Working Parents - how do you handle summers?

[Anonymous]

My kids stopped doing camps last year at ages 8 and 11. They refused to go.

We got a babysitter some of the summer, they visited relatives for 2 weeks, mom took a vacation one week, dad took a vacation one week. (Divorced)

This year they are entertaining themselves or relatives or vacation. We are remote a lot of days now.

[Anonymous]

Telework helps a LOT. Allows us to more easily stagger our schedules and do drop off and picked up at reasonable times without aftercare.

It’s not rocket science — I used to spend 10-12 hours a week commuting. I cut that in half by teleworking 2-3 days a week, and spend that time on my family.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Camps with extended care. The only people whom I know whose kids did swim team had a SAHP or a sitter.

+1 Swim team is for SAHM families.

A lot of the families on our neighborhood team are not SAHM families. But they seem to have one or both parents available a lot on the late afternoon. I'm actually shocked how many families there are who have BOTH parents hanging out at swim practice. I wonder when they work?? I do contract work from home, usually part-time so I can do drop off and pick up, but there is no way my spouse could be hanging out at swim practice at 4:30 pm. It's a fairly UMC neighborhood and I wonder how people earn the money that they seem to when it seems like they don't work much!

Haha our neighborhood is the same. I do see a few parents on calls and even laptops by the pool. Literally "phoning it in" lol.

This my my family. My spouse is a GS-14 with 2 in-person days, one mandated to be Tuesday. I WFH 100% as a department lead for back office (Finance / HR / IT) at a government contractor. I control my schedule.
We carpool with another family for camps, so we have 5 spots to fill weekly. Usually my husband starts 30 min late 2 days a week and I schedule a break 4-4:45pm 3 days a week. When I have my early pick-up day, I start work at 7:30am. When my husband starts late, he comes home later. We both work 30-60 min in the evening most days to schedule meetings, reply to emails, and get set up for the next day. We often both take a break to walk to pick up our kids together during the school year and you will see us both at Monday evening swim meets in the summer because we prioritize that. I can’t remember the last time I took an hour for lunch unless it was a business meeting at a restaurant. I heat up a can of soup or some leftovers and eat at my desk while in meetings 95% of the time so that I have time to get kids to those 5pm practices.

I also recognize I have more flexibility than many people and I always offer to carpool or help out neighbors if there is space in the car and their kids are going the same place as mine.

Same.

I start work at 7:30 AM, and telework 2-3 days a week. I’m officially off the clock at 4, and I always end up working more in the evenings. The pool is a couple of blocks away. Swim practice is in the morning, and I sometimes will watch and respond to emails, and do some reading poolside but not always. Our pool has camp after practice which is amazing. One night a week we have a meet, sometimes two, and I am on deck for a couple of hours officiating or setting up. Yes, I have flexibility. No I am not “phoning it in”, I am working full time plus some. It is doable.

[Anonymous]

My DH and I are feds who work in person. He works in person exclusively. Our elementary aged kids do:

early morning swim team at our pool with a day camp until 4 pm. They have swim and tennis plus other fun recreational games then free time in the pool. We have a friend who is a teacher pickup and we get after 6. She is already at the pool with her children and we carpool for travel soccer during the school year.

my sons go to a day camp that is from 7am-6 pm from their after care provider. It is so easy and perfect for working parents. They go swimming 2x a week and 2x a week on a field trip (sports event, outdoors, museum, aquarium, etc.)

My older son does some specialty camps and I flex my schedule. I do the drop off and then stay later and the other families do the pickups. Both sons do a few camps where we pay for extended day or before care. My older son goes to a few camps next to my office where I can drive and pick him up and then he just reads in my office until I go home. I hotspot if it's a really terrible schedule (hey sailing camp).

He goes to sleep away camp and we pay for the bus there and then my DH and I use time off to pickup.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My kids stopped doing camps last year at ages 8 and 11. They refused to go.

We got a babysitter some of the summer, they visited relatives for 2 weeks, mom took a vacation one week, dad took a vacation one week. (Divorced)

This year they are entertaining themselves or relatives or vacation. We are remote a lot of days now.

Why are your 8 and 11 yo running the house?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Camps with extended care. The only people whom I know whose kids did swim team had a SAHP or a sitter.

This.

[Anonymous]

My company is not flexible at all. So camp all day with extended day it is.

We take vacation during the summer, so our family looks forward that.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My kids stopped doing camps last year at ages 8 and 11. They refused to go.

We got a babysitter some of the summer, they visited relatives for 2 weeks, mom took a vacation one week, dad took a vacation one week. (Divorced)

This year they are entertaining themselves or relatives or vacation. We are remote a lot of days now.

Why are your 8 and 11 yo running the house?

DP. I didn’t see this as them running the house necessarily. Just having a say in coming up with an alternate arrangement that takes their preferences / suggestions into consideration. It’s probably also cheaper! Decisionmaking can be collaborative. Why force kids to do something meaningless that makes them miserable?
Of course I don’t know if that’s what the initial poster meant but that’s where my mind went.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My kids stopped doing camps last year at ages 8 and 11. They refused to go.

We got a babysitter some of the summer, they visited relatives for 2 weeks, mom took a vacation one week, dad took a vacation one week. (Divorced)

This year they are entertaining themselves or relatives or vacation. We are remote a lot of days now.

Why are your 8 and 11 yo running the house?

DP. I didn’t see this as them running the house necessarily. Just having a say in coming up with an alternate arrangement that takes their preferences / suggestions into consideration. It’s probably also cheaper! Decisionmaking can be collaborative. Why force kids to do something meaningless that makes them miserable?
Of course I don’t know if that’s what the initial poster meant but that’s where my mind went.

Some parents don't care. I agree with you though. If you have the options or ability, I'd prefer options that make my kids happy.