Go ahead, Summer, throw us your best, we are suited up and ready to take it!
I love summer. I love swimming in the pool, walking barefoot, and the splash of freckles across my nose. I love lazy evenings on our deck, the smell of fresh-cut grass and sleeping with the windows open. I love the ease of trading in snowsuits for sandals and how ridiculously blue freeze pops turn my kids’ tongues. I love watching them chase each other through the sprinkler in the sunshine and then chase fireflies in the moonlight.
I love summer so much I’ll even tolerate the not-fun things. The infinite number of flies that always get inside our house no matter how many times I holler to shut the door, the inanely popular notion that I should expose my legs to the world at large by wearing shorts, and my endless non-sexy sweating. For the chance to wear cute sandals, I’ll agree to repetitive toenail-painting. And because I am a good sport, I’ll even put up with the fact that those popsicles make every single surface of my home sticky, including my children.
I won’t lie; I jumped for joy when the school year ended. Mostly because I had spent nine months fruitlessly trying to figure out how be on time and I had to officially resign my title as The Late Mom. Darn.
I longed for staying-in mornings, relaxed visits with friends, birthday parties, a beach vacation, precious help from my Mother’s Helper, an amusement park visit and lingering hours of daylight. It was all going to be glorious.
And you know what? It IS glorious–all of it. I love every minute of our summer so much. So much that it is actually starting to hurt. It hurts in the form of countless missed naps, running from dawn to past-dusk, endless fun with friends, completely obliterated schedules and lots of cherished US-ALL-BEING-TOGETHER-ALL-THE-TIME.
I was chatting about this with a friend who is experiencing the same “exciting summer intensity”. I went home, ruminated on it, and then had my epiphany. “It’s the PACE of summer!”, I later declared to her. “It’s the pace. It’s all good, it just never ends.”
Those rare few minutes we could snag in the middle of winter of settling down into our couch? I’m honestly not sure if my couch is still there. It might have been moved. I’ll check in September and get back to you on this.
I know I have oft-shared how I pass out from exhaustion early in the evening, but let me give a true glimpse of how our summer nights go down:
My husband (who bizarrely has extended hours in the summer) walks in the door late.
I glare at him. I know, I know; he’s a lucky guy.
Shaking it off and coming back for more…
We may or may not eat dinner. The kids and are in a fabulous state of mixed-dress combining elements of wet bathing suits, day wear and pajamas. If I attempted to put on make-up that day earlier, it is now streaming down my face and congealed in pretty globs as an effect of repetitively chlorine-bathing my face. I am hot; again, he is lucky.
Somehow the kids land in their beds. I then romantically look at my husband and ask if he would like to watch an episode of Game of Thrones. We cozy in, I pick up my knitting and then…
It is morning. I have literally no clue how I landed in my bed or what happened after the yarn was broken out. It’s sort of like wild college days with a more suburban, middle-age vibe and less booze.
Regardless, Summer has clearly won. It has overtaken my life and weakened all my defenses of order and routine while exhausting me beyond capacity. But like a classy victor, it leaves its adversary respecting its methods. And in this case, it leaves me wanting more and more of all the sweet stuff it has to offer.
Well played, Summer. Well played…
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WhenCrazyMeetsExhaustion says
It’s sort of like wild college days with a more suburban, middle-age vibe and less booze.
And you’ve summarized parenting.
🙂
Meredith says
It works, doesn’t it? 😉
Ashley @ 3 Little Greenwoods says
Summer has definitely won over here too! One day {while Honey was at work} we stayed inside and in our pj’s almost all day. It was glorious!
Loving that you are binge watching GOT! Best series ever!
~ Ashley
Meredith says
Sounds positively blissful, Ashley!
femmefrugality says
I know! We got all excited for how chill summer was going to be. It definitely has not been. We’re having fun, but it’s been so crazy and now it’s almost August and I have no idea how that happened. Fun=exhaustion.
Meredith says
Not for the faint of heart, right Femme? 😉
Janine Huldie says
Absolutely love summer here, too and will say that I a hoping it sticks around a bit longer and so not looking forward to winter rearing its ugly head here again especially after snowmageddon and the polar vortex lat year!
Meredith says
Snowmageddon! Yes!
Chris Carter says
OH Meredith I just LOVE this piece!!! You nailed it!!
I quite frankly am exhausted. It’s been just too much! By 10:00am I have already taken Cass to swim team, picked her up, gotten Cade ready for camp, and then Cass ready for Camp and take Cade first then Cass… and by the time I get home (three hours later) I have the morning mess to deal with… before I run to pick them both up!
That’s just the beginning of my day. I have felt way too stretched to even really enjoy it all this summer. I hate that. But as I leave you now, I must get back to swim champs that started at 7:00AM this morning- as I left with Cass at 6:30AM- to get her to warm ups… drove through the city to get back here to wake up Cade and get hiim ready to spend the entire day sweating in the sun and watching Cass swim two event. (only two- which means 15 hours=3 minutes of swim time). I’m nervous leaving her, but I knew if I left WITH Cade that early, I would have a whiny tired 8 year old all day on my hands to boot.
So off I go…with coffee in hand.
Sigh.
Embrace yours my friend!! I have time still to embrace mine, Hope the joy comes soon… before school starts! lol
Meredith says
I am FedExing a vat of coffee to you STAT. And I love you. xo. Keep rockin’ it, mama!
Kathy at kissing the frog says
Yeah, summer is pretty great – especially the way you describe it.
Meredith says
I love it, I really, really do.
Sisterhood of the Sensible Moms says
You wrapped summer up perfectly. And thank you for validating the bathing suit/daywear/pj combo. I thought we were the only ones trending that look. Ellen
Meredith says
Totally all the rage 😉
Joy Christi says
I LOVE this post! This is summer as a parent perfectly worded! Blue tongues, wet, sticky, TIRED kids and more tired parents! Lovely! I love the comparison to college days, not really sure what happened but it was fun. That is fantastic. And I agree. I can’t remember all of our summer, but it must have been FUN because it’s flown by in the slow blink of a sleep-deprived eye.
Meredith says
SLEEP, Joy, SLEEP…it’s all we mamas want, right?!
Stacey @nursemommylaughs says
From one late mom to another…you nailed it. This is the first summer where I have sat back and put a lot of my parenting anxieties on hold. Boy, it’s so much more fun. I love the way you look at summer with your kids. I also have a mom’s helper and it’s the best thing since sliced bread!
Meredith says
To those Mother’s Helpers–angels in human form!
Lisa @bitesforbabies says
I also love the summer…but that’s only because I vacation in Italy every summer! I couldn’t imagine being stuck in my city with the hot, humid weather (and thunderstorms practically every day!). Here’s what our summers look like; http://www.bitesforbabies.com/blog/back-to-the-vacation-grind/
Meredith says
Lisa, you leave me swooning. Go live it up, friend!
Cynthia Gabriele Sprouts Consignment Boutique says
You nailed it: That is summer!
Meredith says
Good times 🙂
Lisa Newlin says
It’s nice to see you’re not complaining about having the kids home. I always think that’s strange when people do that. You have the kids so you can hang out with them!
And I hear ya on the bugs. The mosquitos are relentless in the Midwest. Regardless, I think summer is the best time of year. Enjoy it!
Meredith says
It might be a hot mess, Lisa, but we’re definitely hanging out! Happy summer to you, friend–and here’s hoping those mosquitos somehow adios!