Flowers at NYBG
I. Ah, summer.
The most magical time of year when homeschool moms pretend to be sympathetic to the frequent complaints from school moms who can’t find enough wine to make being home with the kids tolerable.
You have five more weeks with your kids? You don’t know what to do?
You can do it, girl! Get out there and have a good time with those kids before they’re packing their bags for college, because I’ll tell you, it’s coming up fast. You may be spending your days putting band-aids on cuts and making endless snacks, but pretty soon you’ll be watching their eyes light up at the idea of a far away college, and you’ll be crying on the bathroom floor for a whole new reason.
Okay, that hasn’t happened to me yet, because my girls will stay close to their mama forever, but it could happen. I’m preaching out of love and concern. This time is precious.
II. Every year, summer slips past me. I’m trying to savor it now, to slow it down, but I’m not succeeding. We’re busy visiting colleges with the Adventurer, the Butterfly’s social calendar is always full, and the Princess and I just want to sit by the river so she can practice skipping stones and I can breathe the summer air.
The Adventurer (In Pink Hair)
Hartford CT, July 2017 ConnectiCon
And then there’s the curriculum planning for the upcoming school year, which I don’t want to think about, but must. It’s at this time of year that I wish I was one of those super-organized-always-has-a-plan type of homeschool moms who figured all out the entire upcoming school year in January. I have a plan, of course, but specifics need to be decided upon and things need to be ordered and the day-to-day plan needs to be mapped out.
I’ll take a few more days of summer to relax before I tackle it all, because when that’s done, I have to work on the Adventurer’s transcript, course outlines, etc. for her college applications. And since I’ve already started, I’m well aware that it is a major undertaking. I’m leaving the month of August clear for that task.
Maybe, if I have any energy left after that, I’ll blog more about the college search and application process as a homeschooler. Even though there is a ton of information out there to help, I still feel like there are holes. And did anyone ever mention the stress levels of a teen and homeschool parent combined? Seriously, we take turns freaking out.
III. Homeschooling is not for the faint of heart, the weak of
The Butterfly cosplaying Six from Little Nightmares.
spirit, or the freak of clean. My house, though I have cleaned compulsively for weeks, painted rooms that were long neglected and cleaned out closets that still contained toddler items (my youngest is an edgy tween), is still not clean enough, neat enough, or organized enough for my comfort.
I don’t think it ever will be.
However, I did assist my girls in constructing some amazing cosplay costumes, and I took them to a convention. AND I knew who many of the anime cosplayers were at that convention, so…I’m cool, you know?
Yeah, not really. But I try.
View from the peak of a hike at Ward Pound Ridge Nature Preserve, NY
We managed to include some time in nature as well this summer, lest you assume we are cosplay geeks who don’t leave the house. We’ve been hiking and swimming and visiting with friends in addition to watching anime, playing video games, and making costumes.
A shot from one of the spots along the hike up the side of Kent Falls, CT
We even managed a visit to my favorite place – Kent Falls – and I climbed to the top (almost). It’s not a big deal for most people, but the last time I attempted it, my Lyme Disease won. This time, I won.
A gallery at Pratt Institute, Brooklyn
IV. The Adventurer and I had a great time touring Pratt Institute in Brooklyn. I know college visits are supposed to be serious, and we were completely serious during the tour, but we managed a few good laughs along the way (via curious sculptures and fun modern art). And although the drive to Brooklyn was miserable, once we were exploring the neighborhood around Pratt on foot, we were anything but.
My girl loved it, as I anticipated.
I loved the library. It’s a historical landmark, the floors are glass and they have the largest selection of design (including fashion)books in the city. Of course, this is the part of the tour when my phone died, so I don’t have any photos of the outside of the campus or the surrounding neighborhood, or the amazing lunch we ate at a tiny Brazilian restaurant (which also only cost $12, debunking the myth that if I lived in NYC, I would spend every extra dollar exploring international cuisine).
A few titles of interest at Pratt’s massive style and design library.
Somehow, I have a picture of a shelf of books covering the topic of tiaras, crowns and headpieces. This was not intentional, but it is a tad ironic if you know me well. I was attempting to get a photo of the openings at the bottom of the shelves that allow for ventilation (1800’s style) and the glass floors.
Alas, tiaras are important, too.
V. Try to cherish summer with me. I know it’s hellish out right now, and you feel like you are on fire when you get in the car to take your little one to yet another exciting / educational / social / whatever event, but it will be worth it (probably). Fall is chasing us down. It’s started already with the back-to-school catalogs and the super sale at Office Max.
Resist. Resist to the end.
