Remember my maternity leave?
All snowy days, and naps, and cozy baby time?
Now Adam is home with the girls, and it is more like this:
His days are all swimsuits, and library trips, and parks. Playdates and errands and zoo trips. Lots of chalk. And sunscreen. And slides. Drying swimsuits hang on doorknobs and bags of beach toys and balls adorn our coat tree.
The girls are having a blast.
I love hearing about their days. My favorite are the outings that are unexpectedly awesome, like the time they headed off to the zoo but didn’t make it further than the neighborhood service station, and ended up spending three hours at the local coffee shop waiting for Adam’s car to be fixed. Beatrice is at that age where she has fun almost anywhere. And who questions why you aren’t at the zoo when there is grilled cheese and TV on Dada’s phone?
And like most babies Blythe thrives on seeing new things, even if it’s just from the safety of the Beco. She also gets ample time for one of her favorite activities: watching her big sister.
I made a casual list of fun things I’d like to do this summer and we blew through most of them in June without trying. They just happened, a bit here, a bit there.
And even though I’m still going to work every day, I reap the rewards of having only myself to push out the door every morning. Of my kitchen magically restocking with groceries. Of arriving home to long lazy evenings outside. I can jump right into the fun without having to unpack bags or give the kids transition time. Or we can head out for the weekend without it having to be a Herculean effort of planning.
And OK, there are a fair bit of toddler tantrums. And occasional difficulty getting both kids down for a nap. Sand gets tracked in, our grass is worse for the wear from all of the water table and pool activity. When Beatrice goes back to childcare I’m sure her teachers will roll their eyes at all of the bad habits she’s developed.
But Adam is dealing with all of it admirably. Like you’d expect from someone who teaches for a living.
Before we had kids I didn’t think much about Adam being a teacher, but now I’m passionate about it, and what it brings to our family. I love the expanse of time that stretches before them everyday, to do whatever sounds fun. I cherish my own memories of lazy summer days, and the fun we found when we were given the time to find it.
I’m so excited that our kids will have this same opportunity, and I’m so grateful for what he is giving our family.
