Crawling Toward the Finish Line, and the One Thing Keeping Us Going

I’m not trying to be dramatic here, but some of you may be able to relate. The month of May is tough for families with kids in school.

The kids are burned out on school. Teachers are hanging on by a thread. In the next few weeks, we have to get through state-wide standardized testing on multiple days as well as final class assignments.

On top of that, there are a gazillion end-of-year events going on. Choir concerts, gymnastics exhibition, sports banquets, academic award ceremonies, class parties, and the list goes on.

My entire family is barely making it to the finish line. Three more weeks. We can do it, right? First world problems, for sure.

There is one thing motivating us to keep moving toward the finish line.

The One Thing…

Yes, it’s travel. We are going on a cruise as soon as school gets out. This cruise has been postponed countless times due to Covid. Here at home, we’ve had a couple months of rainy, windy weather. Spring break was a bit of a bust in terms of weather with just one sunny day. A week on the open seas with sunshine has never sounded so good.

We all want to sleep in. I want to not worry about what to cook for dinner. At this point, I honestly don’t care if the on-board activities are canceled. I’d be content to sit on the balcony and read a book with the breeze on my face.

My kids keep bringing up the cruise. It’s the light at the end of the tunnel, the carrot at the end of the stick. (Covid, you better not ruin this for us!)

Travel is much more than the week away. It’s also the hope and anticipation of getting away. It’s the knowledge that relaxation and a change of scenery are on the horizon. And, those things should not be underestimated.

I know we’re fortunate to have the opportunity to travel so much. Earning miles and points through credit card rewards has played a huge role, obviously. But, we still need to carve out time and budget to make it fit into the big picture.

Is anyone else crawling to the finish line? What are you looking forward to this summer?