Summer Vacation...Not
Every year, I look foward to my kids getting out of school for summer break--for about three days. Then I start counting the days until school starts again. When they were younger, summer break was a wonderful respite. The kids would sleep in a couple hours late, leaving me to get some work done, then they'd get up, have me make some breakfast, and they'd go off do that wonderful thing all children do in the summer...play.
But now...
Now they argue. They're five years apart, with the eldest in high school, and gone are the days when the two of them would head out to the yard and find hours of fun on the swingset and in the sandbox. Instead, there are arguments over the drum set, over the dogs, over the TV. You name it, and there's a fight. How many Cheerios are left after the first one has breakfast. Whether one got more chocolate chips in his pancakes than the other.
I've signed them up for classes and camps, but that's kind of counter-productive for me, because I'm back to spending my day in the car and not at work. Often, one is left at home, whining that there is nothing to do and no one to do it with. So we invite a friend over, and then they want entertainment.
Workday is...gone.
Summer is, ironically, my LEAST productive time of year. You'd think it would be my most productive, but unless I get up very, very early in the morning and get a few hours in before anyone wakes up (and hey, who wants to spend their summer rolling out of bed at 4:30 or 5:00 a.m.?), there's not a whole lot happening on my computer screen ;-). But with two books due before the end of the summer, and a move coming this year, I'm thinking that's pretty much my only solution. Either that or...
Summer school. And you can just imagine how well THAT would go over ;-)
He-he. There's always one more devilish plot under Mom's sleeve ;-)
Shirley
Good luck with that devilish
Good luck with that devilish plot, Shirley! Summer should be uber productive for me, too, since I'm out of school, but with my husband off at the same time, I get distracted. He wants to go and do things and not sit around the house, waiting for me to get over some writing hurdle. I don't blame him one bit, but I need to write, lol.
Good luck in finding time to
Good luck in finding time to write during the summer. Maybe you can find a couple that is thinking about having children and lend them yours for the summer. :)
Good luck with your summer
Good luck with your summer writing!
No Summer Vacation
Hi there, I'm new to the group here, but wanted to chime in and say that I completely understand. I work full time on top of my writing so I don't have the summers off. Only a week or two here or there, and while I'd love to use that time to really get some writing done, my family would disown me.
J.K. Coi
Immortals To Die For
www.jkcoi.com
Welcome, J.K.
Good to see you here!
I not a mom and never have
I not a mom and never have been but I have friends who used devilish plans to get through the summer. Good luck with finding a way to write this summer.
Ooh...
Good luck carving out some writing time, Shirley! I've some friends who've decided that when their kids argue and she hears about it, they're going to have to literally hug and make up with an "I love you because..." and if that isn't enough, they'll have to sit together until they stop bickering. (Not sure if that would ensure that they kill each other, or that I'll end up doing the job for them ;)) And whining results in assignment of chores--"If you're whining, it means you're looking for something to do--please do the dishes... the laundry... clean the garage..." and so on... I haven't tried that yet, so I can't say how well that works ;) Hope you do end up enjoying the summer :)
Feeling your pain...
I work full-time from home on the day job and feel your pain on summer vacation. My kids fight, too, although not quite as badly as they used to. They are sailing three days a week this summer and we're punting the other two. I'm determined to enjoy it as much as I can since the summers of them turning to me for any form of entertainment are definitely numbered. School has been such a grind this year that I'm actually looking forward to summer vacation for the first time since I've worked at home (10 years). Talk to me by next Friday--day three. LOL
www.mariesullivanforce.com
You're obviously a very nice mom ;)
My method for dealing w/complaints, when I had this problem (my son is grown and out), was to put him to work. He worked part-time, anyway, but there are a million things around a house that need doing, and just tell them "if you're bored, here's a list." Amazing how quickly they manage to stay out of your way and find things to do if they know bothering you means they'll be put to work.
I say, clean out a mayo jar, fill it with jobs that need to be done, and at signs of the first complaint, just hold out the jar and tell them to stick their hand in. ;) I bet you get lots of alone time.. ;)
Sam
I understand!
My complete sympathies, Shirley! I have two kids, 14 and 11, and they're constantly sniping at one another. I work full-time on top of writing and summer is my least productive time, as well. It's a constant stream of summer activities like BBQ's and pool parties, heading up north to see in-law's, shuttling kids to camps, and then my husband and THE BOAT. I love the boat, but sometimes the fact that it's docked right behind the house is more of a drawback than anything else. It's right there in plain sight, easily accessible and constantly begging to be taken out. I'd love it if my husband took it out on his own, with the dog or the kids or, best of all, all three, but it seems he only wants to be out on the boat with me. If I thought I could write on board, I would, but it makes me queasy.
Good luck on the summer writing, and congratulations on all the wonderful things happening with the writing you have managed to accomplish!
Summer Fun
Yeah, most writers with kids (including me) don't get too much done in the summer. But at least there's a couple of week-long trips to grandma's house planned that will give me little quiet time. :-) Other then that, I negotiate with my son and we split our day with time together and time apart. Mostly it works out, lol.
Good luck getting your two books done. :-)
Raquel
"Never give up, never surrender!" -GALAXYQUEST
"I aim to misbehave." -SERENITY
~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~
Raquel Rodriguez
MY LOVING ENEMY, now from New Concepts Publishing
www.RaquelRodriguez.com
Shirley are you sure you
Shirley are you sure you won't describing my summer? I use to LOVE the kids being home from school an d now like you said for about 3 days lol! My youngest is going into 6th grade and my oldest will be in 10th. They get bored so easy now and always wanting to be on the go or have friends over that i get to graciously clean the house for and cook for them. I can tell my time for myself will have to be put on hold untill Aug. when school's open! I try to keep in mind their growing up and one day i'd wish for this time back so with saying that I'm folding for now I may change my mind again in a few days. lol!