Sweet Summertime!

Posted on by Heather

Ahhhhhh…can you feel it? The sweet relief that is summer vacation in the world of students and teachers everywhere? Today marks day one of my summer as a mostly stay-at-home mom, something I know I’m very lucky, and also very grateful, to get to do as a teacher. It didn’t really sink in what a sense of relief I’m feeling after a pretty busy and stressful school year until about a half hour ago. I laid my toddler down for a nap, started filing through my mental to-do lists to decide what to work on first, when it hit me: I didn’t absolutely need to do anything. Say what?! Sure, is there cleaning I could do, or a home project I could tackle? Certainly. But it just dawned on me that for the first time in ten months, I could use nap time as “me” time instead of work time and not even feel guilty about it. So what did I decide to do? I grabbed myself a glass of water, put on the Netflix, kicked back on the chaise lounge, and decided to write a post for you fine folks 🙂

I’ve been looking forward to this summer for a while now because my daughter, who will be 18 months next week, is at a great age for us to do tons of fun stuff. We’re down to one nap a day, leaving the house requires a lot less “stuff”, and she’s so much more active and into things this summer. So I’ve decided to take some awesome ideas for summer fun schedules and adapt them to make a plan to ensure I capitalize on my chance to spend time with my girl this summer. My control-freak self may or may not have already created a calendar for the rest of this month with a plan for each day’s activity. Here’s what our summer will look like:

Make something Mondays – Thanks to the plethora of creative ideas available on Pinterest, I’ve already got a ton of ideas for toddler-friendly art projects and crafts. Here’s to letting baby girl get a little messy this summer!

Time to Read Tuesdays – I’m hoping to visit a few local libraries to participate in programs like story hours and 1000 Books Before Kindergarten. I’m lucky to have a little girl who loves books, and as a teacher I see every day the importance of literacy, so I’m hoping to build that love of reading in my daughter right from the start.

Water Fun Wednesday – I was a little hesitant to commit to a day per week of water play, but you know what? At a year and a half water fun can just be a bucket of water with lots of cups and sponges to play with. If my procrastination hasn’t hurt me too badly, I’m hoping to still get us signed up for some local parent-tot swim lessons. We’ll see…

Thoughtful Thursday – I know at this point it’ll mostly be me coming up with and doing the thoughtful things, but in an effort to raise a kind and grateful kiddo, I figured it can only help to let her at least see or take part in doing things for others. On the agenda for this week is to make a Father’s Day gift for Daddy!

Something Fun Friday – This will be me wildcard day. “Something fun” can be any number of things (trips to the park, bubbles outside,a trip to the zoo, a visit to Grandma and Grandpa’s or Oma and Opa’s, a shopping trip with Mama…).

And although all work and no play makes Heather a dull girl….it’s not realistic for me to not plan to get a little something done in between the fun. I’ve also created a daily/weekly chore chart to hopefully help keep me productive and off the couch. Got my chore chart here, and posted it on the fridge next to our calendar o’ fun.

AND because being mama and cleaning the house could never be the only things I had to do, this summer I’ll be in and out of work here there unpacking/organizing my new classroom and getting ready for my return to middle school. Fourth grade’s been fun, but a new adventure awaits back in 7th and 8th grade. Check back for updates on the summer adventures of this teacher mom. Thanks for reading!

Hello, blogging world!

Posted on by Heather

Welcome, and thank you for taking time out of your busy day to entertain the idea that my blog could be worth reading! Yay you! 🙂

In case you have stumbled upon this blog unwittingly and we haven’t ever met, allow me to introduce myself. I’m Heather, a woman of many hats…mom, wife, teacher, and all of the subcategories branching out from each of those titles. And that’s really why I decided to begin this blog. Upon becoming a mom for the first time in December 2013, I joined the ranks of parents everywhere performing the balancing act that is modern day family life. Every day, I feel like I’m trying to fit 48 hours worth of tasks into 24 hours. Taking care of a toddler, making meals, cleaning, working, running errands, making phone calls, grading papers, planning lessons…and yes, I think the to-do list should also include just playing, snuggling, resting, and recharging. So I started to picture my life looking like an ever-growing web of roles that each continue to branch off into more tasks and responsibilities.

Before I had my daughter, I never thought I’d have a hard time being a working mom (sidenote: What’s with that term? Aren’t all moms “working” moms? I’ve yet to meet a mom who spends all day every day on her couch, being waited on hand and foot. So from here on out, if I’m using the term “working mom”, please just know I acknowledge all moms as hardworking individuals, whether you work in or outside of the home).

Anyway…before I became a parent I had never questioned the idea that I would work outside of the home as a mom. In fact, in my extremely naive high school and early college days, I thought I needed to be a working mom, because to not do so would be so boring. Ha! The minute I knew I was going to actually be a parent, my whole tune changed. I have cried on my way to work many a morning when my daughter refused to say goodbye to me, or on days where I knew I would go nearly 24 hours without seeing her because of late work obligations like parent-teacher conferences or special events. I’ve felt how quickly three hours of “family” time can fly by between work and bedtime when it also includes making and cleaning up after dinner, bath time, making lunches, taking or making phone calls, and generally maintaining a home.

Similarly, I’ve felt the professional challenges of being a working mom. In my first years of teaching, when I lived on my own and had few after-work obligations, I enjoyed spending my evenings planning lessons, grading papers, and keeping up with emails. My to-do lists were shorter because I had more time to keep up with things. My lessons were planned weeks in advance, I was constantly testing out new strategies and ideas, and I had time for the cutesy, crafty stuff. Now, my to-be-corrected piles are half a foot high, and most evenings, despite my best intentions at 3:30 in the afternoon, I’m too exhausted at 8:00pm to do any of the work I’ve brought home.

So as easy as it would be to solve this disproportionate time-to-tasks ratio by either quitting my job or hiring a full-time housekeeper, neither of those options is feasible for me or my family. Thus, the blog. My hope is that reflecting upon the ups and downs of both parenting and teaching will allow me to problem-solve those challenges which hinder my pursuit of happiness, while also forcing me to acknowledge the enjoyment that each of my many “hats” gives me.

I’m definitely new to this blogging thing, and most days I feel like I’m totally winging it as I stumble my way through parenthood. And even after seven years of experience, I still consider myself to be a rookie teacher who learns something new every day. But you know what? I’ve done good things both at home and at work, and I want to find a way not to lose those moments in the shuffle of being a busy working mom/wife/teacher/daughter/friend/etc. So I’m looking forward to this attempt share the learning, living, and loving I get to do every day, and maybe I’ll get to grow in the process.