School is winding down, summer is about to happen
It's about time for another update. I've tried to write a Dumont update for at least two weeks, but the last few weeks/months have been full of things that aren't really my story to share. Although my friends tell me how much they appreciate my "realness", I'm afraid I've snowed you all. I keep as many secrets as the rest of you. I think it's more appropriate to say I have a higher threshold for embarrassment, and I find my kids to be 100% fair game when it comes to sharing their quotes. In any case, for my friends and family that are dealing with really hard things that are painfully personal or intricately involve other people that don't want their stuff shared with the world, I am silently here with you. =)
And now for the things I can talk about! First, as usual, school. It's May! We're almost done with our school year. Tommy is wrapping up math and a few other assignments. Charlotte is DONE 5th grade. She is a beast with school. Matthew finished 1st grade, learned to read, and is working through his math workbook so we're all set with him. In other words, I'm pretty happy with where we are. Tommy is the one that stresses me. He will always be my guinea pig, and since this is my first year dealing with high school transcripts, it makes me anxious, but we're getting there. We're finishing up our 5th year (3rd year consecutively) of our homeschool group, Classical Conversations, and despite all the kool-aid jokes that people make (okay, that I've made), it continues to be the rails that keep this train from crashing. The Challenge classes (middle and high school) don't allow for as much flexibility, but at this level, I don't really want that much flexibility. I appreciate the deadlines and rigor that make us do the things we have to do. Plus it makes me enjoy my summer because I don't have the "we really should catch up on..." hanging over my head. We're very close to being in Summer Mode.
Speaking of summer, what is our summer going to look like this year? Well, it's going to be a mix of chaos and calm. Jon has another work trip coming so he'll be gone for part of the summer. I have my tutor training. The kids are signed up in different camps. Guitar lessons will continue. I'm going away for a weekend in Charlotte with my friend for our annual HOPLAWE. Oh, and that little trip I'm taking in July to France. You know, just that. No big deal. With all that, we've got a lot going on, BUT otherwise we'll be spending a lot of time at the pool. Last summer we never got a pool membership, and I missed it. This year, we made the pool our summer thing so we're going all. the. time. The kids will be sick of the pool by July, and I will still make them go. Because summer.
Charlotte and I have a particular goal for this summer as well. We're going to work our way through The Great British Bake Off technical challenges. No, we are not great bakers. I lost my baking mojo a few years ago and never quite got it back, but that's not going to stop us. If you haven't watched this show, go watch it on Netflix. Hulu? I think Netflix. One of those. Anyway, it's British people speaking with their British accents as they bake in a giant tent in the middle of a garden. Everyone is lovely and polite. It's like therapy. I'm going to try to get Tommy and Matthew to help, but when I asked Tommy about it, he said, "But...I don't know how to bake." No, honey. None of us really know how to make these recipes. I can't even pronounce some of them. But we will try to make them. It will be a fun learning experience. I do not understand why my teenage son does not want to attempt difficult and obscure baking recipes with his mother over the summer. It's an enigma.
Oh, and Mother's Day. I have a love/hate relationship with this day. I love the idea of it, and it's good when it actually arrives, but the days leading up to it almost make it not worth it. I am a planner. I love to plan. But this. I can't plan this. I can't plan Mother's Day. This year my husband suggested various things like going to visit my parents which sounds nice in theory, but they have a lot going on right now, and I didn't really want to spend so much time in the car trapped with my family...I mean enjoying quality time with my family in an enclosed space. Then he said something about buying me a griddle and exercise equipment. That was a chilly car ride home, let me tell you. Then we have the yearly discussion about how I don't want stuff. I want to not make any decisions. I want to take a nap. I want someone to take all the responsibilities that come with being the MOM off of my shoulders for just a day so that I can just enjoy being the mom. Does that make sense? Like, I get to enjoy dinner without having to cook and clean up after the meal. Thankfully, that's what I got this year. After the great "DON'T GET ME AN APPLIANCE FOR MOTHER'S DAY OR I SWEAR TO GOD I WILL START A HOME IMPROVEMENT PROJECT FOR FATHER'S DAY!" #marriagegoals
So there we are for May. We're winding down school and turning our eyes to summer. Sweet, sweet restful summer full of ice cream, swimming, friends, cookouts, and no school.
And now for the things I can talk about! First, as usual, school. It's May! We're almost done with our school year. Tommy is wrapping up math and a few other assignments. Charlotte is DONE 5th grade. She is a beast with school. Matthew finished 1st grade, learned to read, and is working through his math workbook so we're all set with him. In other words, I'm pretty happy with where we are. Tommy is the one that stresses me. He will always be my guinea pig, and since this is my first year dealing with high school transcripts, it makes me anxious, but we're getting there. We're finishing up our 5th year (3rd year consecutively) of our homeschool group, Classical Conversations, and despite all the kool-aid jokes that people make (okay, that I've made), it continues to be the rails that keep this train from crashing. The Challenge classes (middle and high school) don't allow for as much flexibility, but at this level, I don't really want that much flexibility. I appreciate the deadlines and rigor that make us do the things we have to do. Plus it makes me enjoy my summer because I don't have the "we really should catch up on..." hanging over my head. We're very close to being in Summer Mode.
Speaking of summer, what is our summer going to look like this year? Well, it's going to be a mix of chaos and calm. Jon has another work trip coming so he'll be gone for part of the summer. I have my tutor training. The kids are signed up in different camps. Guitar lessons will continue. I'm going away for a weekend in Charlotte with my friend for our annual HOPLAWE. Oh, and that little trip I'm taking in July to France. You know, just that. No big deal. With all that, we've got a lot going on, BUT otherwise we'll be spending a lot of time at the pool. Last summer we never got a pool membership, and I missed it. This year, we made the pool our summer thing so we're going all. the. time. The kids will be sick of the pool by July, and I will still make them go. Because summer.
Charlotte and I have a particular goal for this summer as well. We're going to work our way through The Great British Bake Off technical challenges. No, we are not great bakers. I lost my baking mojo a few years ago and never quite got it back, but that's not going to stop us. If you haven't watched this show, go watch it on Netflix. Hulu? I think Netflix. One of those. Anyway, it's British people speaking with their British accents as they bake in a giant tent in the middle of a garden. Everyone is lovely and polite. It's like therapy. I'm going to try to get Tommy and Matthew to help, but when I asked Tommy about it, he said, "But...I don't know how to bake." No, honey. None of us really know how to make these recipes. I can't even pronounce some of them. But we will try to make them. It will be a fun learning experience. I do not understand why my teenage son does not want to attempt difficult and obscure baking recipes with his mother over the summer. It's an enigma.
Oh, and Mother's Day. I have a love/hate relationship with this day. I love the idea of it, and it's good when it actually arrives, but the days leading up to it almost make it not worth it. I am a planner. I love to plan. But this. I can't plan this. I can't plan Mother's Day. This year my husband suggested various things like going to visit my parents which sounds nice in theory, but they have a lot going on right now, and I didn't really want to spend so much time in the car trapped with my family...I mean enjoying quality time with my family in an enclosed space. Then he said something about buying me a griddle and exercise equipment. That was a chilly car ride home, let me tell you. Then we have the yearly discussion about how I don't want stuff. I want to not make any decisions. I want to take a nap. I want someone to take all the responsibilities that come with being the MOM off of my shoulders for just a day so that I can just enjoy being the mom. Does that make sense? Like, I get to enjoy dinner without having to cook and clean up after the meal. Thankfully, that's what I got this year. After the great "DON'T GET ME AN APPLIANCE FOR MOTHER'S DAY OR I SWEAR TO GOD I WILL START A HOME IMPROVEMENT PROJECT FOR FATHER'S DAY!" #marriagegoals
So there we are for May. We're winding down school and turning our eyes to summer. Sweet, sweet restful summer full of ice cream, swimming, friends, cookouts, and no school.
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