I hope everyone had a happy Mother’s Day/week.  I had to keep reminding myself of this challenge all week because I wanted to treat my mom well, but it was hard when she was prying me to get out of bed 5 minutes before I needed to leave for school.  Nevertheless, I put my dishes in the dishwasher without asking!  At least most of the time, anyway.

Like I promised a few weeks back in my blog, this week will be a reward for your early-preparation for finals.  Finals are a little over a week away, but after that comes… drum roll please… SUMMER!  It is a time of fun and freedom; a reward for a year’s worth of hard work.  Thus, this week’s challenge is to start planning your summer activities.

This challenge is similar to my week 19 blog about fun stuff to do over spring break, but this one is 10 times better because you have three months to fill with activities!  I have already made some plans about things like summer jobs, but this challenge is designed so that you focus on fun things for this summer.  Here are a few ideas:

• concerts:  Bruno Mars, Kenny Chesney, Owl City, Ben Folds, Tech N9ne, Matt & Kim, Mumford & Sons, Katy Perry, 311, Backstreet Boys.  The list goes on and on.  There a ton of great acts coming to KC this summer and some are at really great prices, too.
• special attractions: KC is full of limited time attractions all summer long.  The Nelson Atkins art gallery is showing Monet’s Water Lilies through Aug. 7 and James Naismith’s original rules of basketball through June 11.  The Princess Diana exhibit at Union station runs until June 12.  One of the most special attractions throughout all the Midwest this summer will be the Kanrocksas music festival on Aug. 5 and 6.  This event at the Kansas Speedway is your chance to see artists like Eminem, Kid Cudi and Jack’s Mannequin as they come through town.
• sporting events: Of course everyone loves a good Royals game, and why shouldn’t you when tickets can be as low as $5?  However, there are other KC sports teams that are worth checking out this summer.  Our MLS soccer team Sporting KC plays out at the Legends all summer, and the lesser-known arena football team of the city, the Kansas City Command, takes over the Sprint Center through July.
• community service: There is never an off-season for helping the community.  Places like Operation Breakthrough, the Upper Room and St. James food pantry are always looking for volunteers and the summer is a great time to help because you have so much free time.  Volunteering a lot this summer will get you on your way to earning the Presidential Service Award for completing 100 hours of service.

All of these fun summer activities should act as motivation, not distraction, for studying for finals.  I know I will have to keep telling myself that to keep focused.  In less than two weeks we will all be able to enjoy the fun summer activities we are planning this week.  So let’s go out this week, plan our summers, still study for finals and conquer this challenge!