Summer Time

ESY (Extended School Year) is over as of 11:45 today. I have mixed emotions about it. On one hand, I’m glad that my older two boys will have some non-school time. Everyone needs a break. On the other hand, the relaxed routine and “it’s-summer-so-there-aren’t-many-super-structured-activities” do not always sit well with kiddos who want predictable days.

Tate gets a break from school, but with his ABA, OT, and speech, he has a fairly regimented schedule. He gets down time, but he also will have a schedule. Jake, on the other hand, only has tutoring and his once-a-week camp. The other hours are unfilled and unstructured..and sometimes, I think he struggles with lack of structure more than Tate does.

Yesterday the boys and I made a list of our “must-do’s” for the 5 1/2 weeks before school is back in session. The list includes a visit to the local aquatic center, bowling, a movie night, camping in the backyard, and the zoo, again. I know we can get those in, because many are local and easily fit in around our scheduled programming.

Jake struggles, too, because with the language disorder component of his “shtuff”, he has trouble with the sense of time. When I say “weeks”, his brain processes “days”. When I say “months”, he thinks “weeks”. It’s such a struggle. His tutor is going to focus on that a bit more over the next few sessions, and will give him some visuals. When I pull out a calendar and give him a visual, he does pretty well, but he definitely needs some practice. It’s good for the other boys, too. (Ironically, this is a topic covered in one of Tate’s ABA programs this summer…so maybe they can help each other!!)

With all 3 boys home full time for 5 weeks, I know that we’ll have our share of arguments, yelling, and shouting. My hope is to get them outside, riding their bikes, running and chasing and playing. We do some school prep activities, as well, but I want them to get bored and just lay around reading or drawing..or in reality, whining about being bored…but that’s okay. That’s being a kid. And when they do, I’ll load them into the car and we’ll go get ice cream or a freezy-drink (slurpee) because, well, that’s what moms do in the summer.

Cheers to summer!!!