Summer Plans??

Thanks to St. Columbkille student Mara Trautman for some summer inspiration. Her mother, Cheri, shared Mara's list on social media.

Seeing Mara's ideas made me determined to make a list of my own. Maybe having a list that I could check off would help me accomplish some of my goals. I always have lots of plans for what to do over the summer, but I never seem to find the time. And summer speeds by faster each year.

So here's my list:

1. Create a family to-do list, so we can do some things that everyone will enjoy.
2. Worship at Mass every day possible, and bring some family members with me.
3. Go to Elgin and Raeville, Nebraska, to visit some old friends, Father Vogel and the beautiful churches where he will minister. (St. Bonaventure in Raeville, known as the "Pearl of the Plains," is said to be a must-see.)
4. Make our family's annual trek to Milwaukee but do it with extra purpose, to cement years of memories. (The relatives who host us will be moving. Most likely we'll be back to Milwaukee again, but we'll miss the rituals of staying in their house: morning walks or jogs along the creek in their neighborhood; collecting rocks, fossils and sea glass along the creek and at Lake Michigan; Mass at our home-away-from-home parish; late-night talks on the backyard patio; and just the feeling of being so at home while we are away.)
5. Read with our youngest child, David, every day. (He's entering third grade, and we won't read together much longer.)
6. Help elderly family and friends.
7. Watch fireworks.
8. Take long walks with our dogs.
9. Take long naps with our dogs.
10. Have "snuggle parties," where everyone squeezes onto a bed for a movie and snacks.
11. Steal from Mara's ideas by taking in kite-flying, a national park, Josyln, the zoo, the Bob Kerrey pedestrian bridge, a farmer's market, high tea at the lavender farm, swimming and a splash park. (Mara and I would have fun together.) I might also add the Wildlife Safari Park and some state parks.
12. Boost my mental health through baby therapy, pet therapy, photography and writing.
13. Smell flowers.
14. Sit outside, watch a storm and hopefully find a rainbow, too.
15. Snap a photo of a firefly with its light on.
16. Eat tons of watermelon, cherries, peaches, plums, nectarines, sweetcorn, tomatoes and other seasonal goodies. And occasionally enjoy an ice cream treat, too.
17. Purge our house of all the stuff we don't need.
18. Earn some spending money. Work hard, play hard.
19. Spend less time in front of screens and more time outside and with family and friends.

That's an ambitious to-do list for me, so I better get started. What are your plans this summer?

Inspired by the Year of Faith, Susan Szalewski began writing weekly columns for us. Although that year is over, we liked them so well that we asked her to keep writing. Thankfully, she said yes. So watch for these on Thursdays and see the Year of Faith Blog here.

Snuggle Parties

Thank you to Alissa Olson, a kindergarten teacher at St. Columbkille School, for introducing my family to the “snuggle party.”

Last fall her class – which included my son, David – earned a party, so she asked what kind of party they should have. They decided to watch a movie and bring a favorite pillow or stuffed animal to snuggle with. And the teacher, or someone in the class, coined the celebration a snuggle party.

David excitedly told me about the party, and we determined we could have one of our own. Other family members found our two-person party, though, and wanted to join in. And ever since, snuggles parties have become a regular family tradition.

We typically have them after a long day, when we need to unwind and relax. We hold them in the basement of our house, where my husband and I have our bedroom. It’s dark, cool and relaxing there.

Four, five or six of us will squeeze onto a queen-size bed. Usually there’s some fighting as we get adjusted, each person trying to grab a spot to lie down for the movie on DVD or via Internet. Even the dog joins us, because she loves to snuggle as much as anyone. And usually she’s the worst offender of taking more than her fair share of space.

Sometimes even our older kids will stop down for a while. They might have to grab some laundry in the basement or have something to tell me. But they’ll linger for a few minutes to watch a few scenes and grab some of our snacks.

Snuggle parties are my kind of parties: low on preparation, effort and energy, but high on quality time close to loved ones. They’re a break from a day full of activity, a way for us to relax together, tightly squeezed onto a bed with favorite pillows, blankets and maybe a stuffed animal. (There isn’t much room left for toys.)

I’ve been thinking about the notion of snuggle parties during the afterglow of Pentecost. Just as our minds and bodies need peace, solace and relaxation, so do our souls.

And the Holy Spirit seems to be just what we need, the chicken soup (or snuggle party) for our souls.

At Masses on Pentecost we sang or recited the sequence “Veni, Sancte Spiritus,” including these lines:

“You, of comforters the best;

You, the soul’s most welcome guest;

Sweet refreshment here below;

In our labor, rest most sweet;

Grateful coolness in the heat;

Solace in the midst of woe . . .”

That certainly describes what my soul needs.

Come, Holy Spirit, come!

Inspired by the Year of Faith, Susan Szalewski began writing weekly columns for us. Although that year is over, we liked them so well that we asked her to keep writing. Thankfully, she said yes. So watch for these on Thursdays and see the Year of Faith Blog here.