Stages of Summer Break with Kids at Home ALL THE TIME

Whether you’re staying at home, attempting to work, or heading to an office (now, with real pants!), when summer break arrives and the kids don't scurry off to school anymore the season seems to have its own life-cycle.

1. The Initial Burst of Freedom

Summer break has begun, and you can feel the change in the hot air. No more making school lunches they won’t eat! No more push for early bedtimes with an early morning chaser! You declare yourself the CEO of Fun as you envision days of pure joy and quality time. If you're a seasoned parent or caregiver, you might know you’ll start with a vigor that rivals a young Jim Carrey that will probably dissipate down to a more-tired version of Tommy Lee Jones in "No Country for Old Men." But who cares? You are in the folly of youthful early-June bliss.

2. The Craft Piles Files

You've suddenly become the Picasso of popsicle sticks, the Banksy of macaroni art. Determined to keep the youths firmly planted in the real world and away from screens, Pinterest boards and brightly-colored creative mom blogs become your best friends. Soon, your kids have more DIY projects than they have fingers and toes. And lucky for you, the average interest for an individual activity is about 15 minutes tops! Messes in every corner of the house start to build and spread. Your new norm may include a light dusting of glitter on all your clothing and pieces of felt adorning your socks.

3. Snack Time All The Time

Summer break means snacking is no longer confined to certain hours, silly. It's 24/7 room-service requests, and your kitchen resembles a bustling old western town with all the local characters partaking. It must sure build up an appetite doing nothing for weeks straight. Snacking continues right up into mealtimes, and for your tween or teen whose having a sleepover—well, let’s just say you wil have nothing “good” left to eat, and you will hear about it around 3am.

4. Water Play

You've transformed your backyard into a water wonderland. Sprinklers, various assorted pools, water balloons—why, it's an H2O extravaganza! You're also now on a first-name basis with the local mosquito population. And for some reason, swim goggles become rarer and more sought after than gold. They are required even if there's only a trickle of hose water going. Water play is, without a doubt summer’s uncontested MVP though. It’s the best redemption from an otherwise lame afternoon. Visit a pool, water park, or ocean, and you get so many perks! Laud your own parenting as you have provided exercise, so much Vitamin-D, and usually some grins.

5. Tantrums Incoming

The novelty of summer wears off, and your kids morph into a version of themselves you are not fond of. Bedtime battles rival gladiatorial combat, and the phrase "I'm bored" is uttered with the frequency of yelling on a gamers Youtube channel.

“One day I’ll be thankful that my kid is strong willed but that will not be today, not in this grocery store.” – unknown

6. Countdown to School

Oh no, the break is only halfway over! And you've already lived a thousand years of summer. You start a countdown to school resumption and wistfully imagine the prospect of getting back into the routine. What on earth were you thinking that so much unstructured time off was a good thing? What these kids need are real bedtimes! A job! A 5 year plan! More time with their friends and a break from you too since you are the world’s worst Roblox player.

7. The Great Screen-Time Debate

You find yourself in a heated internal debate about screen time. You are, after all, the judge, jury, and Terminator of your kid's digital entertainment usage. Navigating the line between 20 minutes of tech usage and whoops, total digital immersion. Let’s face it; sometimes it's total digital immersion as your own initial creativity and energy start to fade a bit.

8. Picnic Expeditions and Other Wholesome Activities

You embark on say, a picnic expedition or something, carrying more supplies than an Arctic explorer who is packing for themself and their 6 energetic sled-dogs. Finally out for a lovely adventure, you discover that your kids are more interested in when this will be over than the actual food and entire sport court you hauled without help. They ask for take-out the minute you're back in the car.

9. Summer Slide Remedy

Villain stage - you launch operation "Prevent the Summer Slide" by remembering there were decrees from last year's teachers to keep up! Oops. You try introducing educational activities and reading sessions but are mostly shut down.

10. The “Bittersweet” Goodbye

Just kidding! There is nothing bittersweet about summer ending. The kids will now see their friends, learn somethings, and you in turn will see your floor and regain your sanity. Your kids are eager to see you without that manic gleam in your eye too. Win-win.