Are You a Summer Mom or Not?
Summer is slowly creeping up and every year as it does, I have created high expectations for our summer. I have lofty goals for myself, my kids and I want to make it THE BEST SUMMER EVER! I plan camps for them, vow to have sleepovers and movie nights, and want to cover all the things on our bucket lists.
Then Summer Comes….
And I am EXHAUSTED.
Just PLAIN wiped, and I have zero energy to do any of my bucket list items and summer always seems to kick off with disappointment.
Do you feel this way too?
I know the days are short and we only get 18 summers, but MAMA IS TIRED!!!!!!
I have learned as my kids have grown up that my house thrives off routine. Don’t get me wrong, we love a great summer day at the beach that goes well into the evening, but after a few days of that we are back to craving routine. Personally, I have learned that I love knowing what each day is going to bring, what dinner will be around the table, when can I sleep in until and what comes next? I know this might sound strange to you, but there’s something about summer schedules for the kids being so different week to week that makes me anxious the closer we get to summer.
For starters, my kids DO NOT sleep in. It doesn’t matter if they go to bed at 7:00 PM or midnight, both kids are bright eyed and awake before 7:30 AM. I hoped as they got older that might change…BUT IT HASN’T! This doesn’t allow for wiggle room if we want to hang out later or push the fun longer.
Secondly, having both a boy and girl with very different interests I find myself having a hard time with the balancing act of different summer camps, different activities to do with mom over summer, and even travel. One is signed up for fishing camp, the other is signed up for theatre camp across town and guess what? They both end at the same time! I find we end up running around as often as we did during the school year, and I have less time to get all the other things done.
Lastly, I am learning the amount of pressure I put on myself to make it all work out is more than half of the problem. “Hi, it’s me I’m the problem it’s me!”
I know, I know. I should just scrap all the camps and lay low you say…. But my husband and I both work AND, my kids have never been happy sitting around for more than a day or two.
I find myself yearning for other ways to set summer up for success, so we have fun, create some routine, AND make those sweet summertime memories.
How do you tackle summer in your house?