It’s OFFICIAL folks. June 21 came and went… so yes, summer is HERE. My older toddler’s preschool is on break, my younger toddler’s eczema is flaring up, I’m wishing with all my might that a pool will magically appear in my backyard (not gonna happen… ha). We are IN it. Fabulous fun ahead! Friday night (June 20, ‘Summer’s Eve’ if you will) my heart was racing just thinking about the ‘official’ start of the season:
After exhibiting that kind of obnoxiousness, you bet I had to come up with a stellar plan for the next day. I had big memories to live up to, after all. As a kid, summer meant hours and hours of loud, lunatic activity in our family pool with neighborhood friends. We were carefree and didn’t do a ton of camps – in those days, it was ok for kids to actually zone out and enjoy the break with long days in a pool, late nights of watching movies and tons and tons of popsicles and ice cream without having to shower because you’d been swimming all day. (Don’t think I’m gross… you know you did it too. Chlorine kills germs, right?) Those days were the best. I remember them as being perfect (even when I got water in my ear). No worries at all… we were kids!
I’m excited for my girls to get older so they can enjoy those types of days too. But now that I’m a parent, I look back at some of the stuff I did as a kid and realize that my parents were most likely worried about my sister and I while we were flailing about during the summer. (Are they coughing because they swallowed too much pool water? Do I hear someone choking on popcorn? Do they have the runs because of all that ice cream?) The things that go through your mind when you’re the grown up…
Worrying aside: I decided during our Friday night toddler scream-fest (video above, again, if you just can’t get enough) that our First Day of Summer 2014 was going to be perfect. Keep in mind that ‘perfect‘ in my book means semi-dressed up, mess-free, productive, involve good food (with some kind of cocktail)… but also something that my 3- and 2-year-old girls and I would enjoy together. Oh, and worry-free too. (I do love the beach, but just wasn’t in the mood that day for the whole flying-sand-in-our-face drama you know?) Since laying by a pool by myself was out, I decided to capitalize on my next-favorite activity: Shopping. We all started our day by decking out in matching summer stripes and then treated ourselves to a swanky ladies lunch (complete with a watermelon mojito just for mommy)…
The rest of our day included strolling around the fabulous fountain in the sun at our fave local outdoor shopping center, making a surprise pitstop to pick out mini-Nemo and pint-sized Cinderella dolls (toys in honor of The First Day of Summer 2014), even more shopping (sunglasses for me, shoes for my girls, some new shirts for Hubby). And don’t forget that humongous chocolate banana ice cream swirl. Hello, it’s SUMMER.
It was a great day. A perfect first day of summer with my favorite girls. Score! But this was just the first day, folks. Past summers yielded lessons learned at the beach, potty tales from the pool… and a full week of the most uncontrollable coughing I can remember in recent history (I’m still convinced that was because of those swimming lessons). As much as I’m excited for the months ahead, I can’t help but wonder what unexpected ailment or issue is going to sneak into our life amidst our perfect summer plans: Sand in our eyes? A harsh burn on that hidden spot that I can’t seem to get enough sunscreen on? A bee sting on the bottom of someone’s foot because we insisted on being barefoot in the grass to ‘tickle our toes’? (That last one happened to me as a kid at a day camp… awful. Maybe that’s why we weren’t big on camps. Hm.)
This summer, we (moms) can equip ourselves with a fabulous must-have app to alleviate all our worries. The new LiveHeath Online app offers a safe, fast and easy way for moms to talk face-to-face (via video) with a doctor to get a diagnosis and treatment for ourselves and our families for urgent care conditions that pop up every summer… like hand, foot and mouth, pink eye, rashes, sunburns, and other air and water borne viruses. I can even use it to get extra guidance for my little one’s eczema if it really gets out of control (I talked to a doctor directly involved with this app, and he can’t say enough about the unprecedented quality of video). Moms can use the LiveHealth Online app 24/7, 365 days to talk securely and privately by high-definition two-way video chat with a U.S.-based, board certified primary care doctor. If needed, the LiveHealth Online doctor can even call in prescriptions directly to your local pharmacy. You can even read bios and hand-pick who you’d like to talk with. Average wait time to access an MD? Less than 3 minutes.
Registering for LiveHealth Online is fast and easy — just download the app from iTunes or Google Play store and signup in one quick step. Or, visit www.livehealthonline.com/moms and register. LiveHealth Online is a cost effective alternative to urgent care or retail clinics and costs $49 for an urgent care visit. To give LiveHealth Online a shot, enter the code LHOFabMomVisit… it’s good for ONE FREE VISIT (until October 31, 2014)!
So eat that ice cream, don’t get out of the pool before 8pm and run around outdoor shopping spots like a crazy person in stripes… IT’S SUMMER! Here’s to a fabulous, healthy, fun, safe and perfect season free of worries!
WHAT’S YOUR PERFECT SUMMER DAY LIKE?
DISCLOSURE: This post is part of a compensated partnership with LiveHealth Online. All experiences and opinions are my own.
