Family Driving Range Fun!

Well, m’peeps.

In these hot-as-hades, dog days of summer, when 99 degrees feels like a cool front, it’s hard to manage much of anything outdoors, beyond swimming. (And, man, are we grateful for the pool these days.)

But. 

We managed the loveliest golf outing yesterday morning before the heinous temperatures truly set in, and it was such a joy to be outside in the fresh air with a beautiful view and some wide open space for the kiddos to roam.

And, let’s be real: it made daddy’s heart go putter (er, pitter) pat. :)

Basically, it started with a tiny seed of joy. The fact that the hubby gets to go play a round of golf in a couple of weeks, when we make a road trip to Oklahoma to see family. 

And since he only plays a few times a year, it’s a big deal when he goes. And he stretches and practices in the living room for weeks beforehand. And, he’s been watching golf on tv a bunch, as it’s one of the only socially distanced sports that’s currently in play.

And then the golf love became even bigger around our casa when the hubby purchased this set of clubs for the kiddos:

Danger. Warning. DO NOT SWING in living room.



So...yesterday morning, while there was about 10% cloud cover if you squinted your eyes just right, we all drove five minutes down the road to a beautiful little course.





And in true Texas form...there were a couple of Longhorns fenced off in one area, much to the kiddos’ delight.

We’re continuously trying to come up with tiny, safe outings we can manage as a family, and this was pretty golden.

The kiddos’ comfort with their face masks has increased the more they wear them, which is good, as I’m quite a stickler for wearing them— even outdoors, when the terrain and human contact is unknown.

So we kept them on as we walked through the property to the driving range...

And then, we were fortunate to get the last space on the top tier of the driving range, which meant we had nobody to the direct right of us.



But, full disclosure: there were definitely up to 20 people on the driving range, some on a lower tier that you’ll see in the background of some pictures, and some to the left of us. But we felt safe and isolated in our area, and were able to remove our masks.

I still have no idea what will happen at the start of the school year, but I think it’s increasingly more important for my young kiddos to not only learn how to keep to themselves in life and in errands, but how to safely maneuver with other people in the vicinity. All within our own familial comfort zone. 



And even in the heat of the summer, some fresh air a a beautiful view is a definite mood-booster.



This marked the first time we’ve taken the kiddos to a driving range to practicing swinging and hitting the ball, and I feel like it will be a fun outlet moving forward. All of them are of an age to make contact with the ball (with enough tries), and they all had fun with it.

Though Chica can definitely boast a precious round of driving range fun in her life...

About nine months old, and cute as a button. :)





And now, they’re all SO BIG! (Insert giant, crocodile tears.)

You know, these weeks of July are typically my hardest of every summer.

It’s usually that stretch of time when you feel like the heat is sapping the energy from you, and the effort to plan out and execute fun activities and days just feels like a chore. 

But that has not at all been the case this year.

I don’t know if it’s due to the hubby still working from home and being around for short bursts of fun as his days allow. Or if it’s the current ages of my kiddos and the fact that they play together better than ever. Or just an adjusted attitude on my part, in relation to the current global climate, and my attempt to find positives in everything, small or large. 

Whatever the reason, I’m grateful for happy and busy summer days.

And smiling kiddos.

:)

Over and out.