Summer Is Almost Here...

but I'm not sure the living will be easy.  It's my first summer since the Baby (who will now need to be referred to as the Youngest or K-Kid) was born that I'm working full-time again.  Such a different type of life since my last summer of full-time employment.  Back then, the Oldest was just old enough to not go to camp, while MidKid went reluctantly.  Hubby worked days.  And I had a color-coded schedule to make sure I had childcare coverage and someone scheduled to pick them up and drop them off.  Of course, that person was usually me....

Working part-time since then and Hubby working second shift, the kids had a parent home all the time.  They were able to have the type of summer I remembered... afternoons at the beach or the park, going to the library on the hottest days to reveal in the coolness of the Children's Room, running through a sprinkler in the backyard and staining their faces with popsicles.

Now, with the Youngest about to enter kindergarten, MidKid going into his last year of middle school, and the Oldest looking forward to his senior year, we only have a week or two of camp scheduled for MidKid, while the Oldest will be working full-time during the week.  Luckily, this full-time gig comes with a perk - shortened summer hours.  A 6-hour day is considered a full day when school isn't in session for those of us who work year-round in the office.  That, coupled with Hubby still working second shift, will hopefully allow more afternoons full of beach- and playground-time and melting popsicles in the backyard.

So, what are your summer plans, particularly for those of you juggling work and childcare?  Do you look forward to summer, or is there a part of you that yearns for the scheduled world of the school year?