Summer's End

With only six days left until I officially return to work, I am a bit anxious of the impending transition. I have loved the past 14 weeks off. I had a little trepidation going into such a long stretch of time off with two kids and not a lot planned because I was afraid of long days sitting in the house with bored and/or crying kids and a restless husband. That was not the case. Between a major yard project (tree removal, new brick walkway, driveway replaced and flagstone patio), a trip to Keystone for a conference, a trip to my parents' house in Washington, and lots of visitors, there was never a dull moment.

Staying so busy gave Mark and me lots of practice handling two kids in a variety of situations, and this past Friday felt like the final exam. We had 24 hours between the time my parents had to drop us off at the airport in Seattle and the time our plane took off. This is no small feat with a 2 year old and (literally) 200 pounds of luggage. We found a hotel near the airport and made use of shuttles, public buses, monorails and our feet to get to downtown Seattle, enjoy ourselves, and then back to the airport in time for our 8:45 pm flight. It was a success. So much of a success, in fact, that Mark and I think Carter was actually better behaved and happier than on an average day. (I'm not sure what that implies, so let's move on.)

Daycare is still not settled. We had a woman semi-arranged, but then she decided she only wanted to watch one kid, not two. So here we sit, less than a week away from needing care with not even a possibility. This is a major contributing factor to my feeling of sadness as the summer ends because I don't know what we will be doing with the kids.

I am trying to just enjoy these last few days and focus on the good, not fear the the unknown and upcoming stresses. Tonight both kids were in bed by 8pm. That is a celebration. I just finished eating some delicious brownies. Another reason to smile.

I imagine I'm one of many in the sea of kids getting ready to return to school with mixed feelings. I will miss these great weeks off I've had, but I look forward to seeing my colleagues again and being mentally stimulated by my job. I also think our family does better with a little more routine, so I will try to enjoy that, as well, although the lazy (or busy) days of summer are tough to beat.