Sunday Brunch: Summer Bucket List
low-effort ideas to fill your summer with magic
Welcome to Sunday Brunch! On Me! The new monthly free read to fill your weekends.
To kick things off, let's get into the Summer 2024 bucket list. Before we do, I want to say this isn't your cool girl bucket list. It's not the list you'll see circulating in Silver Lake or among people trying to do the most unique thing this summer. This is a realistic, low-effort list of ideas to fill your summer with magic. Go with what sounds good and forget the rest!
The summer of yes: Find as many ways to say yes! Because we all know during the rest of the year, there’s a lot of no. Say yes to the last-minute girls trip, yes to your kids as much as possible (the random thing at the store, dessert, staying up late - yes, yes, yes!), yes to pilates with the acquaintance you want to be closer friends with, yes to the camping road trip that you’re hesitant on, yes to the dress (not that one! The silk or linen one you’ve been eyeing but haven’t ordered yet). Just say YES.
Find the water: Beach, pool, lake, pond, waterfalls, sprinklers, etc. Where there is water, there is a lot of summer fun to be had.
Go without WiFi for the weekend: Continuing on with the theme of more phone-less time with family, WiFi-free weekends are what’s up. Simply turn off the WiFi in your house for an entire weekend - including all devices! - and unplug. Unplugging is basically a vacation, you know?
See live music outside: I will pretty much always say yes to live music, no matter who is playing or the venue. Of course, you can get tickets for big headliners, but you can also check your local area for music in the park, fairs, small festivals, or even happy hours with live music. Our farmers market has jazz night which is pretty cute!
Eat outdoors: Told you this was a simple list! Al fresco dining is one of the easiest ways for it to really feel like summer. Book the outdoor option, grab a blanket for a lunch picnic on your lawn, sip wine or mocktails on your doorstep, eat casually outside, or go all out and have a stunning dinner party. Linen, candles, cheese boards, ice buckets. Why not?!
Go to a baseball game: Even if you don't like sports, the snacks, the sun, the crowd's energy! This can be a date night, a girl's day, or a family hang. Some ballparks are better for families than others - if bringing yours, check the team's website for kid-friendly areas they have in the park. Don't live in a big city? There are lots of minor league teams with cheaper tickets and just as much fun - or start a game at your local park!
Pick up a hobby: Learn something new this summer! Some ideas on my radar: pottery class, learning tennis, a new language, and painting.
Make homemade popsicles: Who doesn't love a popsicle on a hot day? Make them with your fruit and liquid of choice and these or these cute popsicle molds.
Go dancing: Grab your girlfriends and go out dancing like you did at frat parties. It’s good for the soul! A club, line dancing at the bar, at a wedding, at a concert, etc.
Sleep under the stars: Whether you pitch a tent in your backyard, sleep on the trampoline, or go camping, enjoy some of the summer magic under the stars this summer!
Switch up the routine: Is there one thing in your routine that summer can make better? Maybe it's a walk after dinner with the whole fam or getting sunlight outside first thing in the morning or renting a convertible for fun or staying late at friends when they have you over for dinner. Take advantage of the long days while we have them!
Make a summer playlist: Let each family member choose a few songs and create a family playlist you can turn on whenever in need! Maybe a new summer tradition?? Would be so special to look back at them years later.
Go makeup free: Again and again and again! Just don’t forget the SPF.
Paint and art projects: There's something about summer that makes me want to do an art project. Get your kids involved! We’re painting a lot and working on a photography adventure around town where we take photos of all our favorite fonts (my girls use this camera). It's part reading (I have a beginning reader), part developing their eye, part art, and a whole lot of fun! Also read: Unleashing Your Inner Artist.
Wear the damn bikini or bathing suit: This last one is for all my fellow mamas who have been hiding behind oversized shirts poolside on a chair. Say goodbye to your inner critic, quiet that voice, and let it go (release those inhibitions!). Dive into the ocean with your kids, jump off the pool ledges with them, run in the sprinklers and show them what it looks like to be confident in their own skin. I promise you, nobody is judging you! And I also promise you that you look great. Especially when you do it with confidence. Life’s short, no regrets!
What would you add to this low-lift list?
p.s. for anyone looking for more kids activities, check out this list of ‘100+ Kids Activities Without a Screen’
SUNDAY READS & THINGS:
This list of tips on how to be a stellar guest and a gracious host is great! Read this before you say yes to the next invitation.
In the summer of 1972, Andy Warhol bought a house in the historic fishing village of Montauk. The town was never the same again. Here’s the tea.
Hot Girls in the Hamptons. What people are wearing, injecting and imbibing out East this summer.
Hot beauty tip: Moda Operandi is 20% off beauty until July 2. Augustinus Bader, Tata Harper, Westman Atelier, oh my! Code BEAUT20.
I really enjoyed this conversation between Dr. Vivian Chen, UK board-certified internal medicine and family doctor, and Amanda Chantal Bacon where they unpack what detox actually means. Dr. Chen breaks down clear, actionable tips to support PMS, gut health, and lymph, and answers community questions about the best water filters, mold in the shower, and sneaky places PFAS hide. There are so many great takeaways.
Get Ready to See This Skirt Everywhere This Summer (but also, duhh we know this)! Some favorites: this one from Madewell, this black one from COS, a butter yellow option, a white tiered maxi and of course, DÔEN’s.
I’m making this red, white and blue ricotta cake with fresh berries for the 4th - so festive!
If you’re in the market for a great clean deodorant that also smells divine, rose — mandarin from evolvetogether is my jam. File under: current favorite.
Younger Americans Are Set to Have a Summer of Fun, No Matter the Financial Costs. Gen Z and Millennial consumers are taking on debt and spending their savings to travel this summer and attend weddings - maybe they should read this basic bucket list instead.
I came across this book list and list aside, Sophia Efthimiatou’s writing about summer reading swept me off my feet! An excerpt:
”The only thing I want to contemplate on a beach are beautiful tan bodies. Or wonder about the lives of old ones, lounging on portable folding chairs, who take a summer seriously because it could be their last. I want to look upon blue until it covers my mind completely. Engage in harmless gossip, waste hours. Remember my old loves and dream up new ones. Lie heavily, as Gainsbourg put it, under the sun exactement.
I understand why publishers have branded it “beach reading.” They want to reassure me that these books won’t compromise my achieved lightness of being. I can stain them with salt water, dog-ear and abuse them, lose my page in the breeze without losing the plot. This is a false promise, because the mere appearance of a book, especially a physical one, is as intrusive in this scene as an exposed skull in the idyllic pastures of Arcadia. Books are appointments to be met and demand our full presence. They cannot be ignored, at least not without some guilt. They stand sleepy in my library, waiting to possess me, holding ideas that can change me and spaces where my consciousness can merge with another’s for a sustained period of time, until it becomes a part of me. I cannot take summer reading lightly no matter how “light” it is presented to be, precisely because summertime is when we should give in to Mephistopheles’s counsel and be rid of all grey theory for the golden tree of actual life that springs ever green.”
Happy Sunday!
xx,
G
Yes to saying yes! And just today, my kids splashed me in our pool and got my hair wet so I said, screw it and jumped in, which I rarely do. It was SO fun and my kids were delighted.