By my count, there are 15 school days left in our year. 3 full weeks of school then we're out for 81 days. 81 blissful days of sleeping in, wearing pajamas until noon, no homework, cooking for 6 instead of 160, sunshine and heat instead of cold and snow, and a world wide open to possibilities.
Every year I get delusional around this time. Every year I see the summer as a long stretch of euphoria and familial bliss. Every year the second week of Summer break slaps me in the face like a wet rag. The heat is unbearable. The children cannot stand each other's presence. There is no food left in the house 3 days after a grocery trip. The electric bill skyrockets as the AC runs 24/7 in an effort to keep the temperature tolerable. And we all fall apart a little.
But for the moment I am dreaming of afternoons spent in my lounge chair, slathered in sunscreen, wearing a giant hat, fully engrossed in my latest novel while the children play hours of Marco Polo and splash around in the pool. I dream of burgers on the grill, dandelions spotting my yard, and sticky hands grabbing for Pop Ice faster than I can snip the ends off. I'm dreaming of the buzz of bees in the clover of the hay field, songs of robins waking us up in the pre-dawn moments, and slapping mosquitoes as they land on our legs. I will dream of lightning bugs in mayo jars, roses blooming under my bedroom window, and the scent of honeysuckle wafting up from the creek.
Let me enjoy my dreams for the time being. The harsh reality of humidity, cranky kids, and it being too hot to function will soon break down my door.
Showing posts with label Summer Break. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Summer Break. Show all posts
May 3, 2014
August 6, 2013
It begins again
School starts one week from today.
I'm not sure I'm ready.
I mean, the FarmHands have all the necessary supplies and clothing and physically we're prepared, but I'm not ready.
In the past I've looked forward to the first days of school with a blissful sense of calm. My children were leaving the house for 7-8 hours a day. I would wake them, feed them, dress them and send them on their way. Then I would pour myself a cup of coffee or a bowl of Rice Krispies, flip on Judge Judy, and breath in the silence. I would allow the peace and quite of an empty house and sleeping husband lull me to sleep on the couch for a few precious hours before heading out to pick up Bitsy for pre-school. I loved it.
Last year the excitement and nervous tension of starting a new job kept me keyed up and ready to tackle the school year. I didn't sleep. I worried over menu items I was unsure of. I popped awake at the sound of my alarm. I was out the door in record time each morning.
This year it's all different. I know what I'm doing. It's not a new job. It's not an unfamiliar routine. The excitement level isn't where it was a year ago. This year there's a tiny voice in the back of my head whispering, "no. don't do this. don't go back. just stay home and nap. there won't be any kids here. we'll be so much happier that way."
It's a lie. I know it is. It's a fantasy that will quickly lose it's shine. It's the voice of Summer Vacation begging to be allowed to live a few more weeks. A few more child free weeks. I love my job. I know that I'm past the place where I can happily stay home with no kids in the house for weeks at a time. I know I'd get stir crazy after the first few days and then The Ugly Beast would try to rear it's head. I know I need to be productive and I will not be if left to my own devices (the past 6 weeks have proven that).
But man, oh man, does 4:30am come early.
I'm not sure I'm ready.
I mean, the FarmHands have all the necessary supplies and clothing and physically we're prepared, but I'm not ready.
In the past I've looked forward to the first days of school with a blissful sense of calm. My children were leaving the house for 7-8 hours a day. I would wake them, feed them, dress them and send them on their way. Then I would pour myself a cup of coffee or a bowl of Rice Krispies, flip on Judge Judy, and breath in the silence. I would allow the peace and quite of an empty house and sleeping husband lull me to sleep on the couch for a few precious hours before heading out to pick up Bitsy for pre-school. I loved it.
Last year the excitement and nervous tension of starting a new job kept me keyed up and ready to tackle the school year. I didn't sleep. I worried over menu items I was unsure of. I popped awake at the sound of my alarm. I was out the door in record time each morning.
This year it's all different. I know what I'm doing. It's not a new job. It's not an unfamiliar routine. The excitement level isn't where it was a year ago. This year there's a tiny voice in the back of my head whispering, "no. don't do this. don't go back. just stay home and nap. there won't be any kids here. we'll be so much happier that way."
It's a lie. I know it is. It's a fantasy that will quickly lose it's shine. It's the voice of Summer Vacation begging to be allowed to live a few more weeks. A few more child free weeks. I love my job. I know that I'm past the place where I can happily stay home with no kids in the house for weeks at a time. I know I'd get stir crazy after the first few days and then The Ugly Beast would try to rear it's head. I know I need to be productive and I will not be if left to my own devices (the past 6 weeks have proven that).
But man, oh man, does 4:30am come early.
June 22, 2013
Ouch
My ankle hurts. So does my thigh muscle. Oh, and my shoulder doesn't feel so great either.
Want to know why?
Because I slid down a muddy hill into a creek bed.
Why was I trying to go down a muddy hill into a creek bed?
Because I had to pee and the house was too far away.
Yup, that's what 4 kids will bring you to. You will be happily lounging by the pool, reading your book, drinking your Crystal Light, when suddenly you'll have to pee. And I mean right that second. And you'll know there's no way you're going to make it the 100 yards to the door of your house or the 15 yards from the door of your house to the bathroom. So instead you'll opt for the outdoor pee.
That's OK because you live in the country. No one will see you. But your father-in-law just may be mowing hay in the fields behind your house so you'll need to find some decent cover, especially considering giving birth to 4 kids has forced you back into a one piece bathing suit. Even a tankini won't cut it any more. So you'll opt for the nearly dry creek bed that's a mere 15 yards from where the children are playing in the pool. The floor of the creek bed is well over your head when standing and it's a veritable jungle of overgrowth and trees.
The only problem is the rain you've had lately. It will have made the steep bank of the creek extra treacherous to one shod only with flip flops. But you will attempt it because you don't want to lose control of your bodily functions in full view of your 4 children. You will quietly head for the creek bank. You will judge the best place to step off the grass and onto the dirt slope leading down. You will attempt to firmly plant your foot just at the edge of the grass before you actually step down onto the slope but the tall grass will play with your perception. What looks to be a solid piece of ground will turn out to be nothing more than a weedy patch of nothing. Your foot will slip into the 4 inch abyss and your body will lurch forward in a desperate attempt to right yourself before you plunge face first down a 5 foot drop into gravel, mud, and a trickle of water.
The resulting lurch will leave you shaken but not truly hurt. You will hunt a few yards down the creek for a good place to do your business and....well...do your business. Thus far you have succeeded in keeping your 4 children from noticing anything is amiss. They even overlooked your slide down the hill. But the moment you being to relieve yourself, stripped to your ankles (remember that one piece bathing suit), your almost 6 year old daughter will suddenly notice your absence and begin screaming your name. Luckily you are graceful under pressure (except for that bit of a slide) and you will calm her fears that you've run away from home to join a traveling Ukrainian circus as their new fire eater, hitch your bathing suit back up where it belongs, and clamber back out of the creek of death before anyone realizes exactly what you're doing.
A full 24 hours later, once you've nearly forgotten the incident, your ankle, thigh, and shoulder will remind you of your brief foray into extreme peeing.
Next time, go to the house.
Want to know why?
Because I slid down a muddy hill into a creek bed.
Why was I trying to go down a muddy hill into a creek bed?
Because I had to pee and the house was too far away.
Yup, that's what 4 kids will bring you to. You will be happily lounging by the pool, reading your book, drinking your Crystal Light, when suddenly you'll have to pee. And I mean right that second. And you'll know there's no way you're going to make it the 100 yards to the door of your house or the 15 yards from the door of your house to the bathroom. So instead you'll opt for the outdoor pee.
That's OK because you live in the country. No one will see you. But your father-in-law just may be mowing hay in the fields behind your house so you'll need to find some decent cover, especially considering giving birth to 4 kids has forced you back into a one piece bathing suit. Even a tankini won't cut it any more. So you'll opt for the nearly dry creek bed that's a mere 15 yards from where the children are playing in the pool. The floor of the creek bed is well over your head when standing and it's a veritable jungle of overgrowth and trees.
The only problem is the rain you've had lately. It will have made the steep bank of the creek extra treacherous to one shod only with flip flops. But you will attempt it because you don't want to lose control of your bodily functions in full view of your 4 children. You will quietly head for the creek bank. You will judge the best place to step off the grass and onto the dirt slope leading down. You will attempt to firmly plant your foot just at the edge of the grass before you actually step down onto the slope but the tall grass will play with your perception. What looks to be a solid piece of ground will turn out to be nothing more than a weedy patch of nothing. Your foot will slip into the 4 inch abyss and your body will lurch forward in a desperate attempt to right yourself before you plunge face first down a 5 foot drop into gravel, mud, and a trickle of water.
The resulting lurch will leave you shaken but not truly hurt. You will hunt a few yards down the creek for a good place to do your business and....well...do your business. Thus far you have succeeded in keeping your 4 children from noticing anything is amiss. They even overlooked your slide down the hill. But the moment you being to relieve yourself, stripped to your ankles (remember that one piece bathing suit), your almost 6 year old daughter will suddenly notice your absence and begin screaming your name. Luckily you are graceful under pressure (except for that bit of a slide) and you will calm her fears that you've run away from home to join a traveling Ukrainian circus as their new fire eater, hitch your bathing suit back up where it belongs, and clamber back out of the creek of death before anyone realizes exactly what you're doing.
A full 24 hours later, once you've nearly forgotten the incident, your ankle, thigh, and shoulder will remind you of your brief foray into extreme peeing.
Next time, go to the house.
May 18, 2013
Readjusting
I got a good bit of advice this week from The Amazing Jill. The Amazing Jill is our school secretary. She knows everything. Seriously. You can call her anytime, day or night, ask her any question you can think of and she will give you a brilliant answer. Sometimes she might even be right. We love Jill. Without her the school would come to a screeching halt.
Yesterday Miss T and I got done cleaning our kitchen early so we went up to visit with Jill for a few minutes. She asked what plans we had for the weekend and that lead to our Summer plans. Jill told us that this Summer might be hard on us being our first. "It takes some getting used to. It can be rough, especially the first one." She also told us that if we had projects to tackle to get them done right off the bat. "If you think you'll take a week off before getting your stuff done, the entire break will go by and you won't have accomplished anything. Do it now while you're used to going all day long." I think she's got a point.
Yesterday, being my birthday, I decided I would spend the day lazing around. I did do laundry and picked up a few small messes, but otherwise I crashed on the couch and watched Netflix and Glee reruns all afternoon. The FarmHands played outside until dark and came in filthy and exhausted. My plans for this morning involved sleeping in.
That didn't quite go the way I'd planned.
To me, sleeping in requires a minimum of 2 hours past the time you normally wake up.....or an earliest time of 8:30 (oh how that time has changed since we were first married and I rarely saw 10 am). I almost made it. 5 days a week for the past 9 months I've been up at 4:45 am. Today I slept until 6:30. I was really pushing for that 8:30 thing but Buddy Joe and two of the FarmHands had other plans.
Bitsy & #1 Son were in the kitchen and Buddy decided he's been kenneled up long enough. He started barking and my darling, thoughtful children ignored him. Mom had to roll out of bed to let him out before he woke Husband. I shooed the kids off to their room and crawled back in bed. Apparently they didn't listen and started chatting in the living room because just as I was dozing off, Husband hollered for them to get back in their room.
That was the end of my sleep. The next 30 minutes was spent laying in bed, trying desperately to slip back into something resembling REM sleep. But the harder you try to sleep, the more alert you become. Instead I laid next to a snoring Husband and went through my plans for the day. I'm going to tackle this house.
Yesterday Miss T and I got done cleaning our kitchen early so we went up to visit with Jill for a few minutes. She asked what plans we had for the weekend and that lead to our Summer plans. Jill told us that this Summer might be hard on us being our first. "It takes some getting used to. It can be rough, especially the first one." She also told us that if we had projects to tackle to get them done right off the bat. "If you think you'll take a week off before getting your stuff done, the entire break will go by and you won't have accomplished anything. Do it now while you're used to going all day long." I think she's got a point.
Yesterday, being my birthday, I decided I would spend the day lazing around. I did do laundry and picked up a few small messes, but otherwise I crashed on the couch and watched Netflix and Glee reruns all afternoon. The FarmHands played outside until dark and came in filthy and exhausted. My plans for this morning involved sleeping in.
That didn't quite go the way I'd planned.
To me, sleeping in requires a minimum of 2 hours past the time you normally wake up.....or an earliest time of 8:30 (oh how that time has changed since we were first married and I rarely saw 10 am). I almost made it. 5 days a week for the past 9 months I've been up at 4:45 am. Today I slept until 6:30. I was really pushing for that 8:30 thing but Buddy Joe and two of the FarmHands had other plans.
Bitsy & #1 Son were in the kitchen and Buddy decided he's been kenneled up long enough. He started barking and my darling, thoughtful children ignored him. Mom had to roll out of bed to let him out before he woke Husband. I shooed the kids off to their room and crawled back in bed. Apparently they didn't listen and started chatting in the living room because just as I was dozing off, Husband hollered for them to get back in their room.
That was the end of my sleep. The next 30 minutes was spent laying in bed, trying desperately to slip back into something resembling REM sleep. But the harder you try to sleep, the more alert you become. Instead I laid next to a snoring Husband and went through my plans for the day. I'm going to tackle this house.
- Beds will be stripped and sheets hung on the clothesline to dry
- The birdcage will be scrubbed and the parakeets' wings will be clipped
- Surfaces and ceiling fans will be dusted and spiderwebs will be brushed from the ceiling
- Floors will be swept, vacuumed, and or mopped
- Bathrooms will be scrubbed
- The dogs will be groomed, clipped, and bathed and their bedding will be washed
- My room will be emptied of unnecessary junk and re-organized
- Pork chops, mashed potatoes, gravy, green beans and rolls will be made for lunch
Well, a girl can dream, can't she.
I often lay in bed wishing my day away in this manner. The reality is normally more like this:
- Spend entirely too much time reading Facebook updates
- Harvest, feed, and plant everything possible in Farmville 2
- Play Candy Crush Saga until I run out of lives
- Peruse Cafemom.com boards until the drama gets to be too much
- Make sure I'm caught up on The Middle and Modern Family
- Do a few word search puzzles
- Toss some laundry in the washer and forget about it for 24 hours
- Chicken nuggets will be dug out of the freezer, tossed on a pan, and fed to the FarmHands around 8:30 tonight
Yeah, I pretty well fail at the Domestic Goddess thing anymore. Maybe if I set the bar lower I won't be so crushed when I fail to reach it.
Maybe I should start off with something like:
- Feed my kids
- Scrub the bathrooms
We'll see how it goes. I'll get back to you.
Unless something needs fertilizing in Farmville.
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