Gotta get this off my chest...
There is one question that is always asked repeatedly this time of year that I absolutely hate.
"How is your summer going?"
Let's be honest here. Summer is the same as the rest of the year to my family, except one of the kids gets dropped off somewhere different than he does for the rest of the year. And next year, I'm sure it WILL seem a little different since both kids will be getting dropped off at the park (for camp, not just to hang out around the park all day. I'm not THAT kind of mom!) instead of daycare. And camp does at least seem to be a fun change of pace for the kids. So maybe next year I won't mind so much.
This question always makes me feel The Mom Guilt. I have memories of summer when I was a kid. I wandered the neighborhood all day with my friends. I swam in the pool in the back yard every day. We went camping and to Six Flags and to the zoo. I watched hours and hours of TV. My kids? They do not get these things. I do lament that. But it is what our life is.
No one ever asks "How's your fall going?" Or spring or winter. There is this expectation placed on summer that it will be spent at the beach and going on adventures as a family. There will be fun and laughter and sunshine. What does my family get? A tired cranky mom with deadlines to be met and loads of guilt because she's not able to meet HER OWN expectations of what summer should be. And then the kids ask to do this or that or to work on something that has their interest. And there is just not enough of me.
And yes, we went on vacation. But it was one short week of break. And the summer is feeling extra long now.
"How is your summer going?"
Let's be honest here. Summer is the same as the rest of the year to my family, except one of the kids gets dropped off somewhere different than he does for the rest of the year. And next year, I'm sure it WILL seem a little different since both kids will be getting dropped off at the park (for camp, not just to hang out around the park all day. I'm not THAT kind of mom!) instead of daycare. And camp does at least seem to be a fun change of pace for the kids. So maybe next year I won't mind so much.
This question always makes me feel The Mom Guilt. I have memories of summer when I was a kid. I wandered the neighborhood all day with my friends. I swam in the pool in the back yard every day. We went camping and to Six Flags and to the zoo. I watched hours and hours of TV. My kids? They do not get these things. I do lament that. But it is what our life is.
No one ever asks "How's your fall going?" Or spring or winter. There is this expectation placed on summer that it will be spent at the beach and going on adventures as a family. There will be fun and laughter and sunshine. What does my family get? A tired cranky mom with deadlines to be met and loads of guilt because she's not able to meet HER OWN expectations of what summer should be. And then the kids ask to do this or that or to work on something that has their interest. And there is just not enough of me.
And yes, we went on vacation. But it was one short week of break. And the summer is feeling extra long now.