Tuesday 9 March 2010

It Happens Every Year

Planning the summer is typically a nightmare for me/us. Like most Americans kids,  because they have about a 6 month summer break (well, 3 months anyway), they do various camps otherwise we would all kill each other. Although they're called "camps", they don't usually involve a tent, and most of the time they come home every night to sleep.

This year it's even more complicated, although let me preface this by saying that I have booked myself to attend the British Mummy Bloggers event, otherwise known as the CyberMummy conference.(July 3rd, London.)  So excited. I will have to work the summer around that trip, but let me give you an idea of some of the variables and see if anyone has any suggestions. (Things like "Just run away" and "Deny any association with your three offspring" aren't considered 'helpful', even though they are desirable.)

- Since the man-child is currently sporting a plaster cast from wrist to neck, and will wear a shorter one on his right arm till at least April, all bets are off as to what he will be able to do in the summer. If he can't do his music and sports camps, he'll be lounging around the place and I may have to bring him with me.

- If he is fit, he'll be doing residential golf and baseball camps in July, then two weeks of School of Rock bootcamp (late July) followed by a week of baseball coaching, taking him up to August 6th. I have been known to pick him up from this and leg it to the airport.

So - when to buy his ticket to the UK.

- The Queenager has applied to spend a month on a journalism course in Chicago (July). It's very competitive, so the back up plan is to apply to a similar one at Cambridge university (England) for the month of July, in which case she would fly over to Heathrow with me. If she gets onto the one here, she will do the UK trip in August.

So - when to buy her ticket to the UK.

- My mother usually comes over for 3-4 weeks at some point. The options are to come in June and fly back with me at the beginning of July, or to wait till August and come back here with us. (Assuming we come over in August.)

So- when to buy her a ticket to the US.

- The Little Guy has two weeks at theatre camp in mid-July (of course), so doesn't really clash with anything. I could bring him over with me in July (and leave him with my mother while I play), but that works out as rather expensive if I then have to bring him back when we're all here in August (if we come back in August.) Plus, a week in the UK is possibly too much let lag for him. Plus, do I really want to be worrying about a 6 year old when I'm supposed to be having a whale of a time attending a conference in London?

Que faire?

.

16 comments:

  1. I have tense shoulders reading this. Its not enough that I have fifty notes on my desk about who is doing what and when and possibly not because he said they might do that instead and she thought it might not happen if those grades turn out like that and her boyfriend might want to come and his bike race is then but she wanted to do that thing on that exact same date and...its not enough that i have that kind of chaos in my head without reading yours!! ;)

    I guess Im saying I empathize. I dont have an answer as to when you should buy their tickets, I usually just take the plunge and make a plan (hubby always says 'just make a decision, any decision', then cleverly walks off, out of harms way). The 'final decision' is always messed with and Ive learned that I need to learn to not worry. But its the hassle and the expense of making the wrong decision that I hate. Good luck with this one.

    Oh and cool that you'll be here in July!!

    ReplyDelete
  2. Oh my goodness. I have no doubt it will all come together, plans will be made, kids will be happy, tickets will be purchased & everyone will have a great summer. Its just a bit crap being responsible for organising it all though.

    And to think I used to complain about organising our one month home leave trip each year. Blimey. I didn't know I was born!

    MD x

    ReplyDelete
  3. I'm sticking my head in the sand on your behalf!

    ReplyDelete
  4. Wow - not sure what to suggest. Am jealous of you going to Cyber mummy though. I just can't leave the boys as we have no childcare - Camp starts the next week - and can't justify another airfare anyway.

    (Maybe we should have an expat bloggers conference - you, me, Iota, Calif Lorna, Almost American and others?)

    ReplyDelete
  5. Ignore it all and it will go away. (Brit in B is right.)

    ReplyDelete
  6. I worry so much about planning our Summer holiday that I put it off until the last moment. As it is, I have friends going with us this Summer to Cape Cod and they are all organised and I haven't even booked flights yet. I hope they have a good time!
    Have a strong coffee and jump in. I'll do the same-
    Mother Hen

    ReplyDelete
  7. I'm jealous too and agree with Nappy Valley Girl that an expat bloggers conference should be arranged. What city shall we meet in?!

    As for your summer, oh my goodness, I don't even know where to begin. It sounds like a complete nightmare.

    ReplyDelete
  8. Goodness & I thought planning my summers was difficult. Respect! If you sort it that is;o)

    ReplyDelete
  9. Seems you have a bit of a dilemma.
    Hope the plans fall into place very soon. Rather you than me!

    Nuts in May

    ReplyDelete
  10. Jealous of you going to Mummy Bloggers, not that I do much mummy blogging really.
    NVG - An expat meetup in the US would be fun - though my summer this year is complicated enough already. Different complications here though than for Expat Mum - the middle of the summer is the easy bit for me, because that I have control over. The kids are already booked into camps, and the tickets to the UK have been bought :-) The hard bit for me is the first couple of days and last couple of days of the vacation, when I'm still working but the kiddos are not in school. There are no camps available, and I have to try to find someone to mind the kids for me. Last year I hired a college student, who backed out at the last minute. She recommended a friend and the end result was a $1200 dentist bill when DD fell and smashed a tooth. Not really the college kid's fault, I know . . . Oh, to have family nearby!

    ReplyDelete
  11. I always thought that American summer camps were residential things, and were mainly for the benefit of parents who needed a break from their kids! (which would be entirely understandable)

    We don't have nearly as many of that sort of thing over here, though there are some.

    I'd just make a decision as best you can, inform everyone of the dates when they'll be in Britain, and then let them sort the rest out for themselves. Well, maybe not Little Guy, but then he sounds the most straightforward anyway.

    ReplyDelete
  12. Wow - I'm getting stressed just reading all this, although I have to say Yay! Cambridge! Let me know if you want advice on what pubs to steer clear of!!

    ReplyDelete
  13. OOH how brilliant - how do I book for that conference, I'd love to come and meet you there. Lx

    ReplyDelete
  14. Either go to the Britsh Mummy Blogger (ning) blog, or go to www.cybermummy.com and take it from there.

    Hmmm...an expat blogger meet-up. Where would that be? Presumably in the middle of the country but that would make it Nebraska.

    ReplyDelete
  15. I'd be happy to hop on a plane to Chicago - if you can think of a good venue!

    ReplyDelete
  16. Clearly now is the time to run....
    See you in London xx

    ReplyDelete

The more the merrier....

Blog Archive