It has not been that bad!

Let me say that I was super super nervous about the summer. We had a new baby, John changed jobs, John went to night shift, and school was out all in one month! I literally was freaking out that I was going to be stuck in the house having to make everyone quiet or have to be gone all the time in the hot weather, running around in the car. I planned more activities for the summer in hopes that it would keep us busy. I laid it all out on my calendar, set up play dates, camps, and challenged myself to do things like mission projects with the kids all in hopes that I would not go crazy! It will be August at the end of the week and let me say the summer has flown by! We have actually had a blast. I certainly have had a couple of bad days but it really has been very nice. I like the purposeful projects we have done (I am so proud that I have actually followed through on something) and it is to the point now that the kids ask what our next "service project" is. I like that the kids have done some really fun camps that they have never done before. I have also liked our downtime where we have cooked together, watched movies, gone swimming, played outside, done "homeschool" and listened to music. I have also learned some things about myself. I like order and it usually drives me nuts when things are out of order but this summer has taught me that it is o.k. to "think out of the box sometimes." It is o.k. that Emily and J.D. play in Molly's room some days because their Daddy is asleep in their room. It is o.k. that Emily has an "American Girl store" set up in Molly's room where tiny shoes and clothes are hanging all over Molly's bed. It is o.k. to set up a fort under the kitchen table. It is o.k. to pull the sleeping bags out and couch cushions off the couch to make a bed on the floor for watching movies in the middle of the day, it is o.k. that Daddy sleeps in the bunk bed, Molly sleeps in my bed, and I sleep on the couch for an afternoon nap. It is o.k. to turn a movie on for the big kids to watch while John, Molly, and I catch a few zzzzz's. It is o.k. to run a bubble bath in the middle of the day for the kids just to entertain them. It is o.k. to play in the sprinkler with your clothes on. It is o.k. to let the big kids play in the rain with their umbrellas as long as it is not lightning. I have enjoyed a different kind of summer...one that was very planned out but spontaneous all at the same time!