Sign up! for our OCM newsletter. Absolutely FREE.

Savor Summer Tips for Parents

Savor Summer Tips! I love watching my kids enjoy every moment of summertime but I also want to remind everyone that… Parents should savor summer too! We should all take lessons from our kids sometimes!

Savor Summer Tips for Parents

I reached out to Joelle Kekhoua, MA, LLP, NCP, LLPC and co-owner of the Mental Fitness Center in Rochester MI years ago for some savor summer tips for parents on how to relax and enjoy the summer like your kids!

OAKLAND COUNTY MOMS FAMILY HEALTH ARTICLES

Here is her column and savor summer tips (originally posted in Oakland County Moms in 2009).

Most of us look forward to summer all winter long and then when it arrives…it seems to be over before we know it. Isn’t is interesting that as children, the summer seemed so LONG and as adults, it is not long enough? One likely reason for this phenomenon is that children are always looking to have fun and are usually only focused on the here and now, “What can I play today?” They are naturals at what we call Mindful Meditation.

This has long been known to the gurus of meditation like Thich Nhat Khan. He always held the hand of a child on his walking meditations to remind him to stay in the present and see things with the freshness of the mind of a child. He saw all their naive questions as reminders of what the day is all about…being present to enjoy the things around you. We may not get the chance to take relaxing nature walks every day, but we certainly can use the comments from those around us, whether at work or at home, as reminders to Stop, Notice and Savor with gratitude each beautiful summer day.

We can also rekindle our playful child-like minds and actually ask ourselves as adults, “What can I play today?” Just look within yourself to locate that spark of youthful child-like playfulness. Throw in a little creativity. And finally, grant yourself permission to set aside the piles of responsibilities we all have as adults, and let yourself PLAY. Whether it is for a few minutes or a few hours, it will have a lasting positive effect on the level of mental fitness your carry with you all day.

SAVOR SUMMER TIPS FOR PARENTS

  • Listen to your favorite music (& sing or hum along!)
  • Expose yourself to humor -tease or tell jokes with your family & friends (kids especially love a silly one!), watch comedy on TV, movie or play, listen to comedy channel on satellite radio, or read a comedic novel)
  • Get outside & play in dirt (gardening, hiking, biking) or water (fishing, boating, swimming)
  • Play actual GAMES (board-, card-, ball-) & puzzles
  • Enjoy stillness (laying on beach, waiting for a fish to bite the fishing line, sitting with hot tea/coffee on deck at dawn or dusk, watching a baby drift off to sleep)

Joelle Kekhoua, MA, LLP, NCP, LLPC is the co-owner of the Mental Fitness Center in Rochester MI and is a Wellness Counselor for individuals and couples. Contact the Mental Fitness Center at 248-601-3111 and ask about our affordable home consultation program. Mental Fitness Center website.

For more Savor Summer Tips, call our friends at Mental Fitness Center

Leave a Comment

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.