Are We There Yet?

This may go down as the most unceremonious last week of school EVER.

Drew's friends are all getting out of school this week for the summer.  Some today, some on Friday.  So, in my mind I've sort of planned for this to be his last week of first grade, too.  Kind of.

I'm a little surprised at how the end of a school year has caught me so off-guard.  In all respects, homeschooling has been full of surprises.  The end of the year has been no exception.

Last year, I was co-homeroom mom for Kindergarten at Drew's school, and let me just tell you I KNEW when the end of the school year was approaching!  We were ordering pizzas and finishing up 5-yr old crafts and burning images on CDs for all the parents and buying teacher gifts.  There were plays and awards ceremonies and field trips and field days.  It was crazy, but it was fun.  And it was just the chaotic way a school year is supposed to end.

But for us?

Well, we finished math last week.  And I guess we're mostly done with science.  And reading is just an ongoing thing, so I know we'll be continuing that throughout the summer.  And spelling, well, we NEED to keep up with that through the summer months, too.  So it's been very hard for me to figure out exactly how and when I should wrap a bow on this package and call first grade DONE!

For those of you who might advise me that, perhaps learning is never really done, and I shouldn't concern myself too much over putting a "Last Day of School" on my calendar... I hear you, but

YOU HAVE GOT TO BE KIDDING, RIGHT?!!!

I need this finish line more than my son does.  I need an awards ceremony and a play and a pizza party and an apple, too.  So, I'll probably carve out some time this afternoon to visit some homeschooling sites and see if any other moms have figured out creative ways to wrap up and celebrate the accomplishment of another grade.

And I'll no doubt find some great, amazing ideas that I'll just HAVE to try.
And I'll have a day and a half to plan it all.
Which will be super hectic and chaotic.

Hey... just the way a good school year should end!