I realize that we don’t normally post things like this around here. But, I have to get it off my chest before I explode… or implode…
I’m about to have a kindergartener.
Yep. My precious, tender-hearted, sweetest-boy-ever, baby is about to head to kindergarten in August. I’m literally on the verge of tears at any given moment.
You see, I’ve handled my kids growing up pretty well. They grow, it sucks, but it’s also fun. We get to adventure more and we get to talk and eat more fun foods. I don’t get overly emotional at birthday parties or holidays. Even at preschool graduation- not a tear shed. BUT SUDDENLY, out of the blue, the mom-emotions took over.
KINDERGARTEN.
That means real school and a real schedule and no more random trips to the Zoo on a Tuesday. I’ve wasted so much time lately with “work” and “cooking dinner” and “laundry”. How did we get here? He was only born 3 weeks ago! (not really. he’s 5)
So, I did what any rational mother would do- quit doing everything else in my life in order to create THE BEST SUMMER EVER! Obviously.
Now that the pain isn’t quite as fresh I’m able to rationally (or as rational as I get) react to this horrible realization. My little baby is not a baby anymore. He’s a boy and he is going to grow up. So, (possibly more for myself than for him) we made a Summer Must Do List. We’ve been working on crossing all of these fun things off of our list for a few weeks now and we still have time to get a lot more done.
I’ve been working less and playing more this summer break. I’ve been saying “yes” when I normally would have said “no”.
It has been a real eye-opener for me.
I used to bake a lot. I probably baked 3 times a week minimum. I didn’t even eat the things I baked, but I loved learning new recipes and techniques. I would spend hours icing cookies or perfecting my cupcake frosting swirl. I wasn’t half bad at it either. ;) I only baked from scratch (except brownies. use a box for those suckers) and I didn’t care how long it took or how many dishes I had to wash. It was a stress reliever and it brought me a lot of joy.
I can’t tell you the last time I baked from scratch. Probably over 2 years.
I used to spend a lot of time doing a lot of other things and I seem to have lost some of that somewhere along the way. I watched movies and too much tv. I read a lot of books. I texted my friends all the time. I hosted all the playdates and didn’t find it a hassle. I brought food to new mamas. I was the one you called if the babysitter bailed on you.
It hurts me a little to read that list. Somewhere along the way I let busy take over. I let the daily To Do list become too big and too important.
I forgot to play.
I really like to be busy. I like something on the schedule. But, I let it consume me and I let too many of the wrong things on my schedule.
So, this summer, my schedule has a lot less “work” and a lot more empty spaces to be filled with:
- random baking parties where I actually let the kids help
- bike rides
- hosting playdates so the mamas can mingle
- baking a lot and then forcing other people to eat it ;)
- playing outside and not caring that we are all sweating our booties off
- visiting with friends
- movie nights and popcorn
- trips with family (and no work agenda!)
- a closed laptop
- learning new recipes
- adventures
- memories
I feel like I’ve rambled long enough. Here’s what I know: Time passes no matter what you do. You can fill it with good memories or missed memories.
Enjoy your summer and snuggle those babies a little extra!
PS- If you want to follow along on our summer adventures, snapchat is the best place to find us. Look for: thenashvillemom