We're in the middle of summer break now, and my days are just not the same. Like thousands of other parents, I drive my daughter to middle school each day.

        My reasons for driving her are selfish. It allows her 20 extra minutes of sleep each day and keeps early morning battles to a minimum. I also drive three other middle school students who live in our neighborhood, all good friends of my daughter.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Mary Mullee Applebaum, 46, is a Special Education teacher at Stewart Elementary School in Oxford. Her car pool members Julia Applebaum, Adrienne Bader, Jessie Stephenson and Sarah Lintner attend Talawanda Middle School in Oxford.

        What makes our car pool special is our ritual of “Song of the Day.” Early in the year, after enduring the radio station switching that went on the entire ride, I proposed the idea that each day, one of us would bring a CD with her pick of a special song. There is usually enough time to play 1 1/2 songs.

        Here is how our morning routine goes:

        7:05: I'm giving one-minute updates to my daughter. “Julia, get your shoes on.” “Finish brushing your hair.” “HURRY!”

        7:10: We pull into Jessie's driveway. We can see Jessie's house from ours, but Jessie is late most days. She is usually eating her breakfast as she gets into the car. Next we pick up Adrienne at the bottom of the street. Ade is always ready. Finally on to Sarah's one street over. She comes running out every day, loaded down with athletic bag and backpack jingling.

        Being creatures of habit, the girls sit in the same place every day. Poor Jessie — squashed in the middle! Now we are ready for “Song of the Day.” Whoever's day it is passes the CD to Julia, face down. The pick is always top secret until the moment she presses play.

        Monday is my day. No matter what I play, it is not right for a Monday. I can always count on Sarah to know the words to all our songs, but on Mondays even her voice is subdued. When I get home on Monday afternoon, my daughter critiques my selection. Usually I get the thumbs down. My taste runs in the direction of rock and country singers. I almost always choose women singers.

        Tuesday is Jessie's day. She forgets a CD as often as she remembers one. Fortunately, we have the CD “graveyard” in the car; those extra, caseless CDs that never make it back into the house. When she does remember her day, Jessie leans toward “PG rap” songs. I never know the songs; the girls just roll their eyes at me when I ask.

        Wednesday is Sarah's day. Sarah chooses the widest variety of songs. She'll play a Disney tune, country bands like Charlie Daniels (her dad's influence) or pop groups. We can always count on Sarah to have a good song. As I said before, she will always be singing.

        Thursday is Adrienne's day. She also brings a wide variety of songs ranging from Broadway musicals to country bands to pop groups. She usually chooses women singers also.

        Friday is Julia's day. Since it's Friday, we usually like her songs, regardless of what she chooses. Julia favors movie soundtracks and female pop stars. Her picks are usually fast and upbeat.

        Since we started “Song of the Day,” several unwritten rules have emerged. The first is the “no repeat” rule. In the 160-plus days we've been carpooling, we've only had two or three repeats. Usually Ade and I are the guilty parties. It's OK to repeat a second song, but never the first.

        Also, no one can look at the CD before it starts. Julia is the official starter and volume control person. Another rule we have is no making fun of anyone's pick. I'm sure we've all had songs we couldn't stand, but out of courtesy to each other, mum's the word. You can roll your eyeballs, but that's it! I must confess, when we started “Song of the Day,” I thought we'd be hearing Britney Spears, Backstreet Boys and 'NSync over and over, but we barely ever choose them. I'm proud of the wide range of songs and artists the girls choose.

        The school year has ended. Even though I'll still see the girls every day, it won't be the same. I've loved driving them, and have cherished the time we've spent together. I think they have also. Iwas going to ask Ade if we could change days the last week. I wanted to close out the year. (After all I'm the driver.) However, her Mom let me in on a little secret. We had already chosen the same song. As soon as everyone was in the car, we blasted that famous Alice Cooper song, “School's Out For Summer!”

        Come August, we'll begin again. School starts on a Tuesday, Jessie's day. I just hope she remembers her CD!

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        • E-mail: Nancy Berlier, Deputy Features Editor, at nberlier@enquirer.com.
        • Mail: In My Life, Tempo, Cincinnati Enquirer, 312 Elm St., Cincinnati 45202
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