I’m the proud Guinny to six beautiful boys: Jack, Matthew, Henry, John, Sullivan, and Bennett. And while I hate seein’ them grow older, I love seein’ their fun, unique personalities develop. From their interests to their senses of humor, these boys are so different from one another, but you know what they say: variety is the spice of life. Boy, is my life flavorful!

With everyone’s busy schedules, we so rarely get to be with all of them at the same time. But you know what? As much as I love having them all together, I really cherish that special one-on-one time I get to have with each of them. It’s when we do our best talkin’ and when we can really create wonderful memories that just belong to me and that one unique grandboy. Summer is always best for spending time with the boys because their schedules tend to slow down a bit (and so does mine!).

Well, I’ve been noticin’ lately just how fast these sweet boys are growin’—Jack turns 11 this month, if you can believe it. And because I don’t want to miss a moment, I’m making the most out of this summer together. So Jack will come over and spend some time with me in the kitchen like he loves to do, Henry and I will spend all day fishin’ off the dock, and Matty, John Boy, and Sully will come over and cuddle with me in the den while we watch movies. It’s truly a grandmother’s dream come true to spend time with her grandkids like that. I’m just glad they love it too.

It’s so overwhelming for Michael and me to look at these boys and see our own children and even some of ourselves in them. I think it’s almost too much to wrap my head around, but I suppose most miracles are.

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I asked Jack his favorite thing about summer, and of course, his response was, “No school”. “Too easy, Jack,” I responded. “Take a second and really think, what’s your favorite part of summer?”

After some consideration, he decided his favorite part of summer was spending more time with us, his family. We recognized that during the school year, we’re all so busy, we don’t see each other very often, and when we do, it’s usually at the homework table or in the tub.

Being separated from his friends was his biggest negative of the summer, but connecting through video games with his buddy group (they all have headsets) eases the pain. And that leads into our biggest challenge as parents—screen time. Ugh!

Of course, he also loves the pace of mornings in the summer—no rushing out the door, no uniforms, and no hairbrush! The summer reading list also came up pretty quickly in his list too. He loves to spend time in a cool, quiet part of the house reading; I think he gets that from me.

He had very few complaints other than missing friends, but he said sometimes it’s boring. Summer days are long, and filling each one with new, exciting things is hard. It’s my guess though that his “boring” is actually when we unplug the video games.

We love to travel as a family and get away a few times every summer to see my dad in Albany or friends in Atlanta. Going up to visit Athens is also a fun trip we look forward to.

Trying to keep kids happy and active while we maintain a schedule at work and for various obligations is tough, but every year, we manage to make it to the start of the school year. It’s all thanks to Brooke, of course; she is the master planner and keeper of all schedules.

Jack and I share a love for so many of the same fun things, so we chase through these three months together, but picking a favorite was easy: camp!

Jack and I would love to hear what you, your kids, or your grandkids like about summer. Let us know in the comments section!

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