It's happening. It was inevitable. Summer is over. It went so fast! We say that every year, and, really, summer is only ten weeks (if you count vacation from school) or about thirty days (if you count actual sunny, warm days in the Seattle area). This summer, as is true of most summers around here, it took it's sweet old time getting started, and when it finally started to warm up to a toasty 75 degrees, it was almost over. We had about two "really hot" days (in the 90's) which was just enough time to grumble about no air conditioning, and, just like that, it was 45 degrees this morning and I was shivering under the covers.
We took one road trip, did lots of fun day trips, watched a lot of sunsets, ate a lot of watermelon and never even took our camper out of the garage (this makes me sad!). And tomorrow is Labor Day (and, coincidentally, our 6th "familyversary" - our anniversary and the day we all officially became a family). After that, it's back to alarm clocks for me, and getting out the door at 7:30 for work, and then school for the kids the following day.
And if the start of school/work is not enough to make one long for summer days, add to that the fact that my husband is leaving early Tuesday morning to go elk hunting for five days. So, he - along with one of our vehicles - will be gone during one of the busiest weeks of the year. In addition, it's "hell week" for the kids which means rehearsals from immediately after school until 10 p.m. in preparation for their upcoming show. Also, our nearly 16 year old dog has become incontinent and requires constant care. It's enough to make me want to crawl back into summer in the worst way.
So, this week, I have to figure out how to get myself and my oldest daughter to and from work using one car (and we work completely different hours), get the kids to daily rehearsals and pick them up when I should be going to bed, buy dance shoes for Hannah and Arlie, sign Arlie up for dance, fill out a sports packet for volleyball (and ensure Arlie gets to and from try outs), volunteer at the kids' shows, take a group shot of the kids' choir for the show (and get it printed in a large size for the lobby display), make dinner every night, pack lunches every day, and deal with any emergencies that come up (and there WILL be emergencies). My husband will miss all but one of the kids' shows, which means I will be taking pictures AND videotaping by myself. I will have to get the kids back into the "routine", which means chores and homework, and, inevitably, a lot of stress and unhappy people.
I usually look sort of forward to the beginning of the school year but this year it is just too much stuff. Mostly just because I don't have Jeff to help me with the overload. I'm heading into a new year of teaching special-needs kids, so the first week of school will be a big challenge anyway. I questioned why he needed to go hunting THIS week of all weeks, and he said because it's bow-hunting season and he has to go now. Sigh. He's planned this trip for a year. A YEAR! The preparation has added up to hours and hours and hundreds of dollars. Chances are, he won't get an elk. So, it's really just a very expensive, extended camping trip. Argh! Hunting is so dumb.
I just want summer back. Carefree days, no alarm clocks, no agenda. I have a stack of magazines I didn't even get to read. Most of them are from spring. Sigh. Where does the time go? We had such big plans. Goodbye summer, 2012. You will be missed!
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