Confession: each time I scroll past one of those “you only get X summers with your kids” memes in my feed, I spiral. I swing wildly from nostalgia for summers already passed with my daughter, indignation (“what makes you think she won’t spend summers with me as an adult??”), and a sense of panic to make every sunny moment count. Determined not to let time slip through my fingers, I start researching road trips and amusement park visits and elaborate outdoor soirees — only to spiral anew at the sky-high cost of crafting a magical summer. I shared this exhausting experience with the rest of Team Motherly, and they assured me I’m not alone in this. 

So this summer, we’re doing things differently. We’re reminding ourselves that the most magical summer memories from our own childhoods actually weren’t elaborate, expensive vacations or outings or things. Our core summer memories were formed by watching clouds or catching bugs in the backyard, with no time pressure and no agenda. By organizing neighborhood-wide rounds of hide and seek or capture the flag while our parents sat together on lawn chairs and chatted in the fading summer light. And by having the time and space to slow down, explore, read, watch movies, and reconnect with our surroundings and ourselves. Isn’t that the kind of summer we want as adults, too?

If the idea of a simple, affordable, core-memory-making summer soothes your nervous system the way it does ours, we invite you to join us. Tackle a summer bucket list that’ll cost you next to nothing, host a backyard party without feeling like you need to renovate your yard, and maybe even carve out a little time for yourself.

We’ll see you when the street lights come on and Mom calls us in.