“Oh YEAH!” or “Oh NO!”
We are entering into the few weeks of the year when I have very strong, but opposing emotions about the upcoming summer break. The largest percent of me is singing “Hell, yes! Summer is coming!” And I’m daydreaming of calm mornings spent in pj’s, morning outings to whatever playground strikes our fancy, a fun annual child-free friend dinner I just booked, lunch and play dates with friends and cousins, afternoons at the pool, two 1-week summer day camps, family adventures and the beach.
The slightly less large percent of me is staring at my calendar as the remaining school days tick by (16 left for us, by the way…) and whispering, “Oh shit. Summer is coming.” And I’m mentally trying to stockpile my zen as I prepare for endless sunscreen applications, sand in hair/shoes/clothes/my car/the house, the “morning work” we will need to complete 5 days a week to keep reading/writing/math fresh, the bug bites, the long/hot/humid days when I just want to lay in the hammock and read but I can’t because the kids are rough-housing, showering the sweaty/sunscreen covered bodies every.single.day.
I doubt I’m alone in this emotional juxtaposition, but I’m feeling it majorly as we speed mercilessly towards the final school day just before Memorial Day weekend. And we generally do fine hanging out together as a mom & sons threesome until about mid-August. That seems to be when the boys grow tired of me, tired of each other, tired of the pool, etc. But by then there are only two weeks until school ramps up again and we have a beach trip and my littlest one’s birthday & party to look forward to along with the search for new sneakers and a fresh sock supply. This summer we are anticipating traveling elsewhere in the southeast on the day before school begins to view the total solar eclipse, so that’s a bonus side trip not in our usual routine (or timeframe).
So, whichever mindset you have, we shall do what we always do. Drink coffee and be awesome! We’ll make it through together.