Summer Challenge #3-What are some of your favorite summer memories as a child?

What are some of your favorite summer memories as a child?

One of my all time favorite memories is getting to go swimming every day, as often as I wanted too. I was very lucky to have grown up with a in ground pool in the back yard. I was always swimming. It was great for entertaining friends epically as I got older. Still to this day, I have quite a few pool parties at my grandparents house. Their house has a perfect location in my opinion. It's out in the country with acreage. Great area for pool parties, camping and bon fires.

I was also very blessed to grow up traveling. Every summer, we traveled all over. I loved going to the Beach, Disney World, Disney Land, Universal Studios, Mall of America,etc.

Another time period that stands out is all my summers I spent in the marching band and drum corp international. Yes, I was a band geek. But I also did varsity track, student council, FFA, FTA, FCCLA an started the fire department my senior year. As other kids were laying around the house during the summer, I was at marching band practice. I spent 3 years in the marching band from 9th grade through 11th grade. My senior year instead of doing high school marching band, I did a summer of drum corp international. By being involved in band in general, I learned what dedication was all about. I saw that if you put hard work into something, it would push you closer to your goals. I loved being a band geek. We got out of classes early at times, missed days every once in awhile, traveled, got to hang out with friends and actually got to experience high school. The summer before my senior year, I got to travel all over the United States by doing DCI. It was great to be out in the world like that at 17; parents weren't around making choices for you and you hand to be responsible for yourself. I really learned a lot about myself. I had planned to continue on into college by being a band student. For years, I wanted to become a band director. If I would have had a different teacher then what I had, that's the route I would have went. I had a full ride into one college and got accepted into three others. But that final summer of high school changed my world. I was shown that it would be okay to try something new. That's what I did when I came back home. I quit everything band related by October of my Senior year. I joined the fire department. I turned down my college acceptance letters and decided I didn't want to leave the firehouse. If it wouldn't have been for that one summer; I wouldn't be who I am today. I wouldn't have my amazing son. I wouldn't have met some of the greatest people if I would have went the other route. That summer changed my life direction.