Last Friday afternoon Caroline hopped off the bus for the very last time as a first grader and Thomas finished his last day of daycare…and our 13 weeks of summer break officially began!
I mention this every summer but being a working mom during summer break is really hard for me. Like really, really, really hard. I’ve put a million hours into planning out an incredibly fun summer for the kids — packed with summer camps that I know they are going to love, some pretty fantastic activities and a beach vacation that is going to blow their minds. Yet without fail, summertime kills my mama heart. I get so insanely jealous of my SAHM friends as they check off summer bucket list items, spend hot days at the pool and enjoy the freedom of no alarms or schedules. There’s only so much fun we can cram into the weekends so I feel like we miss out on a lot. So I tend to overcompensate by getting creative with the time we have together (which usually means over-scheduled weekends and lots of Pinterest scrolling. Ha!).
A few summers ago we created a Charlotte Ice Cream Bucket List which was a delicious and fun experience. And for this year the kids helped us create an ambitious summer bucket list filled with a wide variety of activities from shrimp boils to beach fun. I absolutely cannot wait for all we have in store this summer!!
OK, I digress!
Here’s are some highlights from of our last day of school and summer break kick-off…
It’s WILD how much both kids have grown and changed over the past year! Of course, we had to take “last day of school” pictures to capture the milestone.
First Day of First Grade / Caroline’s Pencil Dress (Also available HERE & HERE) / Mary Jane Jelly Shoes
To celebrate Caroline’s last day of 1st grade and Thomas’s last day of TK, Matt and I set up water balloon stations and an ice cream bar for when they arrived home. On our walk home from the bus Caroline let me know that “everyone” in her class got picked up by their moms way early from school but she quickly recovered when we got to the top of the driveway and spotted the water balloon stations. The kids were elated! Thomas and I were Team Blue and Matt and Caroline were Team Red. And no one held back in the war. It was a blast. 
Afterwards the kids loaded their waffle bowls with ice cream, toppings by the handful and lots of syrups.
Happy Summer, friends!! And tell me what’s on YOUR bucket list!!
Caley
Sunday 13th of June 2021
Ah LOVE this!!! Happy Summer special family x
Brandi Patton
Wednesday 9th of June 2021
I can related to having to be a working mom during the summer time!! Hang in there!!
JEN EDWARDS
Wednesday 2nd of June 2021
Make sure you hit up Boardwalk Billy’s on Sardis Rd North for those shrimp boils and steam pot buckets!! Great place for the kiddos too.
Christina
Thursday 3rd of June 2021
omg -- how did I not know about this!?!?! AMAZING!!! We will definitely hit up this place!! Thank you!!!
Kelly
Wednesday 2nd of June 2021
What a great way to kick off summer! And I had both parents work full time when I was a child. My brother and I would go to summer gym, which was just our local elementary school gym was open with counselors and we hung out every day 8-330. Sometimes we went to the pool, but mostly played in the gym all day or on the playground. And ya know, I didn't know any different and we had a blast. I never resented my parents. And we didn't even take vacations during the summer, my parents usually did that during the fall, or late spring, always around school breaks because destinations were less crowded. So no worries friend! Your kids will only remember how you made them feel. :)
Christina
Thursday 3rd of June 2021
I couldn't love this more. Thank you so much for sharing!!!! Have the best summer, friend!
Gillian
Wednesday 2nd of June 2021
Reading from Australia and coming up to winter holidays here soon and as a working mum I am already feel the guilt! Her after care program was released and they have trips to wildlife parks, skateboard lessons, pasta making.
I know she'll have a great time there, way better than if it was just us but it is still hard to not feel guilty. I listened to a podcast with a working mom and she said she stopped feeling guilty for missing things as it doesn't serve anything. I am trying to do that. Why make myself feel bad about my choices. Thanks for sharing this, really resonated with me and a lot of people it seems!
Do you have any posts on how you manage your summer? How you schedule the camps etc? Logistics. You seem to be a wizard! Thanks Gilly x
Christina
Thursday 3rd of June 2021
That is SUCH a GREAT point!!! Thank you for sharing!!!
As for summer planning, I LIVE by spreadsheets and start the planning process as early as possible (usually in January when all of the camp start opening summer registration). If you need a spreadsheet template, you can find mine here: https://www.northcarolinacharm.com/2021/01/five-on-friday-108.html
Logistics are different almost every day. Usually Matt and I trade drop-offs/pick-ups but it varies depending on our work schedules each day. I hope it will be so much easier having both kids in the same camps all summer.