Good Day, friends! Welcome to your 183rd day of 2018! Can you believe that we are halfway through 2018 already?!?!  Today’s list is a list of things that you should be doing this July!

• Start Your Christmas Shopping! It’s never too early to start! We have only 5 months left to shop! At least buy those gifts for your co-workers, hair stylist, mailman, paperboy, etc! You’ll be glad you spread the expense over 5 months and you’ll find some incredible sales going on this summer!  

 

• Eat Ice Cream Often! It’s hotter-than-all-get-out! That’s the perfect excuse to go out for ice cream way more often! You need cold refreshments in your life.

 

• Shop for School Supplies.  As a teacher, I have always hated seeing school supplies come out around the 4th of July. What a calloused move, chain stores! Don’t they know we teachers are still trying to forget last school year?!  But for you parents, it’s time to start buying supplies on sale.

 

• Get Away From Home.  I get it. We all can’t afford a grandiose vacation, but take a long weekend by missing a Friday or a Monday and do something out of town. One of my favorite getaways was traveling a few hours to Greenville, SC and touring downtown, eating at local dives, catching an outdoor concert, and shopping in local stores that we don’t have near home. Simple. Fun. Relaxing. Do it.

 

 

• Visit A Beach. I’m a pool girl. I love to be able to look in the water and see that no critters are swimming with me, but I also love the majesty of the ocean. I feel like the ocean declares the glory of God so well with its sheer vastness!!! I try to visit at least once during the summer. We go very early, walk the beach, look for shells, and wade in up to our ankles. Once we get too hot, we have lunch at a quaint restaurant near the beach and head home to the pool. If you don’t have an ocean near you….find a lake! Don’t miss out on the beauty!

• Have Lunch With Friends. I’m a firm believer in using leave time when you need a mental health break. Taking a leave day or just an extra long lunch with friends is a great way to make your summer special.

• Catch A Summer Movie. Some of the coolest movies come out in the summer. Splurge a little and go see some! My favorites are usually the ones that are meant for kids or based on teen fiction.  I tend to procrastinate until the movie comes out on DVD or worse yet…on television….but this year, I’ve had so much fun hitting the theater when the movie comes out!

• Do A Project.  The days are much longer in the summer and there’s lots of extra daylight even if you work and get home after 5:00 p.m. Plan a project involving one of your hobbies or even some type of home improvement. Summer is the perfect time to be and feel productive.

 

• Read A Book. Read something you love…just for fun. Job related reading doesn’t count!  Read for enjoyment!

 

 

• Try Something New. Remember the days when you returned to school and the teacher asked you to write or tell about something you did over the summer? Remember feeling lame because you didn’t have much to tell? Well, now that you are a grown-up, you have control over what experiences you try! Find something you’ve been dying to try and go for it! Make your summer exciting and memorable.

 

Now that you’re all done reading this advice, jump up off the couch and go do something fun!!!

Listfully yours,

Vicki