She told me I could be anything I wanted when I grew up. Joked a few times about being a lawyer because of my love of arguing, rolled her eyes and said I should be on stage when I was overly dramatic. I could be anything that I wanted, but “why don’t you think about education, ” she said over and over again.
“You like kids. You’d be good at it. And you’d have summers off.”
Sigh. I should have listened.
It’s officially summer. And every day I leave for work to go sit in my office with the space heater aimed at my feet, (Note to building maintenance: 64 degrees is not comfortable) while my husband and my daughter spend hours together going for walks, hanging out with his family and swimming in the pool.
Yes, Craig still goes to the school in the morning for weight room supervision and football workouts, but he’s home by mid-morning. Even on busy days he spends time with the babe at lunch and then again after her afternoon nap. I come home to find them both damp from their recent dip in the pool. Smiling and happy at having been outside playing together. Making memories. Bonding.
I love that they get this time together. Without my hoovering and barking out orders and enforcing naptime. But at the same time I am jeaous. Of her, that she gets his undivided attention. (And that she gets to take naps twice a day.) And of him for getting more than two or three hours a day with his baby girl.
So, for me, summers are much like the other nine months of the year. Hustle to the office for meetings, phone calls and deadlines. Slow down a little on weekends for early morning walks, short naps by the pool and lots of cooking on the grill. But (at least until C graduates from high school) for the rest of the family, summers will be full of lazy days, fun (and not so fun) projects, swimming and losing track of time.
What does summer mean to you?
This post was inspired by writing prompt #5 (what does summer mean to your family?) by Mama Kat.
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{ 10 comments }
I’m sorry you are jealous, that has be to hard to see. My mom was a teacher and always said how it’s a great career for moms. BUT, I know that wouldn’t have made me happy, jobwise. No matter the freedom of the summer. You gotta do what you love, and for you it wasn’t teaching.
As a teacher, yes, you can’t beat the work schedule, especially for a mom. But it’s not a job you can go into for the schedule. It’s freaking hard and I’m one of those people who really believes that as long as you’re happy in your job, then you’re probably a better mom for it. If you weren’t happy (even if it was with the teaching schedule) then you’d bring that home with you.
And think about how lucky your daughter is to be spending so much quality time with her daddy – most kids never get that!
Aww, I know the feeling, I get that way even if my husband as A DAY off with the babe. Just enjoy the time you DO get as much as you can! Soak up every minute of it (even if there aren’t enough, dammit
).
Lisa
Are you my long lost double? I swear I could have written the exact.same.thing. My hubs is a teacher and I get so jealous of the time he gets to spend with our monster. However, there is no STINKING way I could be a stay at home mom or a teacher.
Also, I have a heater at my feet in my office too. Miserable.
I get it. I waver going back to teaching because of the work and stress it entails during the year, but I do love the kids and I really love the summers.
I’m sorry – it’s not a fun thing to come home to that when your day blows. ((hugs))
I think my hubby is jealous of me getting to stay at home with our little one. he complains to me that i sit in the air conditioning all day and he is in the heat working. so i think his problem is that he is jealous of the bond im forming with our son. im sorry that you have to work during the day hours when you could be at home with your child. its hard i know i used to work during the summers and i hated it.
Side note: I always remember when I worked that the offices were always freezing – especially during summer! What’s up with that?!!
I feel for you and coming home to that…it’s gotta be hard
As I type this, I am sitting at my desk in my office with the heater scortching my toes. Every woman in my family is a teacher. I deliberately didn’t go in to education just to prove that I could be different. Oh, how I wish that I wasn’t so dang rebellious. I think I would have been great at it! So, I feel your pain…I often get jealous of my teacher friends.
Oh I know that feeling. My youngest gets to stay with my mom all day…and swim, and go to the library, and shopping. *sigh* and he gets to nap for 3 hours!
Nicely said… and at least when you DO get home in the summer, you’re not having to get them to finish homework and such… Just RELAX! ((HUGS))
Hey maintenance dude!! FIX THAT! Her feet are COLD!!
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