100 Days of
Summer: From Memorial Day through Labor
Day, Fundamentally Toys brings kids and parents tons of creative and
imaginative ideas for fun all summer long.
By the time summer
rolled around when I was a kid, the last thing I ever wanted to say to my
mother was "I'm bored." Her
quick reply was always "Bored? I'll can find plenty for you to do!"
Following that threatening statement was a long list of distasteful solutions
to my boredom, such as cleaning my closet, bedroom, or worse yet, the garage.
Believe me, I learned to not bring up the subject and appear to be busy, or
take off for the neighbor's house.
Summer in the
Midwest evokes sweet childhood memories for me: feeling the heat and humidity on my skin;
seeing a flash of lightning in distant black clouds; or listening to an endless
orchestra of cicadas in the trees. My family never planned a big summer trip. I
didn't go to camp. Cousins from out of town never came to visit. My memories
center purely on the fun we made for ourselves in the backyard, woods, streets,
library, or community pool with friends and families in our small town in Ohio.
When my daughter was
growing up, I made sure she spent a long portion of her summer vacation with my
mom in Ohio. I did not want her to miss the uniqueness of a Midwestern,
small-town summer. Boredom was nothing this kid ever experienced at her grandma's
house. There were ponds to play in, fireflies to catch, gardens to plant,
swimming lessons to take, and many trips to Dairy Queen for frozen custard. It
was fun for me to re-experience my childhood summers through her.
As I was planning
Fundamentally Toys' 100 Days of Summer events, I wondered to myself if the
summer fun I had as a kid was really so very different from the fun that kids have
today. Of course, much has changed -- particularly in the digital age. But I
really think there's still lots of fun that simply never goes out of style in
the summer months. It's a great time for kids
and families to not only relax, but to continue to learn, explore, and create
together. And we'll be showing you how to do just that with events, ideas,
giveaways, promotions, rewards, and more as the summer unfolds.
So we "cleaned our
closet" over the Memorial Day weekend and held a sidewalk sale. Now that
the hard, boring work is done, we can concentrate on fun from now through
Labor Day. And as my mother said, "I'll find plenty for you to do!" But I mean that in a fun way.
Stay tuned for 100 Days of Summer fun.
Debbie Scholl
