Summer and the End of an Era

Tomorrow is the last day of school and I'm distracted by the flow of emotions I'm experiencing.  My oldest, Kyle, is moving on to middle school and I'm about to have a heart attack coming to the reality of my little baby boy going into middle school and becoming one of those tweenagers (sic) I've lumped together in the "punk" category.  How can it be the little baby we were so overjoyed to have, who I sang "Puff the Magic Dragon" to until the wee hours of the night, who put the word "sha" after every words (Mommy-sha, Daddy-sha, bubble-sah, you get the drift) is bigger enough to sit me on his lap?

The end of the school year also brings such a sense of joy in my world.  My family is a bunch of sleeper-inners, so summer means no more dragging my boys out of bed and dealing with intense grumpiness (mine more so than theirs).  Pools, sunshine and friends.  Vacations and beaches.  Happy!

Summer is also the time when I need to be more diligent than ever to fine a way to find structure and discipline.  Chore charts and journals are just about finished to keep the kids more involved and less off the TV.  We'll see how it works.

In the meantime, tomorrow is the last day of school with an awards ceremony for the older grades and then the final walk down the halls for the 5th graders.  I will be a basket case and have asked my husband to take the day off to keep me standing.  It's not that I don't think Kyle will rock middle school, in fact quite the opposite.  Kyle is a fantastic kid with lots of friends and a great confidence I wish I had in middle school.  He makes me proud and I love him to bits.  Moving on to middle school is just a reminder to me of how fast children grow.  Time is flying and I need more reminders to take time to enjoy the moment.

The summer will kick off with a pizza party and outdoor movie with neighbors tomorrow night.  Can't wait!