Summer activities for kids

Memphis Is My Boyfriend: End of Summer Blues

Summer break is over, and no one is particularly happy about it. But that doesn’t mean you don’t have time to still do something meaningful with your tweens and teens before homework starts rolling in.

Wonky’s Not So Famous Treats

We decided to surprise our kids with a “candy tasting.” Imagine if you went to Willy Wonka’s Chocolate Factory. You’d probably see treats of all shapes and sizes. Displays where everything is edible. Color-changing drinks. Chocolate in the form of solids, liquids, and everything in between. You might even battle some evil sea creature that’s made entirely from candy.

Actually, I’m describing our experience at Wonky’s Not So Famous Treats! This was the most amazing experience with the coolest aesthetics. We all enjoyed the ocean decor and the jellyfish hanging from the ceiling. The kids enjoyed discovering all the edible items on the dessert platter. Those sweet and creative treats were mind-blowing. The kids sampled the tentacle twizzlers, chocolate rocks, gushy eyeballs, delicious cheesecake, and so much more. And Wonky’s offered a variety of flavors and textures: chewy, crunchy, chocolaty, fruity, sour, creamy, cold, gummy, and tarty. Oh, and the adult drinks were on point.

Final Summer Curriculum Update

Our kids finally rode the MATA bus, and the experience did not disappoint! We started off by giving them a bus schedule and explaining to them that they were to ride the bus from our community to Downtown. Together, they researched what the Downtown terminal looks like so they would know it when they got off. They also familiarized themselves with the names of major streets they would encounter. We gave each child a dollar for the bus fare and dropped them off.

Midway through their bus ride, we texted the kids and asked them how it was going. When they replied that they were bored, hubby and I decided to offer extra credit: “Great!!! Here’s your mandatory extra credit. After exiting the bus, you must get on the trolley and use ‘Find My’ to locate us. We will be on South Main.”

The kids loved the challenge, but it soon appeared that they were in over their heads. Ten minutes later, the kids called us. “Mom,” they said, “we got off too early. We don’t know exactly where we are.” I took a deep breath and replied, “You have all the technology you need at your fingertips. Figure out where you are and the distance to where you should be.” (Don’t worry, I knew exactly where they were.) Within minutes, they called back and said that they were a block from the terminal and were headed for the trolley. They used “Find My” to locate us and rode the trolley to our exact location.

Here are the kids’ experiences in their own words:

16-year-old: I liked when the bus took off, but soon it was meh.

12-year-old: It was fun at first, but the smell was odd.

12-year-old: When you first get on, it’s fun! But when strangers started coming on and talking weirdly, it got awkward.

10-year-old: The ride was really bumpy and a little scary for me!

School-Year Prep

You might not be ready for school, but school is ready for you! Here are a few tips:

• If you have a teenaged daughter, make sure she keeps a “period pack” at school. This should consist of a few pads and wipes as well as a clean pair of underwear and school appropriate pants. (Because accidents do happen.)

• Assign each teenager a laundry day. On that day, their laundry must be washed, dried, folded, or hung up.

• Remind the kids of the difference between the school’s grading scale and your grading scale. (A 70 is still a D to me.)

• Create a school supply stash. Yes, you’re going to spend hundreds of dollars on school supplies. And yes, by October your child is still going to need something.

• Keep at least $40 in ones at home. Nothing is worse than finding out at the last minute that you need $13 for a field trip. (Schools are not at liberty to give change for $20 and there’s too much to do in the morning to stop for cash.)

• Backpacks must be packed the night before.

Tips from teenagers to teenagers

• Complete your assignments as soon as you get them.

• Use your time after school wisely.

• A friend who is mean to other people is not your friend.

• Get your clothes ready the night before.

• Charge your school device.

• Don’t skip first or second breakfast.

• Always carry deodorant. Always.

• Never tell anyone your locker combination.

• Structure is your friend.

Also … my eldest got a 28 on the ACT! #proudparent.

Patricia Lockhart is a native Memphian who loves to read, write, cook, and eat. @realworkwife @memphisismyboyfriend

Memphis Is My Boyfriend: Fun, but Not in the Sun

With this heat wave, we’ve had to find ways to enjoy our summer, but stay cool at the same time. While my kids, now 16, 12, 12, and 10, would be content lying around the house in their pajamas, I just want them to do … something else. Now don’t get me wrong, I love to play video games as well (my current favorite is My Time at Sandrock), but that can’t be all that they do. This city is too vibrant and their brains are too bright to be only used for video games.

Memphis Brooks Museum of Art

If you haven’t been to the Brooks Museum’s latest exhibit, “People are People” by Christian Siriano, I don’t know what you’re waiting for. This exhibit displays some of Siriano’s contributions to fashion. My daughter’s mouth dropped in awe. (Best mom-feeling ever!) She guided us around the exhibit, reading the captions while exclaiming her opinion of each dress. We saw dresses worn by Michelle Obama, Ashley Graham, and Ariana Grande. The gowns are exquisite and absolutely amazing. My daughter gained a lot of inspiration and drive from this exhibit. She talked endlessly about the alterations she was going to make to some of her clothes and how she finally knows how she is going to finish the shirt she’s been sewing. But the best part was when my boys got excited. The Brooks Museum had a runway set up with clothes on a rack that they could piece together to make a fashion statement. Were they excited to play dress-up? No. But were they excited to play dress-up with their little sister? Yes! We all ran to the rack, donned the coolest attire, and walked the runway. We had the best time! Next, my hubby and daughter used fabric to dress a mannequin while the boys sketched clothes.

The Brooks Museum is free Saturdays from 10 a.m. to noon. “People are People” by Christian Siriano will be around until August 4th.

**Contributions to fashion** (Photo: Patricia Lockhart)

Kroc Center

We have been members of the Kroc Center for a few years now, and the Kroc has this long hallway that displays the artwork of local artists. As we walked by, the eldest twin slowed his pace. He looked at the artwork, nodded, then moved along. He called our attention to several different pieces, noting content and technique. And then his world changed. Written in the bottom right-hand corner, on a small rectangular piece of paper, was the price the artwork was selling for. It then seemed like several dots connected together in his brain. “This piece sells for $65! That’s more than my allowance!” I just smiled and said, “Yes, it is.” My husband and I have always told him that he could sell his artwork to earn money. Ever since he was 5 and he stated that he wanted to be a “starving artist” when he grew up, we explained to him that he could be an artist without the starving part. But sometimes a parent’s words don’t resonate with their kids until an appropriate moment. Seeing artwork comparable to his own ability for sale ignited something in him. (Insert proud mommy moment.)

My kids also love to swim at the Kroc. They have a wonderful lazy river. (Yep, you read that right!) My kids are perfectly content going around and around and around, relaxing with each churn of the artificial currents.

Summer Curriculum Update

Here’s a brief update on how the summer curriculum is going. The MATA bus ride is scheduled for July. As you’ve probably guessed, they aren’t excited. While they have mastered how to operate Google Calendar and have put several things on the family calendar, they have failed to learn the lyrics to any Aretha Franklin song or “Colors of the Wind” from Pocahontas with accuracy. I honestly didn’t think it would be hard, but they are seriously struggling.

The grocery shopping and meal prep had an unexpected outcome. Yes, the kids created grocery lists and cooked meals. But we’ve also had to put a cap on “when” meals could be made. The kids were cooking the typical breakfast, lunches, and dinners, but also added “pre-lunch” and a “post-dinner” meals. I know what you’re thinking, isn’t “post-dinner” just dessert? No, not for them, “post-dinner” is the meal you eat after dessert. Usually served after you have stayed up too late and gotten hungry again. Therefore, the kitchen now closes at 10 p.m. (Those P-EBT cards need to hurry up and arrive!)

They’re finishing up their autobiography/biography and school-assigned summer reading books, too. As you probably guessed, they decided to pace their time with books by only reading a chapter a day. I had to gently remind them that at this pace, they wouldn’t finish their books in time for school. And as you know, the summer reading books include a mini-project.

So far they’ve created and gained inspiration, added movement, and nurtured their brains. I think this deserves a video game binge day, but no “post-dinners.”

Patricia Lockhart is a native Memphian who loves to read, write, cook, and eat. By day, she’s a school librarian and writer, but by night … she’s asleep. @realworkwife @memphisismyboyfriend