Preparing for Summer

The past few days have given us a taste of summer; the sweat, the heat and humidity, filling the little plastic pool with water which promptly gets mixed with sand and grass, tons of bugbites, the sibling spats which occur when the kids have spent a whole day together and the problem of having trouble getting to sleep when the daylight is still pushing into the room (well, I don't have trouble with that, but the kids do!). In order to help summer be a fun experience that turns into a fond memory, I've been making a list of things to do and am fashioning some semblance of a routine. Going from the 5 day structured schedule of school, to the seemingly unscheduled routine of being home can be very difficult for Abigail to adjust to. She likes to know what's coming next. In her mind, the schedule provides security and something to look forward to. I thought maybe we'd have weekly field trips to places like the Cincinnati Nature Center, the Zoo, Canoeing on the Little Miami river, weekly trips to the library and participate in the summer reading program (i hear they have cool little prizes =-). I'm going to have the kids give me ideas of things they'd like to do so they can help with the planning. I just wish I had as much energy as the kids. Tonight I fell asleep putting Elliott to bed and it was 9 p.m. when I woke up. I feel like I spend my free time at night in a tired daze before I actually get to bed. I barely read anymore because my eyes close after reading only half a paragraph. I can't find a good time to work on the family budget, and I often feel like I have very little that needs to be said and that I don't really have time for friends outside of taking care of the family and the Armstrong family farm (three cats, two fish, a dog, and until tomorrow, two chicks). Maybe the extra hours of daylight minus the early morning routine of getting Abs out the door to school will be a welcome seasonal change, or just maybe I need to take speed =-).