Not that you would know this by the 104 degree temperatures here in Dallas, but summer, at least as it is known to those of us who are teachers, is winding down. This is the last week that my husband and I are off together. He returns to school on Monday for teacher in-service. His first day with students is the 24th. I have a little bit more time to ease back into the routine, with a few required appointments at school over the next two weeks, but classes don’t start in earnest until August 31st.
This has been a lovely summer break for us. We had a good bit of “down” time at home, a fantastic vacation, lots of opportunities to spend time with friends, and we have accomplished many long-neglected household chores. Though I am not really ready to go back to work, as I face the inevitable start of another school year, at least I can say that I am mentally prepared to return thanks to having twelve weeks off.
Perhaps the most significant revelation that I have had during my summer break is that running a household is a full-time job! I now realize why so many things at home are left undone between August and June; we simply don’t have the hours in our days and/or the energy in our bodies to get it all done. You would think that I would have figured this out a long time ago, while I had kids at home. I guess during those years I didn’t have the time to give the whole scenario that much thought.
Our days have included getting dogs and cats to the vet for annual check-ups and vaccines, auto maintenance, air conditioner servicing, electrical work done, cleaning out the garage, sorting through closets, rearranging to make room for the things that came from my parents’ home, and lots of other smaller tasks. When I list them here, it doesn’t seem like so much, but somehow, on top of regular stuff like laundry, dishes, dusting and vacuuming, our days have been packed full.
We joked, well sort of joked, that one of us needs to retire and stay home so that the house would be clean and cared for more than two months out of the year! I think back to the times when two incomes weren’t necessary and homemaking was respected. Think about it. What would life be like if the laundry was done before dinner instead of during? If you were home to get the packages left by UPS when they were delivered rather than after they’d sat in the rain, heat, or snow for several hours? If you cleaned up the hairball right after it appeared instead of once it dried on the rug? If the evenings could be spent enjoying time together doing something other than walking side by side while hauling trash bags to the curb or holding the dust pan while the other sweeps?
My quandary comes from both loving my job and wanting a calm, clean, cared for home. Yep, I want to have my cake and eat it too! I know there are many people who work so that they can pay others to do all the things that I just mentioned. They have “a staff.” Remember when I said that we are both teachers? Well, we don’t have a staff. In fact, we ARE the staff both at home and at work! Oh well…
I guess I will enjoy my last few weeks of order and cleanliness at home and then, well…call before you come for a visit so I can at least sweep up the big wads of dog hair and put the toilet paper on the roll. Don’t judge us on the state of our house. Know that we are giving our time and energy to educating your kids!
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