I know it’s not really summer yet, but it feels like it.
The temperatures have hit 80+ degrees, we’ve made a couple of pitchers of iced tea, and our schedule has shifted into that pleasant place where you can find yourself sitting on the porch with a friend and not have to say goodbye at a set time because there’s somewhere else to be.
Our summer isn’t entirely free form. We’ve already finished round one of swim lessons, and are set to start round two Monday. While I don’t find sitting poolside quite as relaxing as it was this time last year, I’m enjoying my little tagalong. I’ve also been blessed to often find myself in the company of a dear friend during the hours spent trying to avoid getting splashed. The combo of a baby to both enjoy and share as well as the fellowship of someone who helps me feel encouraged as a wife, mother, and friend makes my time at the pool precious in a whole new way. I’m not sad that it will be one of my main haunts this summer.
My sweet little Jude will try his hand at violin for the first time this summer. He’s seemed so much bigger since Alice’s arrival (of course) but still, so little in so many ways. He’s excited to pick up the bow; he’s been asking for weeks when it will happen, and I am anticipating his shy grin as he squeaks out his first notes already. I know it’s completely cliche to say that time flies, but it truly does. Birdie began lessons two months before Jude was born. To have him now old enough to start seems a little surreal.
There will be strings camp for John Mark and Birdie as well. They’ve already started in on their music. Personally, I’m glad that both of them are in the same grouping, since thanks to lingering covid precautions they’ve instituted a rotation process that must have some parents of multiple children there all day.
There’s been a lot of reading here. We’re revisiting the classic The Twenty-One Balloons right now in the evenings. Birdie picked up a stack of light reads last week, including the always amusing Ginger Pye. John Mark is blitzing through another ND Wilson series; he’s finished the first two books in under a week, which is a record for him. We also have another child enamored with the I Survived series. Simon discovered them and loves the fact that he can finish one in a long afternoon if he breaks up his creek time with a long stretch of drying off in the sun with book in hand. (All book titles affiliate links.)
We’re also meeting with another family to use the National Bible Bee materials this summer. Neither of us has plans to participate in the Bee as a whole, but the more organized memorization and understanding of Scripture, especially amongst friends, sounded like a fun and meaningful backbone for our summer. We’re starting tomorrow, and the only thing I’m regretting thus far is having opted for the cheaper registration and having to print all of the booklets on my own. Sometimes, it’s just worth the price of having a hard copy shipped to your door.
I put a tiny bit of effort in to making the front porch more hospitable and have been delighted to find that it’s now a main gathering spot throughout the day. Alice and I occupy one of the rockers whenever we can. I enjoy nursing and watching the wind blow the leaves on the trees, or observing one of the nests of birds that has taken up residence. It’s such a sweet, peaceful spot. I even bought myself a small Bluetooth speaker so that I can sing along to some favorite songs while I enjoy my slice of respite. Christopher joins me out there often, and I’m finding that it’s just the right kind of separate to have those slightly deeper conversations with the two adult boys at home this summer. I love how this house has so many little nooks and crannies, and seems to grow larger than it’s small footprint in every season where it’s needed.
I’ve completed the first two quarters of the Cycle 1 Morning Basket Plans to coordinate with CC’s framework next year. The second two quarters are awaiting formatting as time permits over the next two weeks. I’ve set a goal of having them published by June 15, and think it’s reasonable. From there, I suppose it’s on to pulling together a more formal plan for our homeschool as a whole for the 2021/2022 school year, but to be honest, I’m not there yet mentally. I know we’re using Sonlight as well as some other materials to guide us through ancient history. I’m not as pumped for the coming year as I was last summer, but I think that’s ok. I have a lovely diversion going forward that seems more enticing than really getting our hands dirty in the Persian Empire or with rocks and world geography. Watching these people grow, seeing everyone fall in love with Alice in real time, walking alongside our older kids at they make life choices… my plate feels very, very full right now. I’m trying to take slow bites, savoring the flavor of every moment. Summer is such a short, sweet window. I’m not wishing this one away just yet.