I wrote this with my kids and many other teens I have found myself so fond of in mind. I dedicate it to them and share it with you all!!

My dream for you. A letter to to the teens of today.

My dream for you is...

To have enough confidence to go for your dreams, yet enough humility to take others with you on the way to the top.

To find true love. Not necessarily romantic love, but true love where you choose each other and stick around through crappy stuff.

To have huge dreams of your own. Not so you can continuously compare where you are to what you want in a way that creates anxiety, but rather fosters excitement and ambition.

To find something you are passionate about and do it fully, learn it fully and share it fully

To be honest with yourself and a few chosen others, share your fears, dreams and questions in a safe place.

To do things that scare you but make you better.

To find your voice and use it, ask for what you need, question what you do not understand and share your ideas with the world.

To know you create your own identity, based on your own choices.

To have a positive impact on others and allow others to have a positive impact on you.

To have a positive and helpful relationship with failure, let it be a teacher for you and help you become better.

To know you are not and do not have to be perfect, You will make mistakes, we all do, but you will recover to make more. It is an endless cycle of life you never grow out of.

My dream for you is to be okay with that.

10 (Almost Free)

Family Fun Summer Activities

Summer time is upon us! Kids are out of school (or counting down to Summer Vacation). For families with young children, it is important that you find things that will not break the bank to do together. For families with older kids, it is a great time to connect as a family and bring the togetherness that, like me, may be recognizing how limited their family time is. Post High School plans and "paint what you want in my room, I will be out in a year anyway" comments are a regular topic in my home.

Here are some great things to do as a family. Many are great for all ages or at least can be adapted for all ages. Also, follow my Board on Pinterest to find many of these ideas and more!! Almost Free Family Fun Summer board

1.Family Survival Trip

Coordinate a challenge of some type. Bring a few survival items and take a family survival trip. Great for older kids! You can do it overnight or even a few days! This is totally on our family list this summer!

2.Backyard or living room camp out.

This is great for all ages! You can do it alone or you can do it as a family! Inside or outside! Make sure you add s'mores and ghost stories!

3.build/up-cycle bird house

There are so many ways to do this one for all ages. You can provide a family challenge using only provided or found materials. My family used scrap wood from the garage, wood glue and nails to create ours. It was a blast and made the yard pretty!

4.Bonfire

Who doesn’t love a good bonfire? It should be called a "BOND" fire. Nuff said.

5.Karaoke party

The best part about this is now you can just use YouTube. No need for an expensive machine.

6.Take apart and rebuild an old appliance

There is so much to learn with this activity. Come on, you know you want to do it! You can purchase inexpensive appliances from the thrift store or use an old one you would throw away otherwise.

7.Random Acts of Kindness challenge

I have an Advent one available here, but you can find all kinds of them. Get the whole family involved in creating one on your own! Use a family meeting and create a list of Random Act of Kindness challenge.

8.Picnic

A classic. Get creative with menu or venue! Change it up and do a few of them.

9.Host an Ice cream Sundae bar.

Invite friends or neighbors and just enjoy making your own sundae!

10.Homemade Popsicle

Fruit juices and more. Check out Pinterest for so many ideas.

My Dream for You....A letter for the teens of today.

10 (Almost Free) Family Fun Summer Activities