It was the last day of school around here yesterday - and Chloé and I are on our road trip! After a very long winter and extended spring, summer feels like it is almost here. We just have exams, ASCENT and POL's (presentation of learning) academic evaluations to complete and then after Closing Ceremonies summer will start!
The other day I saw that someone had visited my Summer Manifesto post from last year and I realized time was ticking and I wanted to do it again this year! I do like the idea of setting forth an intention. A manifesto. For this summer 2014, this is the plan:
HELLO SUMMER
- Finish unpacking and settling into the new digs - that includes purchasing and arranging everything by the end of summer. 100%
- Attend Chloé's softball games and Caden's baseball games.
- Meet friends for swimming and fun at the Oakville Club.
- Watch two or three television series from start to finish: Friday Night Lights, The Blacklist and The Good Wife are at the top of my list!
- Have all of my blood tests done and follow up - again. Maybe get some answers this time around? Fingers crossed!
- Sign in and check on Cole's trip to Eastern Europe. A trip of a lifetime - and hard work, after all, he's going to get his grade 12 World History credit while he's there! How awesome is that?
- Dust off my camera and retrain my eye.
- Enjoy our annual holiday in Cape Cod.
- Try to keep up with Claire's forever changing baseball and social schedule.
- With no excuses, plan to take long walks or ride my bike every day - rain or shine or oppressive humidex.
- Take day trips to Stratford and Niagara Falls.
- Enjoy stories of Chloé's roughing-it up in Temagami for two weeks!
- Write morning pages. Every. Single. Day.
- Share lazy lunches and laughter with friends at JACs or Stoney's or Jonathan's.
- Take Caden up to leadership camp, and volleyball camp, too.
- Soak up as much vitamin D as possible.
- Get out to the driving range a few times.
- Buy Chloé a whole new non-uniform wardrobe to wear at her new school.
- Settle Cole into his dorm room for his last year of high school.
- Celebrate my 50th birthday!
Our days will be full. I look forward to many teenagers walking in and out of my house on a regular basis through the twelve structure-less weeks ahead. I anticipate much laundry with all of the packing and unpacking that is going to happen - I'm so happy to have a full-on full-sized laundry room again. Along with late nights at the ballpark and concerts, I hope for many lazy mornings with a lot of sleeping in. Me? I will enjoy my mornings with a cup of coffee and quiet time to journal and reflect, followed by a nice long walk or bike ride around the new neighbourhood.
In essence, I will spend my summer grateful and full of appreciation that I am able to live my life on my own terms and spend even a portion of it with my wonderful children!
How about you? Big plans? Small plans? Big changes? No changes? How do you manage your summer?
