Wednesday, May 25, 2011

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas

(Coral honeysuckle. Photo Credit: The Man)


My friend Danielle once said May is the new December, and I've been quoting her ever since. I feel like I've been running around like a mad woman for the last two weeks. Teeth cleanings, annual exams, this errand, that errand. And, of course, the second grade poetry festival.

Just when you think it's safe to get out of bed without brushing your hair, they spring the second grade poetry festival on you. We were this close to school being over and done with, this close to saying no more hot lunches, no more classroom theme parties, no more field trips. I thought I was done. But no. Yesterday Will comes home from Our Fine School with an invitation to spend the first thirty minutes of my Wednesday morning enjoying poetry.

Well, I love poetry, and there is little poetry finer that penned by a second grader, but the second grade poetry festival--the idea of having to find somewhere deep inside me that last bit of school rah rah cheerful mommy-ness--Reader, I thought it might kill me.

Fortunately, it didn't. And once I was there, all was delightful and amazing. It was just the idea of having to go, you know? The idea of one more thing. The idea of having to comb my hair before 8 a.m..

It's the little things that undo you.


(The garden, with a view of the porch. Photo credit: The Man)

So summer is a-cumin' in. The Summer of Pie. The summer where Jack cooks dinner once a week, and the boys and I begin our quest to find the best hamburger in town. We're going to go to lunch at a new burger joint each week. We're going to take notes. We're going to compare and contrast.

Really, it's all I can think of. That, and going to the pool.


(Jack's latest pie--Strawberry Lemonade)

Tonight, I made the last school lunches of the year. My last night of feeling guilty for being such a lame mom and packing pretty much the same thing every single time. I have no lunch imagination. I eat the same thing every day for breakfast (scrambled eggs) and lunch (salad with walnuts and avocado). I'm boring that way. And now my children will be boring that way, too.

But I don't have to worry about it for eleven more weeks. And maybe next fall, I'll make the boys make their own lunches.

That'll show 'em.

10 comments:

GretchenJoanna said...

If Jack gets really good at baking pies, maybe he could have pie in his lunch next fall (lunch that he packs himself.)
Your end-of-school laments are so True...but your SUMMER! You have got me all excited hearing about your pie, pool, and burger projects. What lucky boys to have you.

Gumbo Lily said...

I like the idea of going to a new burger place every week. Looking forward to your notes. Your garden is really thriving! WOW. My seeds only just went in today.

Send me that pie-making Jack!

Jody

Amanda said...

Love you summer ideas! And I agree, May is insane. All the mothers feel ready to enter an insane asylum at the end of it. Especially those with anyone graduating from a school, whether it be elementary school or college!

Leslie said...

You crack me up, and yes, I soooo understand about the little things undoing a person. I'm tired. I want to be left alone, but nooooo....

That pie looks delish. I love that pie-making Jack! And your hamburger research is GENIUS!

The buzz here in Dallas is the new In and Out burger place. And there is also a new place called something like The Heart Attack Grill. The waitresses wear nurse uniforms and make no secret that they are trying to kill you with their food. It's a crazy world......

Angela said...

ooh that pie! and that garden [why can't I get things to grow?]
I cannot get my head round your school system - such long terms, then LONG holidays in the summer [we Brits do it with smaller chunks and short holidays every 6 weeks or so!] How is it the kids dont forget all they have learned during almost 3 months without school?

Tracy said...

Jack is becoming an AWESOME pie maker. I'm telling you, we need to combine our kids to cook a full meal. We'll be eating like Queens!

There is something very sweet about the last day of the year, isn't there. Enjoy that precious, beautiful moment where life comes to a bit of a halt. But 11 weeks? I'm not so sure about that bit. Six is good. Then again, a Colorado Springs summer is something to revel in. That's what I call summer. Not our nasty heat-wave months.

Enjoy your first days of summer holidays :)

Pom Pom said...

Your garden looks wonderful!
Is summer really only eleven weeks long? Gasp!
I have one more week to go. I'm counting the moments.
Angela's question is funny! Yes! They DO forget!

Susan said...

To think that in 11 weeks you'll probably be singing Christmas carols that include lines like," And Mom and Dad can hardly wait for school to start again" and "it's the most wonderful time of the year." Seasons Greetings, my friend.

Sandy H said...

The pie looks fantastic. How'd it taste? Does he care to share any of his recipes? I'm full-on with cooking lessons for my 20-year-old son this summer since he's moving into an apartment at college this fall. He's pretty good at grilling things but indoor cooking is a little more foreign to him. And he's never tackled a pie. Jack's definitely ahead of the game!

The dB family said...

I'm with you on the lunches! I'm the most lame-o lunch making mom in the world. I was afraid of mutiny though so, I've been trying to give them a little more variety.

Your summer sounds like it's going to be very tasty. We still have one more week of school here.

Blessings!
Deborah