Now I get it. I never really understood why parents were always so excited when August rolled around. After all, Summer is pretty awesome. Lazy days full of no school, no homework, no running around with things to do . . . it had to beat having kids in school all day and heading to this practice and that, right?
WRONG!
Okay, I'll admit that I'm probably a little biased because I have 4 very small kiddos in the house but I can't wait until there are only 2 during the days . . . and I really can't wait to get back to my part-time teaching job so that I can get a "break".
Sounds insane? Hear me out.
When the kids are home for the Summer my days go something like this:
7:30ish - Hear babies crying their beds (my "babies" are 2 years old, btw) and try to ignore them for 15 more minutes.
7:33ish - Give up after "babies" start asking for Mama and pleading...go in and get them out of their beds, watch them wake up the other two sleeping children (5 year old and 6 year old) and head downstairs to start breakfast.
7:45 - 8:30 - Put Keurig on and start brewing. Make breakfast. Divide breakfast up onto 4 plates. Serve breakfast. Put creamer in coffee. Negotiate how many more bites they have to eat before they can start playing. Clean off table. Put dishes in dishwasher. Sit down and drink lukewarm (if I'm lucky) coffee.
8:30 - 11:30 - Play all the roles a mother usually has to play:
- Referee
- Doctor/Nurse
- Teacher
- Tech Genius
- Translator
- Artist
- Maid
- Chef
- Psychologist
- Taxi Driver
11:30 - 12:30 - Lunch . . . repeat most steps from breakfast but with different food and more agitated children.
12:30 - Attempt to get the 2 year olds to take a nap. On good days they will and the rest of the afternoon goes smoother . . . but they are few and far between these days.
12:30 - 3:30 - Many of the earlier jobs will be repeated and new ones will be added such as:
- Librarian
- Baker
- Personal Investigator
- Slave Driver
3:30 - Start thinking about dinner but continue to clean, chase, defuse and comfort 4 children.
4:30 - Realize that DH will be home in a half an hour and you haven't started dinner...opps.
4:33 - Start cleaning up misc. dishes, etc. so that you can make a mess while making dinner.
4:45 - Start dinner and the whole dinner routine (see breakfast and lunch)
5:30 - Collapse for 20 minutes
6:00 - Start baths and bedtime routine
7:30 - Twins to bed (sing a Hallelujah chorus in head)
7:30 - 9:30 - Kick it into survival mode and cruise until "big" kids head to bed.
Once school starts . . . this whole routine will become significantly easier on me (I hope).
So, I now understand why Staples says, "It's the Most Wonderful Time of the Year" and parents are smiling a little bit more come August.
Will I miss my kiddos? Of course! I'm a nervous wreck about putting Danika on the bus for the first time and I KNOW I'm going to miss her a bunch . . . but I'm holding on to the hope that I may actually drink a cup of HOT coffee come September. I think it will help ease my pain when I only have to worry about 2 lunch plates and on those few and far between nap days I may actually get something that almost NEVER happens hear . . . a few moments of complete silence.
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This is my first year looking forward to school starting. I'll admit, I've been seriously anticipating it for a few weeks now. Not only do I have Ave in Kindergarten all day, but Isaac is in Preschool 2 days a week for half days. I might actually get the house cleaned in those 2.5 hours! However, it's all back to the drawing board again in January with the baby due. ;-) Sad to lose that "me time," but thrilled to meet this little person, ya know?
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