Check and check.

Music camp? Check.

SAT class? Check.

Today feels like a fresh start to the summer. I still have plenty of obligations to fulfill (curriculum writing, planning for fall, prepping for camp/vacation), but it is a huge relief to have some free time on the horizon after these past two weeks.

Music camp was great fun, as always, but it's an exhausting week! And with all the rehearsals and outings and lunch breaks with 58 kids, I have reaffirmed my calling to teach HIGH SCHOOL. Whew! The camp's younger crowd generates energy and noise levels that just amaze me! The performances blow me away, too, though, and it's so much fun to spend a week with (or at least near) R&K. Being able to help with music camp is one of many blessings that come from getting "laid off" every summer.

About 13 hours after we struck the set for the children's musical Sunday night, I was at Trinity High School to begin teaching an SAT prep class. Because I've taught this class for two summers already, this is a pretty low-stress gig. In spite of the two sets of essays I had to grade, the class was beneficial because it allows me to keep abreast of the SAT and interact with a variety of students. This summer, since I'm helping to write senior English curriculum for the district, I spent Monday and Wednesday afternoons after the class working with my writing partner. Since she teaches at THS, it was awfully convenient to meet in her classroom after lunch. We were able to wrap up our tasks that were due this week and get a head start on the units we'll be writing individually throughout the summer and fall. It felt good to check off that item from my "to do" list.

So here I am, tackling the piles of laundry that have accumulated this week and updating this blog. B had an errand to run for work, so R&K went with him. They'll stop by the bowling alley before heading home; they each get a free game every day of the summer. So right now, I hear nothing but the soft rumbling of the washer, which is surprisingly soothing. And even as I enjoy the relative silence, I'll be even happier to hear the glass door creak to announce that my family's home for the afternoon--a whole summer afternoon to fill. I'm hoping that in November, when work is beating me down and I'm questioning my career choice, I can look back at this post and see the light at the end of the school year! I do enjoy my job--most of the time--but this stay-at-home mom stuff is THE BEST.