TimesLeader.com

Not- so- lazy days of summer Parenthood, Abington Style with Adriane Heine

I had looked forward to this day. I’m one of those moms who lets her kids stay up a little too late on school nights, so the whole family can cheer on our favorite American Idols and Survivors. So getting those bleary-eyed kids out of bed for school every day can be guilt-inducing. Today was the first weekday with no school. I had pictured getting up at my leisure, sipping hot coffee without rushing to get the lunch packed and kids out the door on time. I could just let them sleep. But they didn’t.

click image to enlarge

Select images available for purchase in the
Times Leader Photo Store

Then the reality of no more child-free time set in. My husband and I are self-employed and relied on that three-hour space when our youngest was in half-day kindergarten to get work done and squeeze in some gym time. That’s gone for the next three months. We tried the shift philosophy. “I’ll go from 9 a.m. to12, then I’ll get home for you to go from 12 to 5.” Of course, 12 came and went and I wasn’t done, so the kids went to work with him. Not how I had envisioned their summer fun.

As we sat tonight with our day planners, trying to figure out our need to work and watch the kids simultaneously, I also realized I have filled up their days with an awful lot of activities. My fantasy about them sleeping late and playing outside until the fireflies were in sight took another shot. My oldest had asked for horseback riding lessons since she was two. Now that she’s eight, and considering that my mother gave her a birthday check that almost covers it for the summer, I signed her up. We’ve got to keep them reading so they don’t lose all the progress they’ve made this year, thus, the library reading program. Gymnastics is a given. Tennis is something I always wished I’d learned. And all the play dates and plans to catch minnows at South Ab I’d promised…the calendar is causing me to want a big glass of Merlot.

On Facebook this week, friends from all over the country have been both celebrating and lamenting the end of school…

“The first official battle of summer began at 8:50 a.m. A family meeting was called at 9 a.m. to form the Rules of Summer. Let’s see if they hold until tomorrow :)”

“I’m not quite ready for summer vacation. Does anyone know the official limit on playing XBox? Is eight hours in a row too much? Do I have to make lunches everyday?”

If you are looking for camps, there are several to consider:

Keystone College has a day camp for children ages 3 to 6, The Waverly Community House has a day camp with different fun themes each week like carnival, art and safari. Penn State Worthington campus in Dunmore hosts different themed camps including Lego, robotics, wizardry and zoology. Clarks Summit Elementary School hosts Camp Invention for one week. Abington Area Joint Recreation Board has a new earth camp for middle schoolers this year and a golf camp. There are horseback riding camps at Abington Hills and Candy Apple Farm, gymnastics camps at Alpha Gymnastics and United Sports Academy, soccer and basketball camps at Baptist Bible College and more sports camps at Riverfront. Don’t forget those almost-free vacation Bible Camps held by nearly every church in the area. They can be really fun.

If it’s just classes and not full camps you’re interested in, check out the Waverly Community House or Birchwood Fitness and Tennis Center for tennis, Over the Hill farm for horseback riding, Abington Heights School District or the YMCA for swimming, The Everhart Museum and the Dietrich Theater for art and science, and All About Theatre at the Waverly Comm for acting. Don’t forget that all the Lackawanna County Libraries have extensive summer reading programs full of story times, performers and demonstrations.

Some other fun activities include children’s bicycle racing at Cedar BMX track, the Trolley Museum and ride at Steamtown National Historic Site, Claws n’ Paws, the Lackawanna County Coal Mine Tour at McDade Park, the pool -cool slides- and amusement rides at Nay Aug Park and fishing at Abington Area Park on Winola Road. And the Comm has a summer concert on August 16 that should be fun for children featuring a classic car show, refreshments and 1950’s music.

And fellow parents, good luck getting to the grocery store, the gym or work this summer.

Adriane Heine and her husband, Doug, own Dublin’s Pub in West Scranton and are raising their two daughters in Waverly. Contact her at news@theabingtonjournal.com or heine123@epix.net with column questions or suggestions.