{"id":2761,"date":"2014-06-06T22:58:58","date_gmt":"2014-06-07T02:58:58","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.anislandmom.com\/?p=2761"},"modified":"2014-06-06T22:58:58","modified_gmt":"2014-06-07T02:58:58","slug":"coffee-christine-school-year-miscellany","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/www.anislandmom.com\/?p=2761","title":{"rendered":"Coffee with Christine: End of the School Year Miscellany"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Time for <a title=\"Coffee with Christine: Part One\" href=\"http:\/\/www.anislandmom.com\/?p=2636\" target=\"_blank\">more coffee<\/a>, y&#8217;all.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/www.anislandmom.com\/?attachment_id=2752\" rel=\"attachment wp-att-2752\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignleft size-large wp-image-2752\" src=\"http:\/\/www.anislandmom.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/06\/IMG_7535-1024x682.jpg\" alt=\"IMG_7535\" width=\"640\" height=\"426\" srcset=\"http:\/\/www.anislandmom.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/06\/IMG_7535-1024x682.jpg 1024w, http:\/\/www.anislandmom.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/06\/IMG_7535-300x200.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\" \/><\/a>Much to the small people\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s delight, we\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ve reached the end of the school year.<\/p>\n<p>And thus, I just demonstrated to you how good I am at telling the partial truth. The full version of it, you ask? In summary, while I love my students and much of what I do, suffice it to say, the school year\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s end couldn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t come soon enough for me as well.<\/p>\n<p>No, seriously. Y\u00e2\u20ac\u2122all have no idea.<\/p>\n<p>Okay, some of you do.<\/p>\n<p>Fortunately, the last few weeks of school always involve some fun-filled breaks from the routine,<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/www.anislandmom.com\/?attachment_id=2753\" rel=\"attachment wp-att-2753\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignleft size-large wp-image-2753\" src=\"http:\/\/www.anislandmom.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/06\/IMG_7517-1024x592.jpg\" alt=\"IMG_7517\" width=\"640\" height=\"370\" srcset=\"http:\/\/www.anislandmom.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/06\/IMG_7517-1024x592.jpg 1024w, http:\/\/www.anislandmom.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/06\/IMG_7517-300x173.jpg 300w, http:\/\/www.anislandmom.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/06\/IMG_7517.jpg 1319w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\" \/><\/a>like elementary school field day, for instance. All you Yankee mainlanders will appreciate this: our island version of field day involves being sprayed with water throughout the various competitions. Growing up in Chicago, I was just glad if I didn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t have to wear a coat on field day. Here, they wear swimsuits <em>for the whole day of school.<\/em><\/p>\n<p>God bless Carolina island living, my friends.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/www.anislandmom.com\/?attachment_id=2755\" rel=\"attachment wp-att-2755\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignleft size-large wp-image-2755\" src=\"http:\/\/www.anislandmom.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/06\/IMG_75521-1024x682.jpg\" alt=\"IMG_7552\" width=\"640\" height=\"426\" srcset=\"http:\/\/www.anislandmom.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/06\/IMG_75521-1024x682.jpg 1024w, http:\/\/www.anislandmom.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/06\/IMG_75521-300x200.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\" \/><\/a>My younger son\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s third grade class just read <em>The Mouse and the Motorcycle<\/em> by Beverly Cleary, so as an end of the year project, he had to build a mouse house. Two years ago, he watched his older brother build a mouse house after his third grade class read the book, and promptly began saving items to use for the mouse house he would create at the end of his own third grade year. As an added educational bonus with this project, he learned that milk gallons start smelling after a while if you don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t rinse them before storing. Due to his mother\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s insistence, after she uncovered his plans, that he not begin accruing materials at such an early date, as well as her subsequent removal of all such accrued items from his room (y\u00e2\u20ac\u2122all should have seen it), he was able to relearn the milk gallon lesson last month when he was allowed to begin mouse house material acquisitions again.<\/p>\n<p>Good times.<\/p>\n<p>In typical fashion, he built a souped-up version of a mouse house large enough to fit a small canine. What it is lacking in aesthetics it makes up for in functionality and plain old fun. Among other things, the mouse can fly through the oatmeal container and the milk gallon and shoot out into the air on his little bike, like a rodent version of Evel Knievel.<\/p>\n<p>In unrelated news, Baby-girl came to me the other day and said, \u00e2\u20ac\u0153Mom, you should put this on An Island Mom.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d When I looked at her and paused, she looked at me like I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122d lost a marble or two and added (gesticulating all the while) \u00e2\u20ac\u0153You know, \u00e2\u20ac\u02dccause they\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re <em>beachy<\/em> things and people might want to see them. Don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t you get it?\u00e2\u20ac\u009d<\/p>\n<p>Since I have not lost sight of my brand and since I occasionally aim to please in the parental department, here they are: children\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s costume jewelry secured from a local shop and a colored-on shell, courtesy of Baby-girl, the beach, and RoseArt.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/www.anislandmom.com\/?attachment_id=2756\" rel=\"attachment wp-att-2756\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignleft size-large wp-image-2756\" src=\"http:\/\/www.anislandmom.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/06\/IMG_7545-1024x682.jpg\" alt=\"IMG_7545\" width=\"640\" height=\"426\" srcset=\"http:\/\/www.anislandmom.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/06\/IMG_7545-1024x682.jpg 1024w, http:\/\/www.anislandmom.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/06\/IMG_7545-300x200.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\" \/><\/a>It\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s all good.<\/p>\n<p>So here we find ourselves in early June. Exams are done, grades are turned in, desks are cleaned, and I now have two glorious months spreading out like milk and honey before me.<\/p>\n<p>Y\u00e2\u20ac\u2122all, it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s summer vacation,<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/www.anislandmom.com\/?attachment_id=2758\" rel=\"attachment wp-att-2758\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignleft size-large wp-image-2758\" src=\"http:\/\/www.anislandmom.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/06\/100_7097-1024x768.jpg\" alt=\"100_7097\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" srcset=\"http:\/\/www.anislandmom.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/06\/100_7097-1024x768.jpg 1024w, http:\/\/www.anislandmom.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/06\/100_7097-300x225.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\" \/><\/a>where toes have more time in the sand,<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/www.anislandmom.com\/?attachment_id=2759\" rel=\"attachment wp-att-2759\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignleft size-large wp-image-2759\" src=\"http:\/\/www.anislandmom.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/06\/100_1119-1024x768.jpg\" alt=\"100_1119\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" srcset=\"http:\/\/www.anislandmom.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/06\/100_1119-1024x768.jpg 1024w, http:\/\/www.anislandmom.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/06\/100_1119-300x225.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\" \/><\/a>where alarm clocks become temporarily obsolete,<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/www.anislandmom.com\/?attachment_id=2760\" rel=\"attachment wp-att-2760\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignleft size-large wp-image-2760\" src=\"http:\/\/www.anislandmom.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/06\/100_2285-1024x768.jpg\" alt=\"100_2285\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" srcset=\"http:\/\/www.anislandmom.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/06\/100_2285-1024x768.jpg 1024w, http:\/\/www.anislandmom.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/06\/100_2285-300x225.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\" \/><\/a>and where little girls (and their mamas) spend all the time they can just sitting for a spell.<\/p>\n<p>Long live the days of summer.<\/p>\n<p>***<\/p>\n<p>Coming soon: <a title=\"The Summer List for 2013\" href=\"http:\/\/www.anislandmom.com\/?p=2431\" target=\"_blank\">The Fourth Annual Summer List <\/a>and <a title=\"Camping on Hunting Island State Park: Part One\" href=\"http:\/\/www.anislandmom.com\/?p=2539\" target=\"_blank\">Oh No She Didn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t: She Went Camping Again<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Time for more coffee, y&#8217;all. Much to the small people\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s delight, we\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ve reached the end of the school year. And thus, I just demonstrated to you how good I am at telling the partial truth. The full version of it, you ask? In summary, while I love my students and much of what I do, [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1,4],"tags":[1740,1743,1741,1745,1744,1742],"class_list":["post-2761","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-islandlife","category-island-parenting","tag-end-of-the-school-year","tag-i-love-your-kids-but-i-love-summer-too","tag-its-summer","tag-summer-break-is-good-for-the-soul","tag-summer-vacation","tag-teachers-love-summer"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.anislandmom.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2761","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.anislandmom.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.anislandmom.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.anislandmom.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.anislandmom.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=2761"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"http:\/\/www.anislandmom.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2761\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.anislandmom.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=2761"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.anislandmom.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=2761"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.anislandmom.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=2761"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}