4.1 min readPublished On: July 23, 2024

Sun-Kissed Snapshots: The Summer Diary of a Mom

May

My beautiful angels are out of school — every good, sweet mother’s dream! I’ve been missing them so much and I have so many wonderful plans for our precious time together now that they will be home all day. I’ve grown tired of the daily routine of getting the kids up, feeding them, making sure they are dressed appropriately — “No, I told you yesterday and the day before that you can’t wear that.” — Now it will just be fun times in the sun with the loves of my life — the little angels. There will be camps, crafts and day trips to waterparks. It’s time for fun.

June

The sibling rivalries are heating up a bit and that’s annoying, but look how cute they are with their summer tans and they are still happy. Okay, this is still pretty fun. We’ve got a vacation planned to the beach and summer camp at Skate World. Summer pool games are getting a little routine, but this is part of summer life that will soon be over anyway. It’s still good and it’s only just now starting to get unbearably hot.

July

Oh God, it’s hot. “Do you want to go to the pool?” “No, it’s boring!” “Do you want to play outside?” “No, it’s hot.” “Are you sure you don’t want to go outside for an hour… or four?” Mommy is feeling a little ashamed of how much of her hair she has pulled out. She’s a little more ashamed of how much time her kids are spending in their air-conditioned rooms playing video games. Will the children ever love each other again? They’re so sick of their siblings that they go whole days without talking to them. They are missing their school friends. But summer’s not over, and there is pressure to think of something fun! I’m a stressed-out mom, and I’m ready to take a road trip going 90, heading north and never come back!

August

How many days until school starts? Time to order new lunch boxes! The kids have outgrown their school clothes — time to go shopping! Here are those school supply lists. Soon we’ll peruse those four extra aisles at Walmart with all the notebooks and pencils and various paraphernalia strewn all about. All this means one thing. We only have to hold out a little longer before we can get the kids back into school so they don’t hurt each other. The little demons — I mean, angels — are ready, too.

Finally, in the last week of August, I drop them off in front of the school — the blessed school — where their sweet, smiling teacher waits to greet them warmly. I watch them disappear through the door in their new clothes with their new backpacks and their new lunch boxes lovingly filled with their favorite foods. I think, “Have a wonderful day, my little angels,” as I drive back to a peacefully empty house to do… whatever I want. I’ll start missing them again sometime just before Christmas. By January or February I’ll start planning next summer’s vacations and activities. But today is my day. I’m not doing ANYTHING!

Of course, the above account is about some other mom, not me, no way. But I thought I might include it in case some of you moms worry or feel guilty that you may be ready for a break by the end of the summer. As a highly structured person, the most jarring and difficult part of summer is the comparative lack of routine.

I used to homeschool my kids, so you’d think there wouldn’t be much difference between summer and the school year. But, dear Lord, there is. What in the world do we do all day, every day? How do I keep them from simply entertaining themselves on devices?

And I know some people are talking about helicopter parenting and how back in the day (whenever that was) kids had freedom to run around and play in the city dump or wherever. But now we always feel like we have to be with them all the time so someone doesn’t take them.

The fact is, this is all part of life and every mom goes through it. You know it, and I know it. If you are reading this at the beginning of the summer, you’re full of excitement and anticipation. If you’re reading at the end, you already feel guilty about your fantasy of a solo road trip (maybe the hubby can tag along, but don’t bring those kids—those precious angels can stay with grandma. I mean, they need some grandma time!)

What I want to say is, you’re a great mom. Take care of yourself. Your kids are blessed to have you!