Well, peeps.
It really happened.
Summer break arrived and these past few days, I’ve been marinating in this transition from school year to foot loose and fancy free, and I could not be happier about it.
You know, this particular end-of-year/kick-off-of-summer has felt both particularly poignant and unprecedented, and it took be awhile to think on it and figure out why.
And the answer exists in a bit of context.
In 2019, we’d just moved to SA about eight weeks before the end of the school year, and were still reeling from all that jazz when summer arrived. We still didn’t have a completed house, my babies were much younger, and only Chica was even in school. So we were pretty much crawling over the May finish line without much time to consider celebrating. There was too much to do, in order to settle in our new city.
Then in 2020: pandemic.
Yup. No reminders needed.
We completed the final nine weeks of school while the world was spiraling into the unknown and we were navigating uncharted virtual schooling waters. So we went from being home to...being home, ha. Not much of an end-of-the-school-year/summer-kick-off celebration there, either. Oye.
So, basically. Ending this school year and shifting to SUMMER MODE has felt monumental.
In the best way.
And I’m wildly looking forward to some quality time (at home, with no intrusive contractors!) with my babies in the coming two months. And I know lots of fun will be had by all. :)
It’s been a tradition the past few years for me to type up some Summer Intentions, and it’s always a good time to read through them and know that, for the most part, we worked our way through everything:
So without further delay, heeeeere are our Summer Intentions for 2021.
SLEEP, SLEEP, and SLEEEEEEEP
I’m pretty sure this was an exact intention from last year (and, really, an [unfulfilled] intention for every day of my life, ha. But it’s SO necessary and worth mentioning!
The long and short is this: sleep makes the world go ‘round, and I don’t get enough of it. Like most people.
I average a bedtime of 12:30 a.m. (reading; sorry, not sorry) with a wake-up time of 6:00 a.m. (definitely sorry). Do the math and agree that it’s not nearly enough.
Worse yet—my kiddos’ elementary school start time is moving ten minutes earlier in the Fall (cue my sobbing). And with a third kiddo to get ready and out the door simultaneously with the others, my new alarm will be 5:45 a.m. And it is my firm belief that NOBODY on Earth should have to set a daily alarm with a “5” in front of it.
(This is typed by a true Night Owl. Morning people, be damned.)
So...yeah.
I’m gonna be like a bear and hibernate this Summer. Store up sleep for the Fall, haha.
And I’m just lucky that my kiddos adore snuggling in bed with me in the mornings, and get a wild kick out of giving me the “hug energy” I demand before I can make it up and at ‘em.
I tell them that I snuggle them awake, coddle and dress them while they’re still practically horizontal, and feed them and love on them as they head out the door every day of the school year, so it’s THEIR job to take care of ME in the mornings during Summer, hehe. And they take their job very seriously. :)
Doesn’t this just look like a bed full of trouble?? Ha. Nanna arrived in town, so they were stalking her bed instead of mine, tehe.
TEST KITCHEN TUESDAYS
Okay, so this one’s gonna be fun.
It’s a well known fact that I adore a good theme day. Especially during Summer.
In 2019, it was Tuesday DO Day. We were obviously new to the city, and it was our goal to go and DO something fun each week.
Then in 2020, it was Monday, Science FUN Day. And the kiddos went berserk for Mondays, ha. And it fostered their love for science, as well, which was a major bonus. We’ll probably sneak a few of these in this Summer, as well, but without the weekly demand.
Now. This year, we shall have (drum roll puh-lease)...
Test Kitchen Tuesdays!
Chica received a great little kiddo cookbook for Christmas because her interest on that front was really ramping up. And I thought it would just be a perfect celebration of having our kitchen restored to arm my little chefs with kid-appropriate supplies and work our way through some of the recipes in the cookbook.
They will take turns being the one to select the recipe, and we’ll make an event out of shopping for the ingredients (if need be). They are so excited that they’re already fighting over who gets to make the first selection, and I’m digging their enthusiasm.
Wish us luck!
RAMP-UP OUR READING!
It goes without saying that we’re a major reading household, and my kiddos have no shortage of love for any and all books/stories.
But our lives these past few months have been so topsy-turvy that our reading had to shift to different dayparts.
With all three kiddos sleeping in the same room during the restoration, we didn’t have the ability to give them each their own devoted reading time in the evenings, and often, we didn’t make time at all—instead opting for really wonderful Crikey! viewing as a family before bed, which I wouldn’t trade for the world. It suited what we needed and what we were working with at the time, but I’m SO pumped to add an abundance of story time back into our mix.
I’m thinking of having some Coco’s Corner Reading Time (a nickname of mine) with all three kiddos several times a week. And I’m also planning on lots of individual time with each kiddo to read through some of their beloved books.
I think it’s a reasonable goal for Chica and I to make it through Goblet of Fire by the end of the Summer...
Which seems like a major accomplishment, when I think back on when we started with the first book two years ago! Here’s where we are, as of today, and Chica still LOVES all things Harry.
And speaking of Harry...Chicklet and I are trucking along on the first book, and it’s such a JOY to see her light up as she discovers new bits and pieces of this magical world. Especially parts she might have unintentionally heard her sissy talking about for two years, ha.
As with Chica when she first began reading these books, things go a little slower, so I’m not sure if we’ll be able to officially complete the book this Summer, but I know we’ll make excellent headway. Additionally, Chicklet has another book series (Princess in Black) that’s always been a special read for she and I together, so we’ll provably toggle back and forth between those two series.
And Little Man always has me reading superheroes and Star Wars until my eyes cross, and I LURV it! He’ll be on Harry, too, before we know it!
WISCONSIN
For the love of all that is holy...despite our best efforts pretty much every season of every year since our first visit up there three years ago, we just haven’t been able to make a return trip to Wisconsin to see the Uncles!
I mean, look how tiny they were last time!
BUT. IT’S. HAPPENING.
In three weeks.
And we are all sooooo excited!
It seriously tickled me pink to see this paper come home in Chica’s backpack, talking about how excited she was for the strawberry picking we enjoyed last time we were up there, and how much she’s looking forward to it again.
I absolutely love it when my kiddos make lasting memories that are happy enough to become “triditions” in their minds.
TULSA IN LATE JULY
And speaking of traditions...this will be our fourth consecutive year to make a trek up to Tulsa to see grandparents (and aunts and uncles and cousins) at the end of July, and it’s always a happy time.
We have so many places we enjoy visiting while we’re there, and also seem to manage some small, new adventures each time, and I’m so glad we’ve been able to make this happen, annually.
MATH AND LEARNING TIME
I spent hours today refreshing the kiddos iPads. Oye.
It always takes some effort to delete any unused apps. Research and download new ones. Update the settings on any favorites, as necessary (like changing 1st grade to 2nd).
It’s certainly a thankless job, but ensuring the kiddos have entertaining and educational apps at their fingertips helps to make better use of their increased technology time during the summer.
It was amazing to me to witness how much we prevented educational backsliding last Summer by just tackling some math and devoted language arts a couple times a week.
So we’ll be committing to that again.
Woohoo, for happy learning!
Okay, so...those are our major Summer intentions for now. But we certainly have a few other unofficial ones like swimming as much as possible, hopefully fitting in a random beach day, tackling as many projects as possible. Oh! And working in some rudimentary piano lessons in the casa, if all goes according to plans.
We’re just READY to make the MOST of this Summer, and create some joyful memories in the process.
Bring. It. ON.
Happy Almost Friday, peeps!
Over and out.
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