Is it Summer Yet?

"Is it summer yet?" I whine to myself. No, my kids aren't whining. It's me. I confess. Even though we are only about midway through spring, and the scorching Arizona heat is quickly approaching, I am ready for summer. Not because I enjoy feeling like I am sitting in a convection oven being baked alive. No. That is not appealing to anyone sane. I am ready for the school year to end!

Pretty sure I still feel the same way about the end of the school year now as I did when I was in school back in 19??. I think I am scarred for life. My kids don't experience school the same way I did though because they are homeschooled. Lucky kids. Yup. We homeschool. And we wouldn't have it any other way. We think it's pretty fantastic. Who wouldn't enjoy rolling out of bed without the prompting of an alarm clock ringing in your ear? I'm relieved I don't have to jump out of bed and rush around. I'm pretty sure I would be a bear, to use a term that won't soil your mind. No thank you. I'll pass. I love getting to dictate the order of my day and the family schedule...or the lack thereof. I am blessed and I am grateful to let my day begin with the following:

 

 

...followed by a little quality time with the hubby as the kiddos stroll down the stairs one by one after they each roll out of bed.

The littles forage through the kitchen shoveling whatever breakfast item they find into their sweet, adorable faces. They really are adorable. I'm not biased, either. Sometimes I feed them, but I am a big fan of the littles learning how to make breakfast for themselves and others. Don't worry, they aren't that little. I wouldn't make my one year old crawl into the kitchen to prepare breakfast. I wait until they can walk.

After breakfast it's time to hit the books. Well, I don't hit the books. They do. But I still have to keep track. Make sure everyone is doing their work, learning the necessary things as far as "school" goes. It may not sound like much, but it's a heavy load to carry in my mind. "Can they spell? Can they articulate? Do they read, speak and write so that it is apparent that English is their first language?" These are regular thoughts that pass through my mind, so I am looking forward to a break from all those internal questions that prompt me to frantically scope out what curriculum items we are using for each subject and whether or not they understand the work they are doing.

I used to be a fan of year round schooling. Yeah. Those days are over. The school year always seems to starts with a fresh feeling of, "Yes! Let's do this! We are going to rock this school year!" and slowly dwindles to "What do you have left to do in your history book? Three lessons? Okay, crank them out...don't ask me such hard questions! The answer should be in your book. Go ask your dad." Besides, playtime, downtime, rest and relaxation are just as important to a persons growth and development as discipline, learning and work.

I am sooooooo ready for a summer break.

Relaxing is definitely not a waste of time. I am ready for swimming, late nights, barbeques and s'mores. I am ready for some "time off" when all I have to figure out is how we can create some fun memories. I am ready to minimize my schedule to where the hardest things in my day are:

along with a little pool time and hopefully a vacation. Did I mention the pool? I look forward to enough time off to refresh my soul so we can start it all over again when fall arrives. Perhaps we will even get back out to the coast again. Do a round with the in-laws, see nieces, nephews, cousins and siblings who are always alarmingly older with each visit. Because I always need a jolting reminder of how much older I am growing. As if my kids don't do that reality enough justice. Ha! But I digress. My mind is ready for a reprieve. My soul is in need of refreshing. 

So I am counting the days because I am ready for summertime.