I used to hear friends say how excited they were for summer to come because they got to sleep in when school was out. This was not the case for us. My dad was a school teacher, so he was home more in the summer. We would wake up at 6:30 to do our chores, like milking goats, feeding the animals, and picking the fruit or vegetables on our little farm. Whatever was in season, we were picking something. We didn’t have much idle time. After we did our morning chores, we would eat breakfast. It the summer we usually had more time to help mom make good breakfasts like French Toast, biscuits, pancakes, or waffles. To this day, breakfast is one of my favorite meals to make and eat. After breakfast, we would divide up the rest of the chores and have some down time after lunch to play all kinds of card and board games.
    I think my childhood memories are some of my happiest, because these were simple times. We had a schedule to follow that was a safe space to be in. We were sheltered from the outside world, and we knew we were loved. Was it perfect? No! But it was perfect for us at the time.