Fresh! Cold! Lemonade!

Summer just wouldn't be summer without a lemonade stand, right? It's the quintessential summer ritual that children have been doing for generations, and rightfully so, it's the perfect summer project. Well, that is if you can overlook child labor laws, operating without a valid business license, and possible health violations.  But other than that? Downright fun!

 In fact, it was the very first event added to our summer to-do list with a unanimous puh-leaaaase mommy!! They're on to me. My kids that is. They know darn well that once they hit this obnoxiously high octave I'll usually agree. ANYTHING to make the heinous whining stop.

Thankfully, they didn't want a unicycle. No, a lemonade stand I can do--I totally got this! But to do it right, requires a little bit of collaboration, good communication and some creativity. I called up our local park district and asked if we could have our lemonade stand at the park during the last tee-ball game. Since we're trying little by little to teach our kids the idea of giving back, we didn't want to charge for the lemonade. A little pro-bono never hurt anyone, right?

Next up, communication--how to get the word out. Why thank you facebook, that was easy. With a little creativity, the kids painted a banner, chose a music playlist, and picked out decorations. And what unfolded was an awesome summer memory that we'll forever cherish.

And a special thanks to all the moms and dads and kids who came out to celebrate, it wouldn't have been the same without you. Watching our kids learn the value of friendship is pretty great, huh?!

Happy Summer!