Listography – Top 5 things about the summer holidays

Summer in Pompei – our honeymoon 3 years ago

Yay, Listography is back, courtesy of Kate Takes 5! And I have to tell you about one of my favourite things, so this is a double treat.

This year is a strange one in terms of summer holidays because Badgerman and I are both off at the same time for the whole six weeks (not counting last year because of having a newborn and, well, having a newborn).

Did I tell you Badgerman was a teacher? As an aside, if you think he’s going to be twiddling his thumbs for the next month and a bit, think again. He has been working every day since he left school a week ago and tells me that the only real time off he will take is when we go away for two weeks in a bit. When we get back he’ll be off to school for exam results and various other bits. Still, it’s a treat to have him around every day, which leads us nicely into my five favourite things about this time of year.

1. Sunny weather: yep, despite all evidence to the contrary, August is still the time of year when we are most likely to get good weather, and I am going to stick to my hopeful naiveté on this one. Especially if we go south on our travels, which we do.

2. France: August is now going to mark our annual holiday in France. Considering it’s been two years since our last trip, I cannot wait to see all my family, enjoy lazy days in my parents’ garden and eat lots of gorgeous food. We used to go at Christmas time, but have now decided it is too manic a time to really enjoy the trip so instead we are going to have a lovely road trip

3. Lazy mornings: even with a kid who wakes up anytime between 5 am and 7.30 am, and who likes to keep us guessing which one it will be every day, we are still managing slow pyjama mornings. I am even getting a cup of tea in bed sometimes. I am ever so grateful that Badgerman needs so much less sleep than me and can have fun with Little Girl whilst I enjoy an extra hour in bed.

4. Eating outside: of course it can be done any time of year, but there’s something I particularly enjoy about sitting outside in the summer, when there is no rush to go anywhere and lunch naturally bleeds into a drink and a book, and before you know it, it’s time for dinner. I like not having to ‘do’ anything and I am quite capable of wasting an afternoon this way.

5. Time to think and plan: or not, as the case may be. But because Badgerman is around more, we do end up having more ‘me’ time, which is great for looking back to the year that’s gone, thinking about what we’d like to achieve in the year ahead, and maybe even start doing something about it. This year, I have to set up my business venture in personal French tuition, and maybe do something at long last about this meal planning project I’ve been sitting on for the last six months.