Summer School

Lately, KJ has been asking when the last day of school is.   I don't  know where he heard the idea that school has a last day, but somehow, he knows and he's asking about it. 

Since "school" for him means daycare, the answer is never.  But I've found that "never" is a hard answer to give.  First of all, it is hard to explain to a three year old that he goes to a different kind of school, the kind that doesn't have a "last day."  And it's even harder for me as a mom to think about what that means for my kids.  My kids will never have the kind of summer I had growing up.  They will never have the chance to sleep in as long as they would like.  They will never spend entire days riding their bikes with their friends or spending long afternoons at the pool.  They can't even take normal swimming lessons because I can't not be at work from 10:30-11:15 for two weeks straight.  The fact is, because both Husband and I work, our children will always be enrolled in some sort of day camp or structured summer care.  And that is going to suck. 

I hate that my kids won't ever have a lazy summer.  That they won't ever get to sleep in past 6.  And I hate to think about them being stuck in summer camp.  I remember seeing summer camp kids at the pool when I was growing up.  It didn't look like that much fun.   I tell myself there has to be another alternative, but I don't know what it might be.  With Husband's aversion to nannies, I don't know that other options exist.  Who watches your kids during the summer months?  Do you hire an au pair or a nanny?  Is summer camp really fun?  Or are you secretly hoping that your district goes to year-round school before you are faced with the problem? 

Karen