This is the first year where "summer vacation" actually means a break from the usual. Since .5 of the kids were in school, there is a definite change coming to our routine.
I'm not scared.
Well, not much.
And because I'm insane, I made a few things to prepare:
A) vintage-cute dresses.
Once they find an outfit they like, they wear it every day until I make them throw it in the laundry, so I'm just trying to have less laundry here.
I used a pattern and I even re-learned how to sew on a curve (and how to use elastic to make gathers and how to use bias tape to finish a seam real nice). The pattern is Simplicity 8101 and it coordinates with the adult Simplicity 1080 by the insanely-popular-in-the-maker-world Dottie Angel bloggess.
B) summer books.
Mostly to keep them out of my room at the crack of dawn, I grabbed a couple Moleskine journals, wrote the date on the top of each page, and gave them writing prompts for each day. Too young to read and write? DON'T CARE. DO IT ANYWAYS. (Zoo mostly reads and can write if you tell her how to spell everything, so we're pretty set, but TEAMWORK).
There's also Math Mondays, where they get a number (up to 10,000) and then V (2nd grade) does this:
- write the number
- draw the number
- add 3
- add 25
- subtract 5
- subtract 17
- write the next 3 even numbers
- write the next 3 odd numbers
or this happens (K or preschool set) with little numbers:
- write it
- draw it
- count to it
- add 1
- subtract 1
- add 2
- subtract 2
- count backward from it
And there's "Lettersday" (say it with a Scottish accent, and it totally makes sense) on Thursday where they write a letter to someone.
Their chores written out as well.
With all that, I'm pretty sure they won't get stupider over the break.
And that should give me 20 minutes of sleep, right?