Beam Creations: The Epic Summer Bucket List

This year I decided to change up my summer. I am making an epic bucket list.

Now I know most people make a list of things they are going to do over the summer. In fact, there are millions of "summer bucket lists" out there with the classic:

catch fireflies (well first off they are dying out here and second they don't come out until way after bedtime)
draw with chalk (how is this a bucket list item. This is something you give the kids while you are cleaning to keep them out of the way.)
build a sand castle (fyi sandcastles suck. every kid has this totally bogus idea of what a sandcastle is supposed to look like from picture books everywhere. Always a letdown.)
blah, blah, blah-diddy-blah

So this year I spent time on ours. I really thought about it. I looked at city lists, I thought about what my kids liked to do in years past.
I really analyzed the fact that it is only the second half of May and it is already in the mid to high 90's here and my family melts in heat.

I looked at the memberships we already had, and ones we may want to get.

And I made our list.

Our Epic Summer Bucket List:

Now this list is very specific to our area around Charlotte, NC. Finding all the free nature centers, free factory tours, and museums that go along with our membership to the Catawba Science Museum. It is also, by no means, finished.

This is a starting point. This is hanging on my fridge to remind, and my kids, and even the hubs, that there are things we can do, and places we can go.

We do not have to lose our summer vacation to our tablets and watching subpar cartoons on Netflix.

We can go and do it.

We can go to the list and just point at a line and hop in the car.

Now there will be days that we will lose to tablets and TV. We will (hopefully) have rainy days where all we want to do is be lazy and stay in our PJ's. But on days where "I'm bored" starts getting thrown around, we have options.

Now, while I sit here with 1 week left of kid school, and two projects away from break time in Grad School I have this brilliant idea that we will get up at least 3 days a week, pack a lunch, and leave the house. I'm already laughing at myself. I already know that it is going to be nearly impossible, but I'm going to try.

* Carowinds

* Bowling

* Skating

* SALT Block

* Children’s Museum

* Playhouse in Boone

* Hike

* Bike Ride

* Water Balloons

* Farmer’s Market

* Make Crazy Ice Cream Sundaes

* Movie in the Park