The first year we lived here in NC we traveled home to Ohio for both Thanksgiving and Christmas. Needless to say, that 13 hour drive twice in a row like that was brutal. That was the last year we did that! We politely explained to our families that if they wanted to see us on Thanksgiving, they would need to come to us. That is just what they have done for the past seven years.

Our home away from home last Thanksgiving

Each year we rent a beach house on Emerald Isle big enough for everyone…..my parents, Kerry’s parents and our siblings. It is a mini vacation just down the road for us and after the past few weeks we have had…we all needed it more than usual this year. It is a time to sit on the deck, watch the water and take a dip in the hot tub. Throw in my mom doing the cooking and a glass of wine and it is as close to perfect as it can get.

While we plan to move next summer, I am hopeful we can continue our beach house Thanksgivings. Everyone loves them and you can get a great deal on a beautiful house since it is off season. We will hit the road for Christmas and I am already gearing up for that car trip. For now, I am settling back in to our usual schedule with laundry and packing lunches and wishing we were back at the beach again already.

What do you do for the holidays? Any special places you visit?

Friday nights have such a different meaning now that school is back in session.

It seems that on the weekdays, my tween gets home from school, has a snack, works for over an hour on homework and then has soccer practice or a couple hours to play before bed.

Since last week was the first full week of school, I felt so happy when they got home from school on Friday.  Instead of my  typical , “let’s get homework done” phrase, I found myself saying, “let’s play…you guys can do whatever you want to do tonight!”.  Woo-hoo, I felt just as excited as they did.  Toss those backpacks aside for a couple days and lets have some fun!

I even noticed the buzz around the neighborhood, kids were out riding bikes and playing and our backyard was full of tweens.  Ahhh, I think I just like Friday nights.  The kids played outside all night and finished the day off with a fun movie from the Redbox.

I think our tweens need a break just as much as we do sometimes.  With our Saturday’s busy with soccer, I hope that Fridays after school will continue to be fun for the whole family…video games, trampoline, bike rides and dinner in town…that’s what our Friday nights will be this school year.

I think I just might have to say it one more time;

Thank GOODNESS it’s FRIDAY!!

How do you spend Friday night’s with your tween?

Jake and Sam had their first babysitter when they were pretty young. My mom and mother in law watched them a few times for us if we had appointments or wanted a night out. It did not happen often, but we lived two hours from our parents and it worked out well. During Kerry’s second (very long) deployment, I needed someone more frequently so I set out on a quest for that perfect sitter.

Anyone who has a good sitter knows how it feels….you can leave your kids and relax. You know they will be taken care of, kept in line and when you come home your house will still be in one piece. I had never looked for a sitter before, but I had a feeling I would know the right person when I met them. I hit the jackpot after interview #3 and three years after we left Ohio and Kelly, I still miss her

Kelly was a high school junior with younger siblings herself. She took care of the boys as if they were her family. She became part of our family…dinner out, going to watch her boyfriend play lacrosse…..she was my go-to when I had a doctors appointment or just wanted to get groceries in peace. Though we have had good sitters since then, none have compared to her.

Just this past month we had a new sitter with the boys and we all like her a lot. She was even able to handle Jake, Sam and two friends on her own for five hours….not too shabby. I hope, in time, she can come to mean as much to us as Kelly did, but I know those are big shoes to fill. Jake and Sam are the most important things in the world to me and though I don’t expect a sitter to feel the same, it sure is nice when they come close

Do you have a great sitter? Any nightmare stories about one that was not so great?

From some of my earlier posts you know I am a fan of vacations. I like to visit new places and get away from home when we can. Only three weeks out from school and I am already feeling the itch to go somewhere. This time, however, it is not just to get away. I am rewarding myself (and my lucky family) for the hours of work I will be putting in this summer. 

My reward!

I work every summer. I teach classes online and it usually keeps me busy mid June through mid August. This summer, the workload is at a higher level than usual and I made the decision to take some (most) of that hard earned cash and head to Universal for a week. I will have to take my laptop along and work while we are there, but with some time spent getting a little ahead before we go, I know I’ll have plenty of time to hit the pool and see the new Harry Potter attraction. 

I believe that hard work should be rewarded and I want to pass that on to Jake and Sam. That is why I am also making them “earn” their spot on the trip in little ways with an incentive system to bicker less with each other and keep the house a little extra neat before we go. I can only hope it continues once we get back too.  

Do you reward yourself for you hard work as a mom and employee? What do you like to do?

	The Go-Go’s – Vacation .mp3
	Found at bee mp3 search engine

Last week I blogged about making sure the boys and I had plenty of downtime this summer. I made sure to not over schedule Jake and Sam with sports and clubs and activities galore. That is all still working out just great, but somehow my calendar keeps filling up with things to keep me busy June-September!

I teach at St. Anne’s but I also teach online courses for teachers. It has always been 1-3 courses at a time with a nice break of 3-4 weeks between sessions. Crazy me thought I would reach out to some other organizations about teaching for them and what do you know…two of them contacted me at the same time about work this summer. I am very excited for the opportunity but it means my summer will be spent online during any and all free time.

I love teaching and the online courses work great since I can work from home when the boys are busy or in bed. The downside it my PC is attached at my hip when we do things like head to Ohio to see family or like now, as I sit outside watching the boys in the sprinkler. I know I am fortunate to be able to work in my PJs or on my patio while the boys play, but it means no real days off. Each day there is at least something that will need to get done.

I can rest easy that Jake and Sam will get their carefree summer….it just so happens that now their mom will have to work a little more while she watches them chill out. Maybe I’ll squeeze in my vacation in October!

In the meantime, enjoy the most excellent sounds of the Go-Go’s and dream on about your vacation!

Is your summer more hectic than your tween’s? Any plans for some downtime?