It’s Monday

[186momx]

2nd day of summer vacation here and I know I'm so lucky to have a kid who can easily stay home and entertain herself. Yesterday she listened to entire audiobook while putting together her Lego Mandrake she got for her birthday. Today she watered plants, went for run, vacuumed, baked bread, read and I'll be taking her to her 4-hr gymnastics practice shortly. I love summers now because I don't have to fight with DD to go to school and I'm not fighting camps logistics.

We did nothing for Father's Day and I'm okay with that because Dh did nothing for Mother's Day or my birthday and I just didn't feel like making a big to do about it. He pouted and was a PITA all day. We did pick strawberries over the weekend in between rain showers.

dglvrk2, DD told me a while ago that she has friends, but she has no BFF, and she is okay with that. She only sits alone at school if it is her choice, she has friends at gym, and it is okay they don't do stuff outside of gym. So, I'm trying to re-adjust my feelings on her being left out because she doesn't see it as being left out.

[erbear]

Jun 18, 2024 15:05:15 GMT -5 k3am said:

Jun 18, 2024 14:49:04 GMT -5 vasc said:

Maybe you can reframe the idea…teachers work 10 months of the year, are compensated for those ten months, but their paycheck is divided into 12 months (at least in most areas).

No need for me to reframe the idea. Her post bothers me, and that's allowed. She's allowed to post it, she's allowed to enjoy her time off, and I'm allowed to have my feelings about it. 

I've got to ask...what is it about my post that bothers you? I understand that summer is harder for non-teacher parents but surely you don't begrudge my having time to go to all of the doctors I put off during the year because I can't get the time off, peeing when I need to, eating on my schedule, having time to, you know, hang out with my own children instead of everyone else's is a definitive plus for teachers? We all chose our professions and weighed the tradeoffs.

[rere]

soccermama so sorry for your loss. And the timing. I know everyone looks forward to those trips and the break from reality for a while.

I may have been the odd bird, but I loved summer and mourned the end of it. I just liked the unscheduled time, late suppers, relaxed nighttime routine, them sleeping in, swim days. I did have a part time flexible schedule for most of it and Dh had a shift schedule then, so he was off during the week a lot. But it did take much juggling between us, a few grandparent days, some vacation days for me and a paid teenager her or there.

[sdlaura]

librarychica I think you hit on the real reason I think year round school will become increasingly common - weather. So many places now are super miserably hot in the summer. Better to be inside in A/C and save outdoor time/camps for more comfortable times of year.

[k3am]

erbear, the prior poster was saying that summer is too long for her kids, and your response is basically.. "NOT FOR TEACHERS! Teachers all think it's not long enough!" Which totally overlooks the burden that it puts on families, the learning loss, etc. My kids - particularly my daughter - struggle like hell without the structure school provides. I will be spending $800+ a week to send them to camps, then try to cram in summer workbooks and daily reading, and hour long fights over it with her all to hope to help keep her from experiencing a full year + decline in reading level that we see EVERY DAMNED YEAR. And she is not a strong reader to start with, it's a battle daily. Summers send my family (in particular me) to the breaking point when it's intended to be some relax and unwind type moment. So it frustrates me personally to hear statements like that, even if it's just intended to be flippant and funny.

Great that it's your jam. It would also be my jam to have two months off where I get to enjoy my kids without the stress of daily life or knowing that I'm just coming back to two months of piled up shit that I'm expected to finish immediately vs. starting off with a relatively new slate.

[erbear]

k3am, you’re projecting. Of course, teachers think that summer isn’t long enough. It’s our only break. I recognized several times in this thread that I understand that it’s harder for parents. I get it. It was harder for me as a parent when my kids were smaller. But the fact remains that summer is a perk of being a teacher. I’m sorry that you don’t have the same opportunity to take time off. That sucks. I’m sure your job has other perks.

Your beef is not with teachers, it’s with the system 🤷‍♀️

It would be spectacular if people acknowledged how much teachers do for your families at times other than summer when it’s a deficit.

[k3am]

erbear, thank you for telling me how I feel. It’s super helpful and appreciated.