It’s summertime and we’re going to the beach or park or lake, i.e. attempting to relax, while our children are having the time of their lives filling their bathing suits up with sand and their buckets with treasure. Life is good. This week’s Friday reads range from simple travel tips to some serious waxing poetic about being a parent, and a few stops in between about educating and ignoring your kids.

Ignore your Children and Everyone Wins on Huffington Post by Catherine Pearlman

This article by a family coach and social worker really speaks to me. I believe in the power of ignoring your kids and in not over-reacting to their bad-mannered hijinks. Not that I’m an ignorer, but I try to be, I even want to be. But somehow my frustration boils over sometimes and I just can’t stand it anymore and I cave. I know that as I enter the “terrible twos” that this will only get worse. Maybe I need some Prozac to get me through. A temporary lobotomy that will allow all of my child’s most annoying and inappropriate behavior roll over me and allow me to have a clear head at all times when responding to his outbursts. How do other moms do it?

What to do with a Baby at the Beach on Walking on Travels

I’ll keep this simple, it’s an article that explains how to keep your pre-crawling baby in a safe place, having a blast at the beach while you relax with one eye fixed on your little one. The tip? Bring a little blow up pool. Read her whole breakdown of what to get and how to use it so that you can make the most of those pre-walking days.

How to be  a Parent in August 2015 Harper’s

I just couldn’t put this month’s issue of Harper’s down. It sucked me in with its cover story “How to be a Parent”and, like most intellectual and/or literary publications, most of the content leaves you feeling a little stunned and sad about reality. This collection of a poem and essays prove that the most tortured stories and souls make some of the most beautiful creations in every art form, including literature. So, prepare yourself for some incredible writing and some shocking narratives on how to be a parent if you dive into this 11 piece trove. Of course, you have to subscribe to read each piece in its entirety. If you like what you see you should subscribe because it’s always that good. It’s just rarely about parenting.

35 Gifts Your Children will Never Forget on Becoming Minimalist.com

I love this collection of moments and events to share with your kids. It reminds us all that no “stuff” can make a better gift than a shared experience. Not only are these suggestions awesome, honest and fun but, they’re also doable. So, do some of them with your kids and see if they remember 20 years from now. Or, maybe that toy fire truck really was the most important thing in the world after all.

And, a video from my friends at sound branding agency Activaire who say this just might be the underground track of summer 2015. It’s got a little Sam Cooke vibe going on that I just can’t get enough of.