Hello, Summer

This morning, Annie got ready for school for the last time until September. Considering that the last two mornings have abruptly brought epic bouts of dressing drama, obsession with changing earrings and donning a million Silly Bandz, and actual dragging out of the house five minutes after our usual leaving time, this is sort of a relief. (Sort of.) (Some people in our house do not do well with transitions.)

And thus ends second grade, the last time I'll confidently feel that I "know" what sort of standards and curriculum my child is working with. Annie brought home her writing journal from the year this week. A few choice excerpts:

In September: "On my birthday I love to open Presents because I like to see what People gave me who came to my Party. I also like to eat cake because somtimes it is cheesecake and I love cheesecake."

On November 28, 2011: "On Thanksgiving I went to my grandma and grandpa's house and saw my cousins. At lunch we had turkey, cranberry sauce, macht potatos, stuffing, and gravy. And rolls. It was fun. We also had grape juice. I have a lot more to say but that would take forever."

On January 6, 2012: "If I could fly, I would make friends with birds and build a nest. If I was a robin my favorite season would be spring."

On January 19, 2012: "When I got my ears pirst I was a little nerves. I was so happy and excited to show my grandpa and my dad! My sister covered her eyes. After that, I had a Petacire. I tried to pick the same color of my earrings. It wasn't the exact same color."

On February 6, 2012: "On Saturday my mom and dad went to a wedding and my grandma and grandpa took care of me and my sister. My grandpa is pretty silly."

"On spring break I went to my grandma's house for Easter. I decided to wash my moms car in fifty-one degree whether and I was so cold I sat in the bucket of hot water! I went to my cousins house on wednsday and had lots of fun. I went to a park and got cookies while we were at the park because there was a shop called toms moms cookies. My cousins names are Berit and Marta. We sometimes call Berit B and Marta Mart. They are both girls. My sister went too. One day I got into a fight with Berit. My sisters name is Jemma. Me and Jemma stayed for two and a half days. My Aunts name is Lisa and my uncles name is Trever. He is my dads brother. They are very silly together. Me and Jemma had so much fun! P.S. I am the oldest kid in the family.

*****

Right now, I'm full of ambitious plans to do a small amount of daily "school" stuff with the girls this summer. We all do better with a little structure in our days, so I've stocked up on journals and flashcards, workbooks and crayons, and I'm hoping to start each morning with an hour or so of fun-yet-educational activities. I'm picturing me with my coffee and the girls with their heads bent happily over a sheet of paper, or perhaps a mini writing lesson on our chalkboard easel, or maybe one girl doing the yoga DVD while I do math flashcards with the other one. I'm sure this little fantasy of mine is far from reality, but I'm going to give it the old college try anyway. I'm going to loosely organize our learning by theme (switching it up every week or two) and I've asked the girls to brainstorm topics they'd like to learn more about. Here's Annie's list:

China
the human body
plants
snakes
Laura Ingalls Wilder book study
Susan B. Anthony
Vincent Van Gogh
okapis
car engines
Austria
Jamaica
race and skin color

Sooooooooo . . . that's a nice, broad cross-section, huh?

*****

Just this minute there are exactly zero construction workers in or around my house, a state that has been a rarity since the Monday in early April when the blamming began. We have plants, mulch and sod in our backyard, a fence around the hot tub, tile in the laundry room, and a washer and dryer coming on Monday. I'm sure it will be weeks before it all truly feels finished (trim to paint! table backordered! nothing on the walls! rugs! planters!), but it is nearly so, and I could not be more ready to have my house back. Just in time, it'll be the three of us girls most days for the next three months. I intend to make it good, or at least as good as it can be.

Hello, summer.