Working Parents, Summer Break, and the Annual Camp Olympics

Every spring, like clockwork, a quiet panic sets in.

It starts with a faint whisper, like “What are your plans for summer?”, and spirals into full-blown pandemonium by mid-May. Because here's the thing: kids are out of school for 8 to 12 weeks. Ten, if you’re like us. And while the school year ends, adult life keeps right on going. Work doesn’t stop. Bills don’t pause. No one’s checking in on how we’re going to manage it all. We’re just expected to figure it out.

And figuring it out feels a lot like trying to solve a jigsaw puzzle with half the pieces missing! Or playing Tetris with blocks that don’t fit!

3 Reasons Summer Planning Feels Like an Olympic Sport

1. The Hours Make No Sense
This year, I started looking at camps in April. Honestly, I should’ve started in January, when the good ones were first announced. But I was overwhelmed. And I knew, from years of experience, that I’d likely be choosing between camps that cost an arm, a leg, and a lung… for three hours of programming a day.

One volleyball camp I found was three weeks long (not even the usual six) from 9:00 AM to 12:00 PM. Who, tell me, is dropping their child off at 9 and picking them up at noon? What job allows for that? What kind of work schedule is this for — freelancers with no clients?

It’s like the system assumes we all just stop working for the summer or have a live-in nanny, which would be adorable if it weren’t so insulting.

2. The Burden Always Falls on Moms
Even when it works out, like this year, when Ava opted for a theater camp and my husband’s school happened to offer a new one that was cheaper and sounded like a blast, I’m still the one coordinating it all. It’s not a complaint so much as a reality check.

I mapped out her summer:

• 1 week of family vacation

• 4 weeks of theater camp

• 2 weeks of faith-based camp

• 3 weeks bouncing between grandparents and each parent

A tight little puzzle. And yet, when I asked for help with transportation to the theater camp, I was met with:

“It’s too far,” from her dad.
“I can help sometimes,” from my husband.

Which, of course, meant: I’m doing it. Cue the moment where I have a breakdown in the car. Not because it’s hard to drive. But because it’s hard to be the one who always has to think of it all.

3. It’s a Full-Time Job to Piece It Together
There’s no standardization. No blueprint. Just a mom with a Google Sheet and a deadline.

I spent an entire afternoon with a matcha latte, tabs open for every camp I could find—volleyball, faith-based, theater, STEM, sports, dance. I made columns: dates, costs, hours, location, and what it covered. Then I tried to make it all line up like some sort of childcare Sudoku!

And here’s the kicker: even with my steady job and the privilege of having family nearby, I still felt like I was scrambling.

When I think back to my childhood summers, they were simple. I went to the local park’s camp, or stayed home watching Sister, Sister reruns and devouring Babysitters Club books. There was space to just be. Now, I want my daughter to have those dreamy, carefree days too. But I also want her to have access to camps and enrichment that I didn’t get. So I work hard to create a summer for her that’s balanced.

But it shouldn’t take this much hustle to give a child that.

If I Could Redesign the Whole System…

It would look like this:

• Camps that mirror school hours: 8:00 AM to 3:00 PM, with optional before- and after-care

• Programming that enriches and excites, not just occupies

• Sliding scale pricing or subsidies that match what families can afford

• Community-wide coordination, so parents aren’t competing for the same 10 spots

• And yes, a little space for doing absolutely nothing, because rest is a form of enrichment too

Advice for the Overwhelmed Parent

Here’s my best tip: Make a list. Of non-negotiables and nice-to-haves. Open a spreadsheet. Write down every camp you find. Block off your weeks. Piece it together like a timeline. And then, take it week by week.

It doesn’t have to be perfect. You don’t have to entertain your child every second. And you’re doing enough. Truly.

Let's Talk About It

If you’re also drowning in summer logistics, I see you. If you’ve cracked the code, I want to know how. Drop a comment below or share this with the parent friend in your life who’s knee-deep in Google searches for “full-day summer camp near me.”

In the meantime, thank you for reading my Ted talk. Stay sane out here.