Back in May, when I picked up Max and Lucy from school on the last day, we watched a limo and two Ollie The Trolleys roll by, oozing with glee. They were filled with kids celebrating the end of school. I quickly distracted the kids by asking them if they just got a text.

Because our celebration was a limo in the form of a five-seater Mazda, ice cream at the house, and new Nerf guns.

This summer, our kids have done the following: Three day camps, six track meets, two road trips, Tuesday movies, several video games mastered, the summer reading program, 207 or more complaints of “There’s nothing to eeeeeat.” I’ve heard “There’s nothing to do” 4,599 times. Okay. I admit it. It gets a little old.

And now, we’ve made it through the majority of the summer. I will try to withhold my glee as I soon drive the kids to school, slow down to a respectable idling pace, and push the kids out of the car.

But, hold on. Slow down. I need to remember my summers with my kids are numbered.

The truth is, I will miss my kids. We do have great times together. We do make great memories. I know they enjoy the time—at least a good deal of the time.

It’s that balance we hope to create in our kids’ life. With every new school year, we hope they make good friends and make good choices when faced with dilemmas. I hope they learn easily and I hope they come to us for help.

But, honestly, just as excited as they are about reuniting with their friends, I am excited to reunite with my mom gang. It’s time for the kids to go learn and the parents to hop on the Ollie the Trolley for OUR party.

So I jump in and hi-five my mom pals.  We did it (again)!

Read more of Murrell’s work at momontherocks.com.