I asked myself this morning why there aren’t more end of the school year checklists. And then I remembered why. It’s because the checklists for the beginning of the school year lied to us. They told us we could be perfect and we bought into it.
We were so hopeful and naive all those months ago, weren’t we? Yes – we would pack lunches filled with nutritious foods cut in the shapes of unicorns and fire trucks. Yes – our kids would have perfect hair every morning. Yes – we would have a homework station made out of repurposed shoeboxes and Martha Stewart washi tape.
Knowing what I know now, I’m sharing with you my end of the school year (reality) checklist. I hope it helps moms everywhere succeed wildly at being completely and utterly perfect.
1. I will handcraft an end of the year teacher’s gift. Thank you, Pinterest.
(Reality: I will buy several things at the Dollar Tree, probably with apples all over them, and ask my kids 41 times to print their names on a card I force them to make out of construction paper.)
(Grab my free printable for your favorite teacher. Add a frame and you’re good to go.
2. For the end of the school year party, I will make cupcakes with icing piped with fancy Wilton frosting tips in the school’s colors.
(Reality: I will run in the grocery store exactly 15 minutes before the school party and buy the only cupcakes they have. If they’re out of cupcakes, I will buy 4 bags of apples and tell the teacher I chose these instead because I don’t think kids should have so much sugar. )
3. I will print a summer bucket list and explain to my kids, in great detail, how wonderful our summer is going to be.
(Reality: We will go to the pool, the park, maybe get to the library a few times, and I will buy them bubbles for the backyard. Bucket list complete.)
4. Hanging on the refrigerator will be a summer reading list with a well thought out list of rewards the kids can earn for all books they are going to read.
(Reality: They will earn rewards for 1 week and 4 days and then ask me if they still get “a prize” for listening to the book being read online by a YouTube star.)
5. Our vacation this summer will be someplace both educational and fun. Colonial Williamsburg, maybe.
(Reality: We will go visit my grandmother in Florida where the kids will sleep on the floor and we’ll spend our days listening to the kids complain about sleeping on the floor and the fact that Grandma doesn’t have wifi.)
I could go on and on about my good intentions as a Mom and the reality of how the end of the school year and our summer will be. Lord help me. Am I the only one?
Are you rocking the end of the school year, or are you exhausted and wondering why everything this time of year has to be so hard? (You know which camp I fall into!)
By the way, this Platform Tree Swing is the BEST thing I’ve bought to keep my kids busy this summer. It is so much fun and lasts for years!!!
PS: Want to lose a bunch of weight this year while the kids are in the backyard blowing bubbles? You need to read this.
Sher Bailey has been a dedicated voice for the Love and Marriage blog for over a decade, sharing practical advice on everything from stretching a grocery budget to finding the best homeschooling resources. She writes from the unique perspective of a full-time traveler, living and working on the road in her motorhome alongside her husband and their two cats. Sher’s diverse body of work is fueled by her belief that with the right tools and a little creativity, any challenge can be turned into an opportunity for growth and adventure.
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