Monthly Archives: July 2012

I thought that dropping Ishaan off at camp this year would be easier for me than it was last year. I guess in some ways it was since I knew what to expect in terms of registration, meeting the Chiefs, and other administrative details. It was easier because it is Ishaan’s second year and I don’t have to worry about whether or not he will have a great time.

It was easier for a lot of reasons, but then why do I have a horrible sad anxious feeling deep inside. Why am I pacing around wondering what to do with myself? I guess dropping him off for two weeks of wilderness camp will never be easy, but hopefully each year will be just a little bit easier.

An amazing thing happened at drop off- we ran into two old friends from New York. Both of their boys were going to the same session and none of us knew it. One of them still lives in NYC and the other moved away shortly after we did so it was pretty neat for the boys to all see each other, completely unexpectedly, again.

I know from last year that I shouldn’t expect much in the way of letter writing and since there is no phone communication, once again I will have to wait unit he gets back to hear about it. Two weeks without talking to my boy seems like forever!

Andy took the girls on a father-daughter camping trip with some others dads and daughters from our church so he wasn’t around to take Ishaan. He was disappointed  that he would miss out on going to Deerfoot but it was important to have that special time with Ulka and Ila. They were so excited about the weekend- it was so sweet to watch them pack up their backpacks and giggle excitedly about how much fun it was going to be.

So yesterday we dropped Andy and the girls off to meet the van and everyone said their goodbyes there.

Andy’s mom babysit Kairav for a couple of hours so that I could take Ish out on a date to pick up the few things he needed for camp and go out for dinner . It was such a sweet time with my amazing boy.  Now the count down begins until we have him home again!

Well, there is no doubt about it. Summer is in full swing here in the northeast. Temperatures consistently in the high 80s and low 90s and no rain.

I’m still here and I’m still not blogging regularly, but I am flossing so that’s a good thing. Our summer days are just as they should be- hazy, lazy, and full of fun. Sometimes I feel like we need to have more of a routine and rhythm to our summer days but then I think of the planning and scheduling I have to do during the school year and I quickly abandon that idea. Perhaps our days would be a little better if I planned more, but I just can’t bring myself to do it. I try to do one fun activity everyday and anything more than that is a bonus.

I have been trying to remember what my summers were like as a kid. I know they were tons of fun but I can’t really remember what exactly I did. I swam a lot in my friend’s pool, went to the beach, biked to the playground, and just did a whole of nothing. I think that is probably why they were so much fun. The lack of structure and the permission to laze around is part of what summer is all about. Andy sometimes has to remind me of this when I say to the kids “come on, do SOMETHING!”  He’s right, it’s summer and it’s ok if they do nothing sometimes.

I’ve certainly relaxed this summer. I find myself sitting during the day! Actually sitting down, relaxing, and not doing much of anything. That can be a hard thing for me. I have trouble sitting still and not being productive. I do have to interrupt my idleness with spates of weeding here and there, hanging out some laundry, trying to stay on top of the house work, and attempting to throw together some meals, but I’ve slowed down a whole lot, and I have to admit- It feels great.

So what have we been up to? We started the summer with a surprise trip to Boston. We don’t go away often and it was a real treat for everyone. I love to surprise the kids, so we didn’t tell them anything until the morning we were leaving. The night before we left,  we packed their bags and backpacks and brought them downstairs. We had put together a sort of scavenger hunt of places and landmarks they had to find in Boston and put them, along with $10 each for spending money, in envelopes next to their breakfast plates.

They were wonderfully excited and it was such fun to watch their little faces light up as they figured it out. Kairav was just excited about the new water bottle with a straw at his place.

Through the kindness and connections of someone else, we got a great deal on a hotel right off the Commons! It was a super nice place and we had a suite, so we were completely spoiled. We haven’t stayed in a hotel since my brother’s wedding 4 years ago so it was new and exciting and the kids thought it was pretty much the best thing ever. Even though the hotel was nice enough to just lounge in all day, we did lots of other stuff too.

I lived in Boston when I was in graduate school, but I was so busy that I hardly left my little corner where my apartment and campus were so I had a lot to see too.

We also took a short trip to Plattsburgh while my aunt was visiting from England. I love Plattsburgh in the summer and we spent one day at Rouses Point Beach.

My (not so little anymore) brother and his wife and sweet baby came back East from California to visit and stayed with us for a night on their way between Plattsburgh and PA.

It was Lulu’s birthday and we had the honor of celebrating with her!

I miss them terribly and don’t get to see them nearly as much as I would like to.

I went ahead and invested in the season pass for our local town park pool.  It really is a wonderful place and the kids love it. I can take the kids in the early afternoon before naps and then we can go back in the evening with Andy- I feel pretty spoiled really.

There is a great big kiddie pool perfect for Kairav and Ila, an Olympic pool that sectioned off for laps and free swim where Ishaan and Ulka are safe to play, and a diving pool, plus super cool fountains for the little ones. Sometimes I wish we could just spend our days at a creek or a lake but this is five minutes away and very easy and honestly with 4 kids under 10 close and easy are big pluses.

Other than that our days have been mellow. A bit of hiking,

some berry picking,

track meets,

spending time with friends, gardening,

and a lot of biking riding up and down the street since Ila learned to ride without training wheels!

What have you been up to this summer?