There are certain things that get taken away from us when we become members of the full-time, professional workforce, and one of those things is summer vacation. Remember the fun of having three whole months of freedom all to yourself during which you could sleep as late as you wanted, watch plenty of mindless daytime television, run around outside until the bottoms of your feet turned black, and stay up all night if you wanted to?

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	Tip number nine for making the most of your summer: go camping.

Back then, summer was the season of slumber parties and swimming pools, and the days seemed to stretch on forever. These days, summer is really no different from every other season, unless you count the fact that your kids call you a million times a day at work to update you on their plans for slumber parties and trips to the pool.

However, I do think there is a way to make time in your schedule to grab hold of your very own little piece of summer this year simply by making time for life's little pleasures over the next couple of months. The following are 30 summer celebrations tailored to your busy lifestyle as a working professional and guaranteed to put a skip in your step and a sun-kissed smile on your face.

1. Eat some ice cream—on a cone, not in a dish—and lick your fingers when it drips.
2. Buy some little wooden umbrellas, and put one in your iced tea at dinner.
3. Get a pedicure, and pick the brightest shade of pink you can find for your polish.
4. Rent your favorite television series on DVD, and spend a whole Saturday getting caught up.
5. Wear a sundress.
6. Sunbathe on your driveway—who says you need a pool?
7. Take your family to the beach.
8. Eat dinner outside.
9. Go camping.
10. Buy a fire pit, and make s'mores in your backyard.
11. Listen to The Beach Boys.
12. Adopt a pet.
13. Buy a hat to support your local team, and wear it to a baseball game—yes, Little League games count!
14. Have a barbecue, and invite all your friends.
15. Go out on a date, and splurge on an expensive bottle of wine.
16. Jump on a trampoline.


17. Host at least one slumber party.
18. Drive with the windows down.
19. Buy a blender, and experiment to create your very own signature summer cocktail.
20. Take a personal day, and spend it reading magazines, eating fast food, and talking on the phone with friends.
21. Take the kids to a water park, and go on every single slide.
22. Buy some touristy postcards, and send them to out-of-state friends and family.
23. Take a vacation. Can't afford the airfare? Take a road trip.
24. Get a bike, and ride it on the weekends.
25. Have your friends over for a poker night.
26. Take a bubble bath.
27. Forego your usual extra hot soy latte, and treat yourself to an Orange Creme Frappuccino.
28. Designate one night of the week as "Pizza Night," and vow to never, ever cook on that night.
29. Stay up late.
30. Go barefoot.

On the net:

Poker Night Party Ideas
www.evite.com/app/cms/ideas/poker-night

Beach Bikes
www.beachbikes.net

Blockbuster
www.blockbuster.com

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