Yesterday, I attended orientation at our school and every mom that I spoke to was asking the same question..."Where did the summer go?" Many of us moms had started the summer apprehensively, armed with our lists and plans for a full summer, yet there we were, one week from school starting and wondering how the summer had passed so quickly.
It made me spend some time reflecting on how our family had spent our summer. Like many moms this year, I spent hours creating our "Summer Bucket List" and planning crafts and activities before the summer even began. Let's just say...OVER AMBITIOUS. I mean, I had even planned to make solar ovens out of pizza boxes and make glow-in-the-dark chalk and slime. (Seriously, during the summer in Florida it gets dark after 9 and we are totally in bed by then. What was I thinking?)
In reality, we had a busy summer but every day wasn't filled with crafts and activities like I had planned. Even though we did many fun things on our bucket list, honestly, there were many more days this summer where we were just a family trying to get through the day. There were days when the boys watched too much TV and there were times when I spent more hours correcting poor behavior than I spent encouraging good behavior. There were times where facing another summer day with four boys seemed impossible. And, there were days when quiet time became mandatory for everyone under 35 years of age.
Summer days for our family are like any other day in our home. It's survival with a purpose. Yes I said it...survival. Let's face it, when you wake up each morning with six different personalities, you never know which way the day is going to go. The character-building opportunities that are presented before breakfast in our family are more than some families experience in a whole day. But, the difference is that there is a purpose that guides our daily survival. My job is to raise young men that love God and love others. Sometimes that purpose gets buried under the mundane daily tasks of a big family, but it is the underlying heartbeat of our family.
When I thought about it today, I realized that my "Summer Bucket List" could not dictate the activities of our summer because what we learned this summer could not have been anticipated. I learned that one of my son's loves to dance and I learned that my boys love to jump on the trampoline in the rain. I found out that my boys enjoy card games and are not too old for "Go Fish" and "Old Maid." I found out that my two youngest sons adore each other even though they fight too much. I successfully taught my son's how to handle weekly chores (even though we are still working on doing it without attitude). And, even though my older boys didn't read 20 minutes a day, we found book series that they both love.
So, when it comes down to it, our summer was a success. I feel like our family knows and appreciates each other more and many beautiful memories were made. Our memories may not be documented on paper but they are tangible in our hearts. And, now I know the answer to the question, "Where did the summer go?" It was spent building and loving my boys just like any other day of the year.
