Thursday, May 26, 2011

School's Out!



Like the old Alice Cooper song goes: No more pencils, no more books, no more teachers dirty look's .... school's out for summer!

It is hard to believe that another school year has ended.

Today is the last day of school for my boys. I have mixed emotions about it. I'm excited my children have done so well this year and have achieved many milestones. I'm so proud of them!! But the Mom in me realizes I'm another year closer to seeing my children out of the nest and that makes me a little sad. We have to make every moment count while the kids are at home. That is why the hubby and I have planned a lot of activities for the summer. Things we hope will give our children some great memories ... like a week at the beach, visits to amusement parks and the zoo, weekend getaways, picnics at the park, a family reunion, and anything else we can cram into the next two months.


So tell me, what do you have planned this summer? Any favorite summer childhood memories you would like to share?

Two random commenters will receive a book from my stash pile.


~ Buffie

36 comments:

  1. No huge plans for the summer. I switched shifts at work and am now not going to have to pay a babysitter. I will work 2nd shift and my husband will work 1st. I am excited to be able to have a little extra money without having to pay daycare. We will do the usual fun stuff like swimming, playing at the park, and just relaxing.
    When I was a kid I looked forward to summer vacation because I would always spend time with my cousins and have a blast all summer long. Most summers I was never home.
    Thanks for the giveaway and the chance to win.

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  2. Chrisbails, thanks for stopping by! A little extra money during the summer can go a long way.

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  3. My kids and I are looking forward to the last day of school here. Unfortunately, it's still a month away.

    This Summer my family and I are looking forward to visiting my sister in New Orleans. The girls have plans to see the last Harry Potter film together while the guys goes fishing. :-)

    rjofusATgmailDOTcom

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  4. Hey Chris!

    Wow, another month of school ... really? Guess you start later than we do. The first day of school will be August 1, too early!

    New Orleans sounds fun!

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  5. Going on a cruise with my hunny this summer! One of my favorite memories is the summer when I was 13 and "in love" with the cutest boy in the neighborhood. He was on his front porch as I rode by his house on my 10 speed, showing off riding with no hands. My foot slipped off the peddle and I skidded down the street on my chest basically. Of course I just got up, smiled and rode away.

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  6. Enjoy this special time in your life with your family. It goes too fast. Cherish every minute. Your summer sounds wonderful and memorable. Summers are the best time ever for family. I hope that we get to the beach, my favorite place to be in the summer, relax and ideal for everyone.

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  7. Very excited that summer is here - finally saw the sun yesterday after nearly 2 weeks of rain and cloudy skies! I am hoping to do some plantings in my yard - add a little bit each year, maybe some more roses! Other than that, probably a whole lot of nothing going on around here. When I was a kid, we spent the entire summer at the beach in Maine, then when my boys were little we spent the summers in Maine...now...my youngest son still spends the summer at the beach where he works on a fishing boat - let's just say that the smell is enough to kill the romance of the beach...so there will most likely be little beach time for me - but I will probably still sneak of up there for Pier French Fries with vinager!

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  8. Loved this post so much. I remember so well the end of the school year and anticipating the long, hot summers which were filled with bicycling around town, swimming at the pool, trips to the lake and just having fun with friends. I would love to rent a cottage for a month at a special lake we used to visit.

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  9. I dont' think we will ever have summer here (IL) too much rain. When I was a kid I looked forward to vacations in Wi or Fl and reading my life away.... also playing all day outside...
    No plans this year just looking for a JOB

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  10. Our kids still have 2 weeks left of school here in NE Florida. That being said, I don't have any "Set" plans but do plan on enjoying the summer. Since I live a half an hour from the beach, we'll definitely be hitting both there and our neighborhood pool quite often. I also plan on heading back home to Philly late summer for a short trip. Parents are moving back there so I'll want to see their new house and visit with my sister's family too. Hubs probably won't join the munchkin and I on that trip tho.

    I remember summer being longer than it seems now that I am grown. We spent every minute we could outside.

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  11. School has a few more weeks here. I don't have any special plans for summer, but just hope it's not an especially hot one.

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  12. Tomorrow is the last day for my kids. Like you, Buffie, I'm so happy and proud that they've done so well, but I'm also sad that another year is gone. I absolutely ADORE both of my kids' teachers this year, so it's hard to let go...especially since it's my son's last year of elementary school. *sniff*

    But, this summer we are going to Washington D.C. and are SO EXCITED about it!!! And of course, we'll hit the pool as often as we can. *g*

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  13. We're going to visit my in-laws in England for three weeks! I'm very excited about and already planning where I want to go sightseeing.

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  14. This summer is the first in awhile that I haven't taken a class or workshop and I am SO looking forward to that! Back to the grindstone of recertifying next summer, though.

    This summer, my daughter has swimming lessons, band lessons, a theatre workshop, and we are having visitors from Denmark at the end of July. I want to spend time with my folks this summer and will cherish that time visiting with them.

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  15. My big plan this summer is to go to NYC and attend the big Literacy signing! Yes it's official folks, I am braving the craziness and chaos that is the RWA mega-signing. I will also be going to the Lady Jane's Salon reading the Monday before-I'm super excited and can't wait!

    A group of my girlfriends and I are also planning a girls weekend down in D.C. so we'll see how that goes. You can't go wrong with good food, shopping, and quality time with your best girlfriends. :)

    I still remember the trips my family took to Niagara Falls, and the huge roadtrip we took when we drove down to Disney World (two day drive each way). I don't think my mother will ever live down insisting on staying at a cheap hotel instead of the decent Days Inn down the road because the rooms stank, and the owners had a rooster that woke up us at 5 am!

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  16. other than a jimmy buffett concert in aug, no plans yet this year. have a friend on temp assignment in new mexico so may take a few days off to visit since never been there. otherwise same old thing, work, pretend to worry about the landscaping, relax on the porch & enjoy some good books :)

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  17. No big plans for this summer. I just hope to head to the beach a few times and get lots of reading done.

    iqb99@yahoo.com

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  18. The only plans I have for summer is working on the house and the lawn. If this rain will clear up some so I can get my lawn work done.

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  19. Hubby and I are taking a trip to Europe, through parts of France, Switzerland, Germany and Holland. I can't wait!

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  20. My son graduated high school. I am a very proud mom. Can't wait to see what the future holds!

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  21. My kids are still in school, Buffie - they won't be done until June 8. Though my son is home from college (which I love!)

    No plans yet except I'm bringing my older daughter to RWA's conference next month. We're really looking forward to our time in NYC :-)

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  22. I might be going away for a few days with my cousin. We took a mini road trip a few weeks ago to Toronto and we're figuring out what's next.

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  23. Buffie

    Enjoy you summer with the family life goes so fast these days, I have found that they leave the nest so soon and now I have 6 grandchildren that I love being with LOL.

    The weather is getting colder here in Oz and no holidays just work and fitting in as much reading as I can

    Have Fun
    Helen

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  24. Wow, you all have been busy while I was away enjoying the end of the year parties at school!!!

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  25. Robbedofmygoodness - oh my, that sounds like something I would do. Have a wonderful time on your cruise!! The hubby and I have been a few of them and just love it.

    Hey traveler! So you love the beach too? There is just nothing like sitting in a chair on the sand with the sound of the waves in your ear and the wind blowing your hair. Ahhhh, I can't wait.

    Dtchycat - LOL at the fish smell killing the beach romance!! LOL!

    Petite - My grandparents owned a cottage on a lake and I have some very special memories of that place. It was always fun when Grandpa took us fishing.

    Deerdoe69 - Sounds like you enjoyed reading when you were younger! I wasn't much of a reader until I was an adult and found romance novels.

    Jennifer - I grew up in south Florida and spent many summers (and springs and falls) in the swimming pool. My BFF and I would even play with dishes in the pool. :-)

    Andrea - The last day of school is bittersweet, isn't it? Just wait until you drop your kid off at middle school ... that was tough for me. You guys are going to have so much fun in DC. Take good notes for me, hopefully we will be going in the next year or so.

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  26. ClaudiaGC - England for 3 weeks? Man, I'm officially jealous.

    Wow, Deb, lots of classes this summer!! It's always nice to have company.

    Lisa, have you ever been to the big RWA signing before? Last year was my first year and whenever I have a bad day, my "go to a happy place" is the week I spent at RWA. You are going to have a blast. And be on the lookout for PJ -- she will be there.

    GAmistress, Jimmy Buffett always makes the summer better :-) And so do all the great books!

    Danielle, I hope you get to read a ton of books this summer. There are so many great ones out right now.

    Virginia, in my house "lawn work" is TWO four letter words!! LOL!

    Oh my, LSUReader, now I'm super jealous!! Have fun!

    Runner10, wow you must be very proud. Gannon's son graduates this year too.

    Hey Beth! Oh, now I really wish I was going to RWA so I could meet your sweet daughter (she has to be sweet if you're her mom!)

    Jane, I absolutely love mini road trips. Nothing like hopping in the car and heading to parts unknown.

    Helen, I can't believe you have 6 grandchildren now!!! You must have had your children when you were 10 - :-)

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  27. I don't have anything special planned for the summer but I am hoping desparately that my granddaughter will get to come up this year for a few weeks.

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  28. I don't have any big plans. Will probably have the grandkids for a few weeks. My favorite summer memory was when we were stationed in CA and got orders for NJ. We camped across the USA and had so much fun. We even spent an extra day at a KOA in mississippi because the boys wanted to fish!

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  29. I now have grandchildren getting out of school for summer. When Our children were in school, I always looked forward to vacations. We could take day trips, do craft projects, attend the library summer reading program, and go to camp. It was a time we could spend more time swimming, hiking, and camping. It was just nice having them around the house and spend time together without having to worry about homework.
    Now I look forward to spending extra time with my grandchildren over the summer.

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  30. I have been out of school for about a month. Right now I am trying to relax and preparing for my brother's graduation and family coming to visit.

    smccar1 at hotmail dot com

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  31. I LOVE summer vacations! When I was in school, I'd spend Mondays at the library picking out the books I wanted for the rest of the week. I remember feeling like Francie in A TREE GROWS IN BROOKLYN trying to read all the books in the library, but not alphabetically! I went by series and discovered some wonderful authors. I find that today some fifty years later I have the same reading habit and love discovering new authors. That is one of the reasons I enjoy your site so much.

    I no longer have school children at home, but I'm looking forward to a long visit from my 23 year old son next month.

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  32. Summer isn't quite as fun once I became an adult. :(

    Of course, I worked during the summers after high school. Prior to that, summers were mostly spent at home or at the library - places that had air conditioning (except for the one summer during which one of my friends had the use of the family car and we went to the beach a lot).

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  33. Our youngest graduated high school last year so it has been a little strange this year to see that I don't really have to pay attention to public school calender. We don't have any big plans for the summer but it we will be going to the beach and making some day trips.

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  34. I remember going home from college and hooking up with my HS friends. My hometown is on the shore of Lake Michigan so we would start out with a birthday party picnic for Sue (May 28th). We'd continue meeting at the beach through out the summer and drink cheap wine Trivolia, Ripple etc and watch the sky change as the sun set. I have beautiful memories of these get-togethers as we shared funny incidents of the past year. It was such a safe, simple time before we married and had children. We'd walk,bike and swim at night No Worries!

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  35. I plan to relocate to the west coast by the end of the summer. I need to fly out and find a house. I also have to start a job hunt once I'm there. Unfortunately that doesn't leave much time for fun stuff this summer. I do plan to read as much as possible.

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  36. For Summer we always head to the beach. My parents live at the coast, so it's family catch up time too. It's great!!

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