Weekend Fun Recap: June 20–22

We agree that Friday morning is part of the weekend adventure right? Because I got some seriously impressive latte art at brunch on Friday:

How fun is that summery flamingo? My “aunt” (ok, one of my mom’s closest friends since childhood) is in town, so we kicked off her visit with a trip to one of our favorite brunch spots. We filled up on cinnamon rolls, the best scrambled eggs in town, and of course amazing lattes. It was a great start to a weekend full of adventure!

Athens

With my aunt in town, we needed to have some extra fun! On Saturday, we took a day trip to Athens to visit my alma mater, the University of Georgia (Go Dawgs!). This trip had its ups and downs, and I did learn a few things along the way that would have made it more fun.

Wear sunscreen.

I know, I know. I should know this. While I tend to think we are overly scared of the sun, I was wearing a tank top to visit a botanical garden in June in the south. With no sunscreen. Twenty minutes outside is one thing; two hours is another. The State Botanical Garden of Georgia is beautiful and has an impressive playground. It’s also free! The kids had a great time exploring and playing. But I knew I was getting burned, so I was more focused on getting out of the sun than on having fun. Better preparation would have made a big difference in how present I was able to be.

Order what you want.

We had lunch at South Kitchen in downtown Athens. My cousin was very vocal that we should get the duck fat tater tots, and I’m so glad we did! They were amazing, as was the pimento cheese appetizer. But when it came time to order, I panicked and got something that sounded healthy. (I had also been trying to reason with my screaming toddler when the waitress arrived, so I wasn’t fully prepared.) It was…fine, but I probably would have been a lot happier with the pimento-bacon omelet. I was worried it would have been overkill after the pimento cheese appetizer, but I should have taken the number of children I had with me into account! I didn’t get enough to get tired of it!

Bring extra clothes.

I used to keep an emergency bag with clothes for everyone in the car, and I should get back in the habit of that! Our final stop was Condor Chocolates, and the kids and I really enjoyed their gelato. However, the toddler was wearing about half of it by the time he was done. (This is after he got sweaty and wet playing in the water station at the playground.) I have a Luke Danes–esque disdain for sticky children, and it would have been nice to be able to change him into something clean! I think he would have been more comfortable for the ride home too, which brings me to…

Don’t procrastinate when it comes to air conditioning.

The air conditioning in our SUV has been a source of frustration for years. We thought we had gotten it fixed for good a couple months ago, but lately it’s been acting up again. My husband and I knew this trip was coming up, and we knew the AC needed attention. But we just didn’t make taking it in a priority. It was fine for the drive to Athens, but the rest of the day…not so much. We were VERY thankful to be home—and that brings me to my final lesson learned:

Be grateful.

We have been focusing a lot on gratitude as a family. My kids often struggle to focus on the good when life gets challenging (even if the challenges are small). So I set expectations before the trip, encouraging them to focus on the good parts and not the hard parts. It ended up being a lesson I needed to keep in mind too! And there were lots of good parts. One of them was that the kids did a lot better and whined a lot less than I expected! That’s a huge win in my book.

Family Game Night

We waited until Sunday night for family game night. Between camp on Friday and Athens on Saturday, we knew tired kids weren’t in the right mindset for a game. But after a low-key Sunday, we tried a new game, Tapple, which my sister-in-law got my husband for his birthday. This word game is a little reminiscent of Scattergories. My husband, oldest kid, and I had fun, but it was a little tough for our 7-year-old middle kid. She understood the rules and was able to play but was the first one out frequently enough that she got frustrated. It seems like a good party game for ages 8 and up though!

Reading Recap

I recently encountered The Inheritance Games at my friend’s summer book flood party. But before I could take it home, another partygoer ripped it away from me in our white elephant exchange. I was intrigued enough to order my own copy, and I’m so glad I did. It sounded like a grownup version of The Westing Game, which I loved as a kid, and that’s exactly what it was. It’s not a Pulitzer contender, but it sure was fun. It’s the first book in a series, so I was a little concerned it would end on a cliffhanger. However, the author did a nice job of wrapping up enough stories that it could stand alone while introducing new plots points that will carry into the next book. I’ll definitely be adding The Hawthorne Legacy to my TBR!

How was your weekend? What are your best tips for a weekend adventure with kids? Do you have a sunscreen that you love? Let me know in the comments!

*This post contains affiliate links. If you make a purchase using these links, I receive a small commission, which I greatly appreciate!