The Hour After Dinner
Dear Kids,
Summer has this amazing way of throwing the rulebook out the window.
Those deep grooves you work yourself into during the school year that make up the ironclad “family schedule” suddenly disappear and the Sun decides to sanction the party for a few extra hours.
We’ve always tried to be good about a post-dinner walk or bike ride during the school year but there wasn’t always enough time.
But during the summer, dinner feels like halftime.
Suddenly its not “if” we can do something, it’s “what” are we going to do.
Is there enough time to go to the pool? To play nine holes? To start a lemonade stand? To hit some tennis balls? To make a bug fort (whatever that is)?
The answer is an emphatic YES.
Bedtime becomes a loosely made suggestion by people with diminishing authority.
I love it.
There doesn’t need to be a plan, a reservation, or Instagram-worthy evidence that we made good use of the time.
It’s a bonus. Those hours are ours.
The summer comes along and helps remind you what a gift time is.
The days don’t actually have more hours. But we get to choose what to do with the extra light we’re given.
Love you more than you’ll ever know,
Dad
P.S.
If this letter landed with you, would you forward it to someone who you think would like it too?
This letter is original work from The Unfinished Dad (© 2026). Feel free to share it, quote it, or forward it; just please credit the source and don’t present it as your own.
The restaurants on our street tend to be closed on Mondays. Despite being closed they leave their tables and chairs outside week after week. We've made it a point to get out there with a speaker, a few coloring books and a little dessert. The absolute best nights. Sometimes other families walking by join in on the fun
At this moment, it's 8:34 and my kids and some neighborhood kids are playing kickball in the front yard. They will come in a little bit, and we will all sit on the couch and just chill. The downtime of summer is such a blessing.