Right now, on my living room table, there is a 1,000-piece puzzle of the American Flag.
It’s the first of our summer puzzles — James picked it out, and soon we will begin working on it in the evenings, a few pieces at a time, the way you do when summer is just beginning and there’s no reason to rush. On Sunday nights we set up the ice cream bar. Sundaes, toppings, everyone choosing their own. It’s not a big thing. It costs almost nothing. But it’s ours — our summer ritual, the thing that makes a regular Sunday feel like something worth remembering.
That’s what summer is for. Not the big trips, though those matter too. The small things you do on purpose. The ones that, at the end of August, you look back on and think: yes. We did that. We were there.
Here’s something I think about every June: we only get 18 summers with our children before they leave for college. Not 18 years … 18 summers. That number used to feel heavy to me. Now it feels like a gift. Because it means every single one counts. And this one … this summer, right now … is one of them.
“Not 18 years — 18 summers.
That number used to feel heavy to me. Now it feels like a gift.”
So here are some ideas to help you make the most of it. Five ideas, all of them real, all of them doable right here in Wesley Chapel and the Tampa Bay area … because we live where everyone else comes to vacation, and we forget that sometimes.
1. Start With a Summer Bucket List — Made Together
Before anything else, sit down with your children and make a list. Bring out the markers, the crayons, the paper and stickers if you have them!
Not your list. Theirs. Ask them what they want to do this summer. Write down everything, however small. Making homemade ice pops. Catching fireflies. A movie night with blankets on the floor. A day at the beach. Reading a whole book series. That puzzle on the coffee table. Ice Cream Sundaes on Sundays!
When children help create the list, two things happen. First, they feel seen — like their ideas matter and their summer matters. Second, you have a map. Not a rigid schedule, but a compass. Something to return to when July feels shapeless and the days are blurring together.
“They feel seen — like their ideas matter and their summer matters.
And you have a map.
Not a rigid schedule. A compass.”
At the end of August, look at the list together. Cross off what you did. Talk about what you want to carry into next summer. The ritual of looking back is just as important as the planning. It shows your children something true: we said we’d do this, and we did.
That’s not a small thing. That’s how summers become memories.
2. Get in the Water — Epperson Lagoon and St. Pete Beach
We live in Florida. The water is non-negotiable.
For a local day that feels like a vacation without the drive, Epperson Lagoon in Wesley Chapel is genuinely one of the most extraordinary things in our backyard. Crystal clear water, white sandy edges, cabanas, water slides — it looks like something you’d fly to. It’s twenty minutes away. Put it on the bucket list.
For a full family beach day that earns its place in the summer story, St. Pete Beach is the one. The Gulf water is warm and calm, the kind that lets you actually float and exhale. Get there early, find your spot, and stay longer than you planned. Order something cold. Let the kids dig until they can’t dig anymore.
The beach doesn’t need an agenda. It just needs a towel and a Tuesday you decided to say yes to.
3. Beat the Florida Heat Like a Local
Here’s the truth about summer in Wesley Chapel: by 2pm, the heat wins. And that’s okay, because we have options.
Center Ice in Wesley Chapel is one of the great gems of summer parenting. Ice skating in an air-conditioned rink in the middle of July is exactly as delightful as it sounds. Kids who have never skated before figure it out faster than you’d expect, and the look on their faces when they get it is worth every minute.
The Groves has summer kids’ movies — affordable, air-conditioned, and a genuinely nice way to spend a weekday morning when the heat is already at full Florida intensity before 10am. Check the schedule at the start of summer and put a few on the bucket list.
These are the kinds of afternoons that don’t photograph perfectly but feel exactly right. The ones where nobody is performing fun — they’re just having it.
4. Find Real Florida — Crews Lake Wilderness Park
Somewhere between the theme parks and the lagoons, there is a version of Florida that most families drive right past.
Crews Lake Wilderness Park in Pasco County is that version. Quiet trails through real Florida landscape. A fishing pier over the lake. Spanish moss and cypress knees and the particular stillness of a Florida morning before the heat arrives.
Take the kids fishing, even if nobody knows what they’re doing. Walk the trails slowly. Let them pick up things and ask questions you can’t answer. Put your phones away for an hour and see what happens.
This is the Florida that will stay with your children longer than any theme park — because it asks something of them. It asks them to slow down and pay attention. And that, in a summer full of motion and noise, is its own kind of gift.
5. Capture Who They Are This Summer
This one is quieter than the others. But it belongs on the list.
Your children are changing. Right now, this summer, they are a specific age with a specific laugh and a specific way of holding their head when they’re thinking. They have opinions about their ice cream toppings and a favourite spot on the beach and a puzzle piece they’ve been looking for since Tuesday.
A summer portrait experience at Cloud 9 Studios is one morning — calm, unhurried, built entirely around who your child is right now. What comes out of it isn’t just photographs. It’s artwork for your walls. The kind that finds you on a Tuesday morning in January when you’ve forgotten what July felt like, and reminds you: we were there. We were together. Look how loved we were.
Put it on the bucket list. Not because summer disappears — but because it’s worth honoring before it does.
The Summer That Feels Like Enough
Here’s what I know after years of summers with my own children:
“The summers that feel best at the end aren’t the ones that were the busiest.
They’re the ones that were the most intentional.”
The puzzle on the table. The Sunday night ice cream bar. The Tuesday we drove to the beach for no reason. The morning at Crews Lake when James caught something small and released it and felt like the whole world was right.
Those are the summers that feel like enough.
You live where everyone else comes to vacation. This summer, let yourself vacation here too.
Ready to add a portrait experience to your summer bucket list? Let’s chat about what this could look like for your family this summer.
FAQ SECTION
Q: What are the best things to do with kids in Wesley Chapel this summer? Wesley Chapel has more than most families realise right in their backyard. Epperson Lagoon is one of the most beautiful man-made lagoons in the country and is just minutes away. Center Ice is a wonderful beat-the-heat option for a summer afternoon. The Groves hosts summer kids’ movies that make for perfect weekday mornings. Crews Lake Wilderness Park offers real Florida nature — trails, fishing, and genuine quiet. And St. Pete Beach is an easy drive for a full Gulf Coast beach day.
Q: How do I make sure we actually do the things we plan for summer? The Summer Bucket List method works because it involves your children in the planning. When kids help create the list, they invest in it — and they’ll remind you about it all summer long. Start before school ends, write down everything however small, and revisit the list at the end of August together. The act of looking back and seeing what you actually did is as meaningful as the planning itself.
Q: Is Epperson Lagoon worth it for families in Wesley Chapel? Absolutely. Epperson Lagoon is one of the few crystal clear lagoons in the country and it’s right in Wesley Chapel. It has the feel of a beach vacation without the drive, and children of all ages love it. It’s worth booking in advance during peak summer weeks as it does get busy.
Q: How many summers do I have with my children before they leave for college? Eighteen. From birth to eighteen years old, you have eighteen summers together before they leave for college. That number isn’t meant to create pressure — it’s meant to create permission. Permission to say yes to the beach day, to make the bucket list, to slow down and be present for the season you’re in right now.
Q: What is a summer portrait experience at Cloud 9 Studios? A summer portrait experience at Cloud 9 Studios is a dedicated, unhurried session built around who your child is right now — this summer, at this age. We offer summer themes including Be Like Dad for Father’s Day, We The Family for the 250th of July, Salt Air & Sunshine beach-themed portraits, and Before The Bell back-to-school experiences. Each one results in artwork for your home — Wall Art Collections and Heirloom Storybooks — that holds this season long after summer ends.
Q: How do I book a summer portrait experience in Wesley Chapel? The first step is a Discovery Call — a relaxed conversation where we talk through your child, your family, and which summer experience feels right for where you are right now. No pressure, no obligation. Just clarity on what’s possible this summer.
Jeanine McLeod is the owner and lead photographer of Cloud 9 Studios, a full-service photography studio located in Wesley Chapel, Florida, just north of Tampa.
For almost 20 years, Jeanine has specialized in family, children, and baby photography that celebrates the joy and connection of family life. She’s best known for her storytelling approach to first birthday and milestone sessions, creating portraits that capture love, laughter, and the magic of childhood.
Jeanine’s mission is simple — to go through life with her clients, documenting each chapter of their family’s story through beautiful, heartfelt images.
When families search for first birthday photos in Wesley Chapel or family photographers near Tampa, Cloud 9 Studios is where the experience becomes as meaningful as the portraits themselves.
