Richard Marx isn’t the only one ready for endless summer nights.  We are, too.  Bring on those endless summer nights, my friends.  We. Are. Ready. For. Summer.

In about two weeks (seven and a half school days, just in case anyone is counting…), school will be out for the summer.  Nate is looking forward to some “down time”.  He’s loved third grade.  I’ve loved third grade.  We’ve all loved the school year, the teachers, the staff.  It’s been another awesome school year.

But by this time, Nate is ready for summer break.  Maxim finished up preschool last week, so he’s the only jolly one in the group.  He’s sleeping in, staying up late (not really), and partying like it’s 1999.  Everyone else is envious and we are ALL ready for that summer break.

Teachers.  I know you folks are ready.  I have only been away from teaching for one year, but trust me.  I REMEMBER.  The teachers are just as ready for summer as the kids are.  (I remember counting down the days until summer vacation/break.  Don’t kid yourself.  Teachers are SO pumped for school to be out.  It’s all they can do to put a smile on their face and for the 176th time, recite the pledge with such sincere patriotism and sing the “Good Morning” song with pitiful, fake chipper smiles on their faces.  We are patriotic and we love to sing, but one can only do these repetitive actions so joyfully for so long.  Then, it’s time for a well-deserved summer break.)

Moms.  We moms are ready for summer, too.  I started to fail in our homework responsibilities last week.  I let my poor decision making get the best of me and told Nate, “No, you don’t have to do your homework right now.  Go ahead and ask your buddy to play.”  Typically, when Nate gets off the bus, it’s straight to homework.  Before you go all crazy on me and call me a mean, insensitive mom…wait.  Because he just had a bus ride filled with 25 pure minutes of nothing but fun and chatting with his buddies about kickball, football, and whatever else elementary school age kids talk about.  So, straight out of the shoot, when he gets home, we get the homework done.  Then, he can play.  UNTIL last week.  When I failed.  As in, he never ended up getting it done before Friday and well.  I just found the homework in his backpack yesterday.  Still unfinished.  (Friday morning, I told him to stay in at recess and get it done.)  (Like he is going to rat himself out.  Not happening.)  (I even told him this yesterday morning when I saw it still in his bag, “Finish this homework on the bus,” and I gave him a half-sharpened pencil, knowing that I was possibly asking for a miracle.)  I almost don’t want to look in his bag again.  Because I can barely handle any more homework.  I was secretly hoping the teachers would all decide that homework is done for the year.

There is one thing I am doing right, this late in the ballgame.  Packing lunches.  Yep.  Last week, I asked Nate if he’d eat better if I packed him a lunch.  (This is the boy who needs to put on weight.  For the record, he has an eight-pack of abs.  I know.  It’s so hard for me to even fathom.)  Nate said he’d LOVE to take cold lunch, so last week, I began packing them.  I was on a four out of five day streak of packing them, until yesterday.  Fail.  Yes, I had the lunch packed for him, sitting out on the counter, then forgot to give it to him as he headed out the door for the bus.  So…maybe I’m not doing that right either.  We’ll see if I remember his cold lunch this morning.  (If you are a beating person, don’t beat on me.)

Anyway.  Summer break is almost here and I’m a little excited for it.  Nate is ready to have the carefree life that his little brother has.  No more sprinting to the bus stop in efforts to not miss the bus.  No more throwing a Lunchables into his lunchbox and calling it good.  Nope.  Just pure endless summer nights.  Eating sweet corn as a meal.  Catching lightening bugs.  Swimming as often as possible.  Playing ball and eating sunflower seeds.  Dairy Queen stops to enjoy a cold treat.  Ahhhh….summer.  We are ready for you.

Are you ready for summer?  What things are you looking forward to?  Share with us!