Summer Time as a Mom

So here we go....school is out, the sun is already hot, the kids are bored, and the darn dog won't stop barking at everything. I am a stay-at-home mom, so I do not have an easy, daily escape route. Unfortunately, I can be lazy by nature...so looking at summer break as the perfect time to finally reorganize my closet just isn't in the cards (although, I put it on my to-do list every year). My kids are getting older, so it is getting easier in many ways...I can run to the gym or grocery store without dragging them along. But my phone is usually guaranteed to go off, because of either someone is fighting, or someone wants to play Top Chef, or the dog won't stop barking.

This summer is going to be a little different in two aspects...my oldest child had knee surgery, where live stem cells were involved, so he is in a locked brace for the next 8 weeks. This means I get to be a nurse and a maid, and currently on-call at night, which is causing me to sleep on the living room couch. My youngest has taken my spot in bed, so I guess we should feel sorry for my husband too ???????

The second "new" element, is I am going to be a hosting an orphan from Eastern Europe. I hosted him last summer, so I know he is a good boy. He prefers home cooked meals (of course, isn't that what we all want for our family), but because he is very shy, it is up to me to do all the cooking (he is old enough to prepare himself a sandwich, for example, but feels awkward moving about in the kitchen...which I fully understand). So a full-time personal chef gets added to my summer time jobs :-)

We live on a short, dead-end street with lots of kids. My home is a "go to" home, because I am fairly laid-back, and let all the kids come in. By the end of each day, there are at least 5 wet towels not hung up.. Someone left their slides behind, and I have fed an army. I am not the only mom on the street who has an open door policy, so it is reciprocated...thank goodness, because when they are not here it suddenly feels like a mini-vacation!!!

I may sound like a complaining mom, but I do know that I am blessed, and feel fortunate that I am home keeping an eye on my children as they grow. They feel safe that someone is always home, and appreciate that they do not have to be in camp all summer. But we all need to vent from time to time, don't we?????