JUST ADD SUMMER

Combine high heat with a laidback summer schedule along with a dash of travel and you get over stimulated children and pure exhaustion. And it is not the children who get exhausted. They have endless energy which they somehow seem to syphon all of the remaining energy left in their parents. It is no wonder we parents start staring at the calendar waiting for the first week of school.

We left for the Sacramento Zoo after 9 this morning and arrived at the zoo half an hour later. The heat started to get to us. The children were full of energy. I was still tired from the night before. Getting them to go to bed and stay in bed becomes an all-night ordeal. But I can understand that they are excited to be somewhere other than home and around family they have not seen in years.

After walking around at the various exhibits, we stopped at the carousel before going to the gift shop where the children each bought a stuffed animal with their allowance money. I love the lessons they learn with this money. I smiled and was greatly impressed and touched by Cinnamon who graciously gave a dollar to her brother when he needed to cover the tax portion of his bill. She is so loving and kind without ever asking for anything in return.

Purchases in hand, we walked across the street to Fairytale Town where the children spent another half hour or so in the 42C weather which seemed to have little effect on them but a great effect on me. How I curse older age and lack of sleep.

Once home, the kids watched a movie and ate a snack. A nap was out of the question as was sleep hours later. During this time I talked to my boyfriend as I tried to find a better signal for our Skype session. I went outside but my iPad overheated. I got a 'Temperature' warning message from the device. Something I had never seen before. So we continued our talk on Viber. Indoors.

I had the children write in their journals earlier tonight. The girls were finished in a decent time. Sage, however, took half an hour to write one sentence and another hour to finish writing about his day. But they will one day look back fondly on the journaling I have them do as they reminisce about their summer in California.

The heat made it too hot to cook and I was too exhausted to eat a structured dinner but the children got hungry. After their bedtime. More stalling I guessed but they ate and went to bed. Eventually. Just add summer and new experiences to any child excited not to be in school and you never know what you will get from one day to the next. Though it is difficult on the parents, it is a part of growing up and making memories. Memories which they will carry with them forever.