VACATION

blocks doesn’t mean you have to have activities to ll every minute. Give kids some ownership of how to ll the time via a weekly family meeting to plan the upcoming week. Less mental load for parents and more engagement from kids equals a win-win.

Maintaining regular meal times is also a huge help in creating a summer routine. Meal planning can be a lot, even when parents aren’t having to plan three meals a day plus snacks, but giving your kids an opportunity to contribute to the meal plan is a great way to lighten the load. Tired of hearing, “I don’t like that?” Have everyone put their favorite meals in a jar so you can just grab and plug them in, depersonalizing the choice and minimizing disagreements.

Engaging activities for summer

Make the most of the warm weather by engaging in outdoor activities. Like recess, but di erent. Plan family hikes, picnics or visits to local parks. Encouraging kids to explore nature, go for bike rides, take ownership of daily dog walks, play in the water — anything to get outside and enjoy some Vitamin D. If there are struggles to decide what to do, using the same meal option trick works well as the element of surprise overcomes complaints — hopefully.

Summer vacation doesn’t mean learning should take a backseat. Make a bucket list of local museums, libraries or science centers to visit. Game nights for some quality non-screen time also keeps minds sharp. You’ve heard of chore charts, but reading charts in the summer are a great option, too. A throwback to Pizza Hut Book-It, anyone? I’m an especially huge fan of journal-

GUEST COLUMN

Andrew Wilson

I decided to jump onto iNaturalist and see what others around Denver have put on the app since June 1. In the rst 12 days of June in Denver County, there was a total of 103 mushroom observations on iNaturalist, representing 42 species. Several observations of the beautiful — but potentially poisonous — Chlorophyllum were made. ere’s also the beautiful Lepiota lilacia that has been surfacing in mulch and yards. en there’s the fun, but adult rated, Phallus hadriani. ese are fun because they often start o as rubbery eggs. I get a kick from the startled gardeners believing aliens have laid o spring in their mulch beds. When they come out of their shells, these impudent alien forms ing to capture the day, and highly suggest making a point to capture some gratitude as well.

Set up a designated art area at home where kids can paint, draw or engage in crafts. We say the mess is worth it — mostly, unless slime is involved!

When it’s too much

We live in a world of doing it all at all costs, and the reality is we need to shift that narrative. Asking for help is OK. Taking a break is OK. Not doing everything on your list is OK. Need a quick self-care moment or run errands sans kids? Form a baby-sitting co-op. Babysitters are saviors, but they also come at a cost and can be hard to nd. One solution is to form a co-op with friends or neighbors.

Reading this and still wondering where you’ll nd all the time? We get it, we highly recommend checking out TULA — your personal assistant and/or personal chef at the touch of a button, ready to take over your to-do list so you can focus on the fun.

Survive or thrive?

There will be days, even hours, when it feels like you’re both surviving and thriving in equal, and sometimes less-than-equal parts, and that’s OK. Navigating summer vacation with kids can be a joyful and rewarding experience when approached with the right mindset, but it’s totally normal to feel overwhelmed, too. Give yourself a break, give your kids a break. Giving grace, leaning into flexibility and shooting for a bit of balance will serve everyone well and make for a summer of fun and memories.

Megan Trask and Cody Galloway are Denver residents and co-founders of TULA Life Balanced. Learn more about their business at tulabalanced.com.

de nitely don’t conform to polite societal standards.

What sort of surprises me are the lack of Agaricus barnardii observations on iNaturalist. It’s surprising because they’re so abundant in Denver’s parks that they’re almost a weed. However, they’re easy to identify because they look like a fat portobella mushroom, but smell kind of like the ocean. Another species that people didn’t put on iNaturalist in early is Coprinellus micaceous. is is truly a weedy mushroom species because when it’s wet, you always see it fruiting in large “inky” bouquets at the base of trees and tree stumps. One of our most common wood eaters, it is mushrooms like this that return stumps back to the soil.

As a mycologist, this is a fun time of year to help people explore their mushroom curiosities. ere’s a ton of diversity out there, and each one of the species mentioned above can be found around Denver and the Denver Botanic Gardens. For those who are truly enthusiastic, the best way to gain experience in mushroom identi cation is to join your local mushroom club. Check out the Colorado Mycological Society. ey have monthly meetings at the Denver Botanic Gardens and you can go there to meet with other mushroom enthusiasts who are happy to share their knowledge. Better yet, join the society and go on a local mushroom foray.