Goodbye Summer 'Cation

Summer vacation. Sleeping in, playing in the yard, bike rides, trips to Grandma and Nonni's house, Ollie's custard, endless hours of TV. What is not to love?

Last May, I worried that Nora was going to be upset about summer vacation. She loved her school and her teachers, so I made sure to gently remind her that school would stop for a while but she would return in the fall. In typical Nora fashion, she ignored me until pick-up time on the last day. She became a little confused that we took stuff home that was supposed to stay at school, and again I explained that she wouldn't be going to school because she was on summer vacation. As she peddled her little Princess bike home she stopped, turned to me and asked, "What is summer 'cation?". I explained (again), "Summer vacation means you stay at home. There's no school until September". Her eyes got REALLY big. "So I don't have to get up early and get dressed?" "Nope". "So I can stay at home with you and Emmy?" "Yep". "I LOVE SUMMER 'CATION!"

I had absolutely nothing to worry about. In fact, for the first few days of 'cation, Nora was walking on air. I got to relive that initial rush of freedom, the joy of having nothing in particular to do, the laziness of just watching one day roll into the next. We did a lot of the things I used to do on summer vacation, including going to the park and playing on the swings. We ate a lot of PB&J. Everyday we went for a walk and learned the names of the flowers in our neighborhood. Nora and Emily both learned how to work in the garden, picking berries, pulling weeds. Once in a while we got ice-cream and other treats. Getting dressed (for the girls) was for the most part optional. Luckily the weather was cool, so there wasn't a single dog day of heat and sweat. Just sweet breezes, lots of rain, and rainy day movies.

Well, September is here. The days are getting shorter and the nights are getting cooler. The Coneflowers and Black-eyed Susans are beginning to brown, and there's even a tinge of red on some of the leaves of the local Sugar Maples. 'Cation is coming to an end. I hope Nora enjoyed it. A first summer vacation is a pretty special thing. While I don't know how much she will remember, I'm glad that I had chance to share this time with her. She is still young enough to want to spend time with her mom, and it was time well spent.