Now I remember why it's so hard to post in the summer...

...the days are long and the nights are short!  During the school year, I often think, wait until summer. I'll have time to blog, make repairs to the house, read, try new recipes, garden...

Uh huh.  Sure.  The boys are up at 6 am and (if I'm diligent) in bed by 7:30 pm.  In between, it's all mom, all the time.  Well, not all the time but certainly most of it.  Henry is enrolled in a couple of  week long, 1/2 day camps.  I have a babysitter lined up for one day a week, for six weeks or so.  Other than that, the three of us are stuck to each other like glue.  We're still tweaking our daily schedule.  It's become clear that the boys (who don't nap) still need some down time in the afternoon.  I practically have to force them to sit on the sofa and watch PBS kids.  They want to go, go, go.  But then they crash, crash, crash before dinner.  My six year old, especially, gets quite nasty when he crashes.  'nuf said.

I'm trying to take each long day as it comes.  There's plenty to do but not necessarily plenty of money to do it.  (And boy can these guys eat!  They want five meals a day, preferably at  restaurants that serve ice cream.)  Speaking of expenses, my search continues for someone to replace my countertops.  As I am the only one on the planet who is not installing granite, no carpenter will give me the time of day.  Even the ones who advertise, "no job too big or too small" have told me that my project is not worth their time.  I have a small window of summer to get this done and am quite frustrated with the situation.

One reason my countertop budget is so small is that we are having one of these built in our backyard next week.  I can't wait.  (The boys are excited too.)

Happy Summer, everyone.  Stay tuned for more blog posts, garden photos, recipe tricks and book reviews.  Or not :)

Confessions of a Museum Mom

Yes, that's me.  It's hard to keep two inquisitive boys entertained on weekends.  My house is small, my backyard is boring and their little legs can't take them very far on bikes.  So what's a mom (who's also a teacher) to do?  Head for the museum.  Fortunately, there are three large cities within a two hour drive so we've been able to explore more than a dozen exhibits this year.  

Last weekend we went to the children's science museum.  We visit this particular place three or four times each year.  Many of the hands-on activities are familiar but there is always something new to see and do as well.  It is perfect for boys who want to touch everything!  I get a break from saying "no" and "don't do that" and "STOP right now!"  

As a (BIG) bonus, this museum has a spectacular outdoor space, well-deserving of the many local and national awards it has earned.  I'd write more but tomorrow is a free admission day at another very popular museum--time to get ready for the next educational excursion!

using metal detectors to find treasure

panning for gold pyrite

yes, Liam has lost his shirt (but at least it wasn't at the nearby casino)

Kindergarten Farewell

On Thursday, Henry's kindergarten teacher said goodbye to her 25 "Smart Cookies".    I was not looking forward to this day, no matter how momentous the milestone.  Or maybe because the milestone was so momentous.  I knew I'd cry but I was surprised that no one else did.  Except the teacher.  She has worked tirelessly and passionately with her "short friends", six hours a day, five days a week.  She did an incredibly thorough job preparing them for first grade and beyond.  Needless to say, she has set the bar very high for all future teachers in my sons' lives.

Having been a teacher for seventeen or so years before my son started his formal schooling heightened my feelings around his kindergarten experience.  It took me forever and a day to choose a school in the first place.  No one was more surprised than me when I picked a parochial school.  I was so nervous the first day--for many reasons.  But I'll say this, the professionalism of all the staff, especially Henry's teacher and aftercare supervisors, put me at ease within a week.

Although we don't attend church there (nor are we even a member of that denomination) in some ways it quickly felt like home.  Not that I'm not snubbed by quite a few parents.  That's okay, they don't interact with my child and I'm a grown-up, I don't need to be friends.  I think it's merely a matter of there being an inner and outer circle:  stay-at-home, neighborhood moms with five kids who have been attending the school forever and the rest of us who were just looking for a small school with high standards.

You'd never know it from the awkward photo I've chosen to post, but I took quite a few pictures and videos.  I don't really want to post them here though because they feature many of his classmates.  I'm not comfortable putting pictures of other people's kids on my blog.  I know, it happens all the time--I'm sure there are quite a few group shots on Facebook that feature Henry in the background.  Guess it's all part of living in this century, I just don't want to do it here.

Through my tears, I watched Henry's class do a wonderful performance of "Click, Clack, Moo" before walking across the stage and receiving their diplomas chocolate chip cookies.  I like the idea that it wasn't a "graduation" with caps and gowns.  I'm DEFINITELY not ready for that.

Henry, still wearing his ears from the play .
He's holding the cookie and eyeing the treat table.

1/2 Day Off from Work (Are you kidding?!)

Liam's preschool had an end-of-the-year music program, so I took a half day off to make sure I could be there in the audience.  These things are REALLY important to him.  Yes, they are important to all kids; all moms know that and thus wouldn't miss them for the world.   But for Liam, they are doubly important as he is the only child in his school who has a working mom and who doesn't have a dad. 

My preschooler will soon be a prekindergartner

At least once each week, he will ask if I can pick him up from school (his day ends at noon).  Or he will ask if I can drop him off at school like I do for his brother in kindergarten.  Liam's babysitter does an awesome job getting him to school and picking him up.  She celebrates his successes and takes him out to lunch much more than I would if I were his "ride".  Still, he wants me to be the one in the car line.  I try not to dwell on it or spend too much time discussing it with him.  Nothing is going to change logistically, why continue being sad about it?  But we are.

All this is to say that when it comes to special events, I try VERY hard not to be absent.  The music program was to start 90 minutes after the start of his school day (and mine).  I was asked to attend an early morning meeting and toyed with the idea of going to my building for that purpose then leaving my students with a substitute while I rushed to Liam's school.  In the end, that seemed not the best plan.  I was already being charged for the time off and my being there for an hour would make no difference in my current situation.  So instead I did this:

• Drove 40 minutes to get Henry to kindergarten in the pouring rain and construction.
• Upon drop-off was summoned by his teacher regarding Father's Day celebration.  (Really?  In the hallway with 25 kids looking on?  Not the best timing.)
• Drove back towards Liam's school, stopping for gas because we had twenty extra minutes and I was almost on E.  Paid $4.25 and later saw every other station was charging $4.12.  I don't want to talk about it.
• Left Liam at school after argument over whether or not he could climb over the central console and balance on movable armrests in the front seat.  After telling him "no" twice, he proceeded to do it anyway.    Felt guilty that we parted in anger.
• Headed to our village hall twenty minutes away to apply for building permit needed to fix broken fence.  Copier broken but they'll take my check.  "Come back in a few hours to pick up the documents."  I just smiled.  I won't be back for at least ten days.  Village Hall is not open Saturday and closes at 4 on weekdays.
• Drove another mile to purchase giftcard for Henry's teacher.  She really is wonderful despite this morning's interaction.  That was more about me than her.
• Did I mention it was pouring rain and there's construction EVERYWHERE?
• Returned to Liam's school at the appointed time.  Brought covered dish to pass as requested, then sat and waited.  Always fun to sit in pew by yourself when every other kid has a contingent of seventeen adult family members.  Program started 20 minutes later. 
• Watched as Liam searched for me in the audience and as he came close to tears when he couldn't find me.  Sighed with relief when, after the second song, he managed to locate me in the second row. 
• Tried to enjoy post-program brunch but had to keep checking the clock.
• Liam and I drove to my workplace and met his babysitter in the parking lot.  Did I mention that it was pouring rain?  Did I mention that I love his babysitter?
• Commenced teaching my eighth grade class at 12:15 pm thereby ending my 1/2 day off.

The fine print:  Of course the day didn't really end there.  At 4 pm, I drove the twenty minutes to pick up Henry from after school care.  We then drove another 25 minutes to collect his brother, headed home to let the dogs out and grab a snack.  We capped the day by driving in horrendous rush hour traffic for swim lessons and then on to the McDonald's drive-thru.  Days like this really must end with McDonald's french fries.

All of a sudden...

 ...the daily grind has gotten a lot tougher.

I need to stop and get my bearings

and remember the important things

are not really things at all.

I'll manage to get to the other side

one way or another...because