Tiffani:
I've seen what you can accomplish with a little time, so I think we're in for quite a ride now that you have chunks of it.:)
Dee

LOL Dee - I haven't been able to wipe Pudding Grin off of my face for about 2 weeks! OMG I'm so excited!!!!!!

I do love my children very, very much mind you - but WOW! To full on decorate w/o hearing 1 'MOM! I NEED....WHAAAAA!'. So this is the feeling that so many millions of Mom's before me having knowingly smiled about!

You'd think I'd have the thigh's of a mountain climber w/ th eup and down of the ladder between sippy cup refills, etc...

I can feel your excitement. I can't wait to see what you accomplish.

Yikes... I do not mean this in a rude way, but this sort of post makes me very happy about NOT having kids. :-) (Of course I know that many people consider there to be many upsides, too, but this kind of post scares those who do not have kids!) Anyway, enjoy your free time to paint and decorate!

I can totally relate to that feeling you're experiencing; specially with young children who need so much care round the clock. I always craved moments alone and not having to tend to the kiddies, as much as I loved them and would not have traded them for the world.

Lizzie, I understand what you're saying; DD is 32 and wonders if she'll ever have kids, she hasn't ruled it out but is really not sure; and I tell her to think about it seriously and I would not think less of her if she decided to not have any. She can be a fabulous aunt to her friend's kids and her brother's son.

No need to feel guilty. I used to have my friends over for mimosas the first morning of school. Of course...I didn't weep when they went off to Kindergarten...so I MAY be an unnatural mother...t

Well, I've just sent my eldest off to college and have had tiny twinges of missing her but am otherwise SO HAPPY! I did a great job, stayed home, did all the hands-on Mom things, and love that girl madly BUT am so excited about the next stage and want to get on with things I let fall by the wayside all these years. I don't feel guilty at all! Which doesn't mean you're unnatural by the way. Merely human :)

A mom who does not get needed time by herself, for whatever, can't be a great mom. You need to recharge in order to have something to give the others. I loooooved when our boys went full day. I missed having lunch with either one that we used to have when the other was in school. It worked out that I had my older one home for lunch and half days for 3 days a week for kindergarten and the younger one was home 5 half days the next year. It was nice to have that one on one time for each boy, but when they were both full time in school, I was able to go back to work for real and also have 3 days alone in the house to get things done.

Each summer, I have dh home (a teacher) and both boys, and almost nothing gets done and my house is a wreck. In another week, my house will start getting whipped back into shape, once we are in our school year routine. I love back to school time. I love my family, but find it easier to enjoy them when we have something new to talk about (how was your day...) and get a chance to miss each other a little. I also love tucking them into bed. We have a nice chat, a kiss, and then the house is blessedly quieter.
You can love your kids and still want/need breaks.

Lizzie - no one is saying they are sending their kids to boarding school to get rid of them, to be only seen at holidays, lol. We just appreciate the couple hours a day that school brings. We have time together in the afternoon, eves and weekends. Don't forget, there are tons of school holidays as well. I love seeing mine get on the bus and love when they get off.... If we could only skip the homework part, school would be perfect ;)

Lizzie - no offense taken - you phrased it quite well! I never thought twice about kids (bit of a procrastinator here) until the Dr. said that I had a 'condition' that needed surgically corrected if I wanted to have children at all. Suddenly when something is possibly taken away that you never even had you find that you really do want it. And then he told me that I'd better hurry up and have as many as we wanted since the condition would come back. So we siezed the moment and cranked them out LOL!

Can't imagine life w/o them and the first wknd away from them was T.O.U.G.H. tough. Sending the first one to Kindergarten made me sad but now I'm knocking on their school door to take them all! Boy am I ready to get back to decoratively painting furniture and art, decorating and gardening. Things I would spend hours on pre-kids.

Bet I'll be sad when I send the 1st away to college or whatever too.

I think I'll be a more relaxed mommy soon! Definitely one w/ a neater home!

I'm right there with you ttodd! My oldest will be in preschool for a half day, just 3 days a week and I am beyond excited to get a few hours a week. My little one will still be home, but I think I'll be able to get some things done around here. C'mon September 12!

I'm right there with you, though not feeling guilty about it. We had a good summer but I was ready to get back into the swing of things, and ready to have some time to do what I want to do. Taking three boys to a store is not fun and I avoid it at all costs! My boys are everything to me, but it's nice to have some time to do my thing.

We took our third and youngest to college a couple of weeks ago. Although I miss her, I am loving being a couple with my husband again. I don't feel guilty saying it either!

I love your home and can't wait to see more!

My dd is a senior in college. I still have moments when I'm planning my day and I realize with a start my time is my own. Other than work and dh and pets and....oh never mind!

Enjoy your you time!

I am the opposite as the teacher. Summers and breaks are the only times I can get major projects done! We don't have children.

I am so jealous. Half-day kindergarten here. I have one more year, and maybe I can FINALLY paint my pantry, the bed in the garage, the trim upstairs, and the list goes on.

Happy decorating!!

Sister, you and I are singing from the same sheet of music! My youngest started Kindergarten mid-August, only 1/2 day, but still, five days a week, and I am d-r-e-a-m-i-n-g of all the projects I've thus far been unable to. I wrapped books in the den in brown craft paper. I made a cafe curtain for the laundry room and I cleaned out my eldest's closet, visiting Container Store for a new closet system for him. I've been painting stripes to mimic mattress ticking on his walls, and in my youngest's room I have only started an ode to Damien Hirst.

Unfortunately every day I've had to go to my youngest son's school to assist in the Transition (he has Exceptional Needs, can neither speak nor understand any sort of communication, and other issues) and, shh, I'm kinda ready to not go! I'm resentful of all my time, MY time, that is being spent working for the school for free. So I'm a little bitter, but truth is I'll go as long as necessary because ultimately it's making things better and easier for him, not just his Team. And I really love him.

But at some point they'll get it and I'll be home going like gangbusters, just like you.

And then I'll take a nap.

Enjoy & congratulations!

Well, my oldest turned 12 this summer and, let me tell you, the feeling of freedom is almost the same as those first days of getting them in school. I got up early all summer and actually left the house without any children in tow and went for walks and bike rides. I even went grocery shopping without children. Often when I returned, they'd still be sleeping. It was bliss! I'm back to work teaching full-time now, so this time of year doesn't hold the pleasure it once did, but I will get through the year dreaming of next summer's solitary (and guilt free) mornings.

My only son goes off to college today! He's been packing the car for a week now and can't wait to leave.

I will miss him. No buts. I will miss him.

It has all gone so terribly fast.

..... sigh ....

Hehehe... *envy*

I only have one, she will be 3 at the end of Oct. She's in daycare, and I take her in (DH is in a vanpool for his work)... then drive an hour to work. So I'm essentially gone 6:45am - 6:00pm every day. Doing just about anything other than basic cleaning/tidying during the week is difficult, except for the odd occasion when I have a day off but daycare is still open -- and then I don't want to do jobs, I only want to spend an extra day with DD.

We're planning to paint a dining room and guest bedroom SOME TIME before the end of the year, and will probably have her spend a Fri & Sat night with my parents. That's a 3-way win. They get to have time with her, she gets to have time with them, and DH and I can actually do things that don't require us to be home OR quiet in the evening. :)

(BTW, I would normally hire out that paint job but our dog is super territorial/protective. If we gate him, he will either jump it, climb it, or bark incessantly. He won't bite anyone, but will stay about 10 ft away and bark non-stop. If we close him in another room, he will bark & scratch up the doors/walls. He's fine with just us, but SUPER protective of his "turf"... little %&$* cost me my cleaning lady because she couldn't stand the non-stop barking...)

Ha : ) I am having the same thing for the first time in my life, because DD will be going to public high school on 9/6. Instead of a few years off, it's been *15* years off, basically...and I'm going through the bends. I'll miss her around, but first on the schedule: complete the house remodels! (along with getting resume together -- but DH and I have decided the house comes first)

I'm going to have trade bids probably the second week of September. Maybe like mjsee I should offer them celebratory mimosas : ) (I don't have any public school mom friends--my community has been in hsing -- have to make a whole new set of friends--even DD is ahead of me because of music)

mclarke, I completely feel for you. I'm realizing we have four short years left together and it makes me ache. Not helping is DD's rather active freedom/independence instinct...I'm reading a book called _When we're in public, pretend you don't know me_ which DH found for me -- it's really helping me feel not so alone. I want to say "we have so little time left, sweetie -- let's do something amazing every day" but that's not exactly her agenda :\

I can relate to both sides, sending my youngest back to school and my oldest off to college in a few weeks and my middle child only a few short years away from that milestone herself. I'm filled with mixed feelings about it. Happy and proud for my DS who has grown up into a fine young man. It is the most amazing thing when you first start having "adult" conversations with your child or the realization that they are more knowledgeable in some areas than you. It seems such a short time that I too, was like ttodd "yippee, he's going off to school"; he was such an energetic and high maintenance child. No one understands how exhausting that is or having children squabble and having to run interference all day long during the summer unless you've been there. Ironically, DS and DD1 get along great now. Seeing how fast it goes, it is hard to see my youngest grow up. I want her to be my baby forever, but she just turned 10 last week! Parenthood is such an incredible experence, the most demanding, exasperating, at the same time wonderful and awe inspiring experience. I wouldn't change a moment for the world! OK, maybe a few!

Well Val that's good to hear that we really can survive the bickering and that they really can turn out to be good friends. Last night found me w/ a 5yr. old uncontrollably sobbing because his almost 8yr. old brother and his friend kept playing tricks and jokes on him for the better part of the afternoon.

I took him for a walk to calm down and talk w/ me. There's nothing more sad than listening to your 5yr old yelling:

'This was my most howwible day ever! Ever, ever, ever! It's just howwible! I want Daddy to go to work tomowwow and Brother and Sister to go to Noni's. I want to stay home by myself fowever w/ only you Mommy! PEAS?!'

All sobs faded once he found a wall to walk on and conquer. That is until he fell off of at the highest point and ended up w/ the worlds largest brush burns on his belly and arms.

'Now it weally, weally, weally IS the most howwible day ever!' he screamed.

Sigh......