I know nobody wants to hear it. I sure don’t want to admit it, but summer is coming to an end. My kids have cycled through the full-range of summer vacation emotions from freedom, to boredom, to excitement, elation, and exhaustion. They’ve had a great summer! They’ve played all of their electronic devices. Thankfully they had opportunities to play with their cousins and neighborhood friends. They’ve taken road trips, gone to amusement parks, barbecues, pools, block parties, drank oceans of lemonade, and ate plenty of ice cream. I’ve done my due diligence and insisted that they do worksheets, keep summer writing journals, and read at least a few times a week. My insistence has been met with much resistance at times, but I’ve held fast. This summer, my son graduated to reading his first chapter book, The Stories Julian Tell. My daughter chose a book in the American Girl series, Grace Stirs It Up, and I finished the Untethered Soul. I’ve noticed that since my kids schedules have been less structured during the past 6 weeks, so has mine. I’ve taken liberties to rush outside and toss water balloons instead of writing when I get home from work. I’ve skipped cooking dinner to watch the colors of the sunset at the beach over take-out. I’ve felt guilty at times, but it’s given me moments to pause to have some fun and enjoy my children’s fleeting childhood. I’ve created new memories that I’m certain will end up on the page...come fall! Carol Higgins-Lawrence wrote her first story at the age of five. Her father paid her a quarter for it and she's been writing ever since. She's taken a variety of courses in writing for children. Multicultural perspectives are of particular interest to her. Carol is of Jamaican descent and was born and raised in Canada. She has a BA in Communications and Sociology and she has completed coursework towards a MA in TESOL. She has worked as a literacy educator for the past 15 years. She currently lives in Brooklyn, NY with her husband and two young children. You can visit her website at carolhl.weebly.com
3 Comments
8/26/2015 12:10:10 am
I've got one more week of summer and hoping to pack as much fun into as I can.
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Carol
8/26/2015 06:04:41 am
Enjoy! :)
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9/22/2015 01:02:30 am
Thanks for your writing. Also I'd like to read Untethered Soul, too. It's great you can tell your children to read. I have a HUGE problem with my younger sis. She has a big disaster with reading and writing and I can't force her to do it. I even created a readers club for our family. It was cool but she couldn't stay reading for more than 15 minutes(((
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