We received another email survey about school re-opening from the superintendent this week. I dutifully opened it, read it, and then just as quickly closed it. My brain just shut down. Michelle and I have been debating our answers for the last four days. There’s no simple, easy, or right answer to the school question.
It was a stark reminder that being a parent is the hardest job. No training. No pay. Responsibilities that are never easily defined and always changing. So what do you do? I have no idea and that’s also parenting. The best you can do is be adaptable. Be ready to respond to a an unending, ever-changing flow of complicated circumstances. And keep the wine fridge stocked.
Pre-pandemic we would have been driving north for our PEI vacation. Instead, we are spending a week on the Cape. I know, given all the circumstances in the world, tiny, tiny violins.
We started the day with some seriously haphazard packing. Keen-eyed readers will note we did not miss packing the wine or the high-speed blender for the boat drinks.
Back to back weekends of driving and the girls’ bluetooth headphones have paid for themselves. There are only so many times I can listen to Watermelon Sugar.
They immediately hit the beach and made friends. And it became clear that, despite constant reminders, social distancing at school is going to be a challenge. They are kids and they are going to act like kids. It did give us a couple of hours of peace on the beach.
Since the annual July 4th cheeseball bonanza didn’t happen this year, we cracked the big canister for vacation week. Ally couldn’t have been happier.
She was also allowed one juice box since it was low tide and she could run straight out onto the mudflats for a mile without drowning.
I need to make an album of all the Cece and Ally selfies they’ve taken when we leave our phones unattended.
Another milestone checked: they are old enough to return their own kayaks to the rack.
Mudflats find: a massive sea snail. How can they be totally fine picking this up but a tiny spider in our basement sends them screaming upstairs into the office?
Easing into vacation cooking with some take out fish tacos for dinner.
Who had Day 1 in the Ally-wants-a-beach-fire-and-s’mores pool? You’re the big winner.
It’s a hard job. There’s no pay. No promotions. You can’t quit. But it’s worth it. Most of the time.
