August 13, 2012

Summer is Ending


Two weeks. That is all that's left... two measly little weeks before these three start school.

And then, my summer is over and school takes control of my life! The homework, the friend drama, the early mornings, the lunches, the horror!! Ahh!

I don't know why, but I hate making school lunches.

Don't judge. I also like musicals. Old ones.

So there.

Anyhow, the truth of the matter is, I'm not all that ready for school to start again. I'm not feeling overly anxious to entrust my children to the care of others for hours of the day. I rather like having them home.

But I think they are ready. They're ready for some structure, for a change of pace, to give their brains some exercise. I confess that any sense of structure around here ended on the last day of school before summer. It was so nice to be free of a schedule! But this last month the kids have been restless.

I mean, I had intended the summer to be a little more fun-mommy-filled! But... how does the saying go? "The road to hell is paved with good intentions. "

Oh man, I'm so doomed.

We have done lots of projects and activities this summer, but the last couple weeks have found my children restless. And if the whine-o-meter is any indication of how they're feeling, then they're definitely ready for school to start.



Still, my house needs a organizational makeover like nobody's business.

At the beginning of the summer, I kept up with it all rather well I think! But my desire for accomplishment decided to take a vacation and leave me stranded, without any heads up as to it's intentions or when it's coming back.

Rude.

And if I found the time to go and accomplish something, my kids were all like, oh no you didn't! Here's a bowl of cereal on the floor for you! Or, Oh ya? Well here! Have some blood to go along with the screaming, hitting, and kicking! Or, pish, you only think you're going to pick that up, when really, we're just going to follow you around and undo everything you just did, because it's fun! 

A really popular one was, We're going to play out in the water! *change into swimsuit and get all wet*
Ten Minutes later... Okay, I'm done! Can I have a towel and some dry clothes?
Ten minutes later... I'm going to get wet again! *change into new swimsuit*
Ten minutes later... Hey mom! I got a new towel and some new clothes because I'm all done!
Ten minutes later... I want to go swimming again!

485,763,458,934,576 minutes later I'm sucking my thumb in the corner of the room and imagining a world where laundry washes itself, kids wipe their own bums, and chocolate grows on trees.

But still, summer has been great and I'm sad it's coming to an end.

I miss my kids already.

Photo Credit: Heath Robbins

Mostly.

8 super cool people speak:

Tristan said...

Posts like these make me sad. Sorry you'll miss the kids (ahem - homeschool...LOL) and sorry you let having the kids home overwhelm you enough that you're mostly ready to send them away 40+ hours a week. Corral those little hands and put them to good use organizing and cleaning because many hands make light work. Yes, they make messes (tons of them) but they can do a lot of work in cleaning those messes. I'm sad for the kids being sent away to a full time job when they're so little, I'm sad for you to miss out on all that time that could be spend learning and loving on those little ones.

Oh, and I'm generally hormonal this week anyway so I would be sad even if I hadn't read your post...so just ignore me. Sigh. I should probably keep my fingers off the keyboard during 'back to school'. It's just hard to hear families looking forward to spending less time with the kids or using the kids as an excuse for not keeping house or living life. Puh-lease!

Amy said...

You're hilarious.

Serene is my name, not my life! said...

Tristan - I'm not looking forward to sending them off. Like I said, I love having them home. And they do help out around the house a ton. It's my own lack of self-control that has found my house in disarray.

But I also know myself well enough to recognize that I wouldn't be able to keep up with their schooling well enough to help them grow. Perhaps when they are older, but with all of them still being so small, I fear I would fail miserably. But at the same time, it's the reason they're small that I don't like sending them to school!

But they LOVE school, so much.

I think it's great that you homeschool! I was, after all, homeschooled myself!

Tristan said...

Serene, I didn't remember you were homeschooled!

I do hear you about so many littles and knowing our limits. It's different for everyone, and I'm sure you are doing what is right for you. ((HUGS))

JennaK said...

I just wrote a comment but since I'm not signed in to blogger I don't know if it will show up. I just wanted to say that we have exactly the same thing going on here. I love summers with the kids, but they are really trying my patience lately with a new level of whininess. And I hate making school lunches too--so my kids make their lunches themselves!

Susan Anderson said...

You are a great girl, Serene. I would have been out of sorts with the first commenter, but you just explained yourself better so she could understand you. Then there was a meeting of the minds. If only the whole world communicated as well!

And by the way, I LOVED having my kids home for summer. And I LOVED sending them back to school. Both.

=)

Sarah said...

It's not just about limits, it's about societal expectations and support. I homeschool and *love* it but I admire women who recognize that at this time in their lives (or maybe *ever* in their lives) it's not a good option.

If you don't have support to help you keep all the balls in the air that society tells you you should, or if you haven't become ok with letting some ball drops no matter what society thinks of you, then it may be the best choice for your family to send the kids to school. If you (like my amazing, awesome sister) don't have the temperament to homeschool then your whole family will do better with the kids attending school.

It's people doing things thoughtlessly that makes me sad. Whether it's homeschool or public school, just doing what everyone around you does and not putting much thought into it - I've seen homeschooling families where the mom is so frazzled and/or mean that the kids would be much better off away from her for a few hours. I admire women like Serene who put a lot of thought into these decisions and do what they believe is best for their kids.

Kyle Larsen said...

Catching up on your posts!

Great garden! Woa! Those sunflower seeds were intense. Your yard is looking amazing!

I hope I remember to wish you a HBD! I think I called, right?

happy 8th to Savannah! Wow, that went fast. Weren't they 6 when they met- Landon and S?

I have mixed feelings on school starting, but what can you do???

Love ya lady!

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