to help you settle into your new neighborhood.
• A landscape transformed, a day slowed down, a world of magic... Why we love a snow day.
• The year ahead: Five projects to do now and again in December to see how much they've grown.
• Five things we do as parents that really matter, and a few that really don't.
