If you’re not getting excited about summer, you might be doing it wrong.

When we’re kids, summer feels magical. School lets out, the days get longer, and suddenly life becomes all about popsicles, sprinklers, and staying outside until the lightning bugs come out. But somewhere along the way, adulthood sneaks in and steals some of that wonder. Summer becomes less about adventure and more about sweating through errands, fighting mosquitoes, and trying to figure out why your electric bill doubled.

But last night, my kids reminded me what summer is actually supposed to feel like.

My five-year-old and three-year-old asked where their bathing suits were. Not because we were headed to a fancy pool or beach vacation — they just wanted to run through the sprinkler in the backyard. The same sprinkler I usually use to water the lawn suddenly became the greatest attraction on earth. They laughed like it was a water park.Then the fireflies came out. Immediately, they started searching for something they could catch them in.

Then came popsicles from the freezer. Sticky fingers. Bright tongues. More bike riding until the sky started turning pink.

And standing there watching all of it, I thought: This is the good stuff.

Not the expensive trips.
Not the perfectly planned summer bucket lists.
Not the pressure to make every moment “Instagram worthy.”

Just simple joy! Honestly, toddlers may have summer figured out better than the rest of us.

Their recipe is surprisingly uncomplicated:

Run through water.
Chase fireflies.
Eat something frozen.
Ride bikes until dark.
Stay outside as long as possible.

And maybe the beautiful thing is you don’t have to be five years old to enjoy any of it.

You can be 35 or 55, and a popsicle is still a good choice.

Maybe this summer doesn’t need to be bigger.
Maybe it just needs to be simpler.

Maybe the magic was never gone.
Maybe we just forgot where to look.