I had this fantasy that once school was out for the summer, we'd have lazy days. Days where there was nothing to do but plenty of options. Should we go to the beach today to look for treasure? Should we go the the California Academy of Science to use our membership that we never seem to use because it's always too crowded on the weekends? Should we go for a hike and a picnic? Instead, life this week feels an awful lot like the rest of the year: busy, driving, drop-offs and pick-ups, rushing, getting there just in time, etc. I suppose that's my fault, since I'm the one who signed Arjun up for camp this week. But, it was the only week of Lego camp that we could attend this summer and so here we are.
On Monday, I dropped Arjun off at camp and then Soraya off at preschool. I came home, cleaned up breakfast, made a shopping list and went to the grocery store. I got the shopping done, came home and put the groceries away. Then it was time to pick up Arjun. Arjun and I grabbed a quick bagel for lunch and then picked up Soraya. We made it home just time time to meet Maria, the woman who cleans our house every other week. We try to stay out of her way as best we can. I made a chicken pot pie for dinner, fed the kids, and got them cleaned up. Gurmeet came home just as they were getting out of the bath and shower. I wish I could find the time for them to bathe more often, but it just doesn't seem to happen. It's also stressful for me to bathe them. If they bathe together, it's a crazy wet mess and I find myself fuming with impatience. Arjun likes to take showers now, which is a great weight lifted off me. Soraya takes her bath and it's generally pretty peaceful. But they bathe at the same time, which means running from one bathroom to the next, turning on the water for Arjun, coming to wash Soraya, wash and condition her hair (since it's usually full of knots and food), running to shut off the water for Arjun and then getting Soraya out and drying her off. Then they usually run around like crazy nudists until I can wrangle toothbrushes around their teeth and separate them long enough to get their jammies on. My kids love each other like magnets at night and it's hard to pull them apart to get them to make progress at bedtime.
Tuesday was busier than Monday! Camp in the morning, to the farm to check for eggs (none), home to meet some friends we haven't seen in months, off to pick up Arjun and his friend from camp, another friendly visit from a friend who wanted to borrow a cookbook and see the garden, then to the library to return books and finally to Aikido.
Wednesday was our 8th wedding anniversary. We've been together for over 12 years now, so it feels longer, but also like it happened yesterday. It's strange how I've only been married with kids for just over 6 years, but I can't remember life before that. I'm not sure about Gurmeet, but I had a really difficult time thinking of an appropriate gift for him. I wanted to give him something significant, but not necessarily expensive. I guess after 12 years of being together, we're on the same wavelength, because this is what I got for him:
And this is what he got for me:
Gurmeet went to work late so we could have a peaceful, child-free breakfast. While I was dropping Arjun off at camp, he had dropped Soraya off at school and picked up croissants for us. Then he came home, started a pot of coffee and did the dishes! What a guy! After our breakfast, we exchanged gifts and he went to work. I did some errands until it was time to pick Soraya up at school. Arjun went to Fynn's house to play. At 2:30, I picked him up and we headed home to meet a guy from a tree trimming service. Our view just isn't what it was a few months ago.
That night, my friend Gina came over with her 3 yr old daughter Violet to babysit while Gurmeet and I went on a real date! We ate at Marinitas, a new Mexican restaurant in town. We felt the menu was too limited and the food was nothing special. Then we went to see The Hangover. What a funny movie! We laughed out loud the whole way through. I picked a comedy because we notice that our marriage is stronger when we're laughing a lot. We've been laughing a lot lately, especially at all these Digital Shorts that Adam Samberg does for Saturday Night Live.
On Thursday, Arjun had camp and Soraya stayed home with me. We had Aikido in the afternoon and then I gave the kids dinner and bathed them right as Gurmeet came home. I can't even remember what we did other than that. Maybe it was the heat, but all I know is that those kids were in rare form. Screaming, fighting, not listening, whining, sassing. I was wondering if I perhaps should have signed Arjun up for a longer, more active camp. Or one that runs all summer! I went to meet some friends for dinner and Gurmeet stayed and put the kids to bed. When I got home, I asked him how bedtime went. His response: "Those kids were WILD." Amen.
Today is Friday and I've got one at his last day at Lego camp, and one at preschool. I spent the morning researching new preschools. I learned while dropping off Soraya, that the teachers at her school have had it with the administration of the Seminary and are leaving as of August 15th. It's a long story, but the Board of Trustees want to sell the preschool and have been giving everyone, including the parents of the preschoolers and the teachers, the runaround since the beginning of May. The teachers have been treated really poorly and disrespectfully, and have decided to leave. I don't blame them, but it puts us in a bind to find a new preschool by the end of the summer. I'm registered for a course on Organic Farming that starts in August and without preschool, I won't be able to go. It's not the end of the world, of course. I'm more concerned because Soraya is already reticent about attending school and switching her AGAIN is certainly not the best thing for her. We will figure it out though. My course may have to wait another year, and Soraya may spend another year at home with me. All I really want for her is to make a few friends. Unfortunately, all the kids her age are in preschool!
This weekend we've got Aikido on Saturday morning, as well as errands. Sunday is Father's Day and we have plans to meet our friends for breakfast at the Dipsea Cafe, our favorite breakfast place. And then Monday, it all starts again... more camp, more preschool, more summer.
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