Summer Break IS Here: Day One-Survival!

Moonlight Beach

Here we are.  It's Summer Break!  We get out so much later than most schools that we are just starting our break and it's Fourth of July just one week later.  Wahhh??  How did that happen?  Today was BUSY and I'm BEAT...but I don't think (hope) it will be the norm.  Chloë and Ella started right off into camps already.  I had really wanted to wait a week or two before doing camps but they are both signed up with a friend and this is the week their friend could do one.  So here we are.  Chloë is doing Beach Volleyball at Moonlight Beach and Ella is in "Super Silly Art Camp" for 4 year olds in Carlsbad.  Both are only 3 hours long so they are both done by lunchtime.  

Chloë and Avery after day one of beach volleyball camp

I won't bore you with the details, but other than camp drop-offs and pick-ups (which included spending over 20 MINUTES driving around with the boys in the car looking for a parking spot by the beach for Chloë's 11:30am pickup.  Doesn't help that it's amazing and perfect beach weather right now.  Everyone and their mom was at Moonlight Beach today) we also had a haircut appointment, a piano lesson and a vet appointment.  We were on the move from 7:45am until nearly 6pm with NO break or downtime.  Luckily, I'm married to the best hubby ever and he had dinner cooked and waiting when we rolled in the door around 5:45 after a VERY long vet appointment with Kyla (just to get her new heartworm medication...$300 later!!).  

Eli and Owen with their new haircuts 

We are going to TRY to avoid overload of screen time (iPads, tv, etc) this Summer...and to keep the kids on top of their reading and writing on the break...so I'm (nervously) implementing the below Summer Rules for our house:   

(stolen off Pinterest)

We sat down and had a family meeting of sorts over the weekend to give them the head's up.  This way they'll know what's expected of them and they can be in charge of themselves to earn tv or iPad time...and I won't have to CONSTANTLY say "no" and have them begging.  Have you finished your chart?  No?  Okay, then you need to do this this and this... or Yes?  Okay, feel free to watch a show.  Most of my concern is with the reading and the writing of Owen and Eli.  They need assistance for both..and someone there to monitor it all, unfortunately.  They aren't quite independent and they don't WANT to read OR write, to be honest!  Chloë is at a much more independent age and she's keeping a daily journal (in Spanish).  I told them I would be keeping their summer work and showing it to their new teacher.  So they're either motivated by fear or the hope to impress these new maestras (teachers) that they'll meet in August.  So each of the 4 will have their own laminated chart that they can check off the boxes on.  We will probably be pretty slack with Ella's, but she'll want a chart with the others so it can't hurt, right?  

I'll report back later to update on how this went....


Last week was fun/nuts/busy.  Chloë's teacher wanted to celebrate/thank the room parents from her 2nd grade class (which is comprised of myself and 3 mom-friends.  None of us wanted to take it on by ourselves...and we were an awesome team, I must say..  we even had our own text thread solely for this "job" which we joke should be published into a book...(#badmoms #hilariousthread #manyFbombs #notfrommeofcourse,dad)).  Okay, back to my point.  So, Maestra Ham had a dinner for the 4 of us AT MY HOUSE (as someone had to host since she lives quite a distance from the school she teaches at) where she came over and made amazing food from scratch (shrimp tacos, enchiladas, fresh salsa, guacamole, black beans, Spanish rice, and plenty of vino).  We had an amazing time eating, chatting and laughing until 10pm.  I'll miss this crew!

Room Parent Celebration

Teacher is first one on the left.

'

Last day with Maestra Castillo

We LOVE this teacher! 

Hoping the Ella will get her in 2018

Eli and Owen getting honored at the school's Running Club

end-of-year ceremony for running 25 miles before school over the year.

Second Grade DLI Luau

(Party we set up for end-of-year for the two 2nd grade Spanish immersion classes)

The spread

Photo time!

Chloë and friends

Aloha!

me and my girl :)

SCHOOL'S OUT FOR SUMMER!!!

End Of School...Almost Here!!!

The countdown is ON!  Summer Break is almost here!  I'm in my delusional state (as Myke refers to it) of when I'm excited for the end of school and for Summer vay-cay (wahoo!!!).  I think I've just been trained and conditioned to get giddy and excited this time of year since I was a child.  No more homework!  No more books!  No more teacher's dirty looks!  Yay!!   

Then....two days INto the break the harsh reality will HIT me...like a ton of bricks!!  Wait!!  The kids are now with me.  All day.  EVERY day.  For 8 weeks.  There is ZERO free time.  Zero time to myself.  

AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!

Must. Remain. In. Denial. To. Avoid. Insanity.  (for now!)

I'm scared.  Though I'm way too busy these past weeks to even think about that.  The end of the year is crazy!  I'm hosting happy hours, finishing up garden class with the boys' kinder class, helping run the 2nd grade end-of-the-year luau, getting teacher gifts together, trying to get the boys to read and practice their writing/reading/shapes/numbers (in Spanish...which is NOT my first language, obviously), carting kids to and from swim lessons, piano lessons, after-school activities, and trying to pick and choose between what other school events to volunteer with (Woodworking day, kinder pizza party, kinder park field trip, Chloë's class penpal meet up park playdate, game day, kinder field day, etc...the list goes on).  Basically, I'm a MOM.  

AND we are going camping this weekend.  It will actually be nice...to just sit back and relax a little (although the boys have 2 birthday parties they are going to (one Fri and one Sat) and Chloë has one...and she has a basketball game...so we can't escape from all the busy-ness too much...luckily we are camping at a beach site just a few miles from home).  Father's Day weekend camping and the weather forecast is looking gorgeous!  

On another note, we were just lucky and blessed enough to have ALL FOUR of our parents out here on the west coast at the same time!  So the kids had all sorts of attention and extra playmates and people to hug them.  It was great!   We really are lucky for all they do for us and how involved they keep in ours and the kids' lives.  We don't take that for granted.   The four of them are now all back to their main homes on the east coast...we miss them already! 

Myke's parents and my parents :)

One of the weekends they were all here we took a pontoon boat out on Mission Bay.  It was "June Gloom" weather but that didn't stop us from having a great time!

Four days later:

Sunny weather at the San Diego Fair.

Thom & Maureen (Myke's parents) and I took the kiddos for an afternoon.

Fun and tiring.

The most exciting part of the fair??....the fidget spinner stand.  Go figure.

Fried chicken sandwich.  Krispy Kreme donut buns.  Ice cream in the middle.  Fruity Pebbles cereal on top.  Wow.

ice cream treats!

The crew.

"This one is for Dad!" (his favorite sauce)

Lamest ride ever.  Only cost $3 per child for a 2 minute ride.  

Ha.

So, that's just a bit of the activities that have been going on.  Owen and Eli turned 6 last month!  Chloë and Eli had their first piano recital.  That went well.  I got to have my mom out here for Mother's Day.  That's about it from here for now!