Wednesday, June 3, 2009

Prelude to Summer

Of all the seasons, summer is my least favorite. Here's the thing: I like hoodies, baking, being chilly, and getting cozy. I don't like sweat, sun-screen, mosquitoes or sweat. Whereas most people get a litle case of the winter-time blues, summer is my season for the doldrums. It's especially disheartening in Texas when the forecasted highs flirt with the century mark for four straight months. And sweat is your constant companion. And the drone of your air conditioner reminds you of the spiking utility bill that looms.

You're not used to such pessimism around here, are you? I'm not either.

Anyhow, this afternoon we got a little stir-crazy up in here (and it's only June 3rd!), so I de-winterized Henry's sandbox (ie pulled it out from behind the shed and blasted all the cobwebs out of its corners), filled it with hose-water, and let my children praddle around in it. I couldn't resist a few snaps of the li'l miss in her "I Love the 80's" swimsuit and not-matching plaid sun-hat. Oh, and she ate a li'l dirt, too.



See?


The time passed happily until I spotted a spider crawling down my arm and then sustained three itchy (mosquito?) bites in like 4 minutes and said, "Enough! Everybody in!" It was a blur of toweling, swim-diaper-sheding, bathing, drying, wet-garment-hanging and redressing. And then...finally...there was a hint of calm.

Now there are towels and trunks draped o'er every hook and knob in the house. And as I sit here, semi-entranced by the neon frogs on Henry's trousers, I wonder (lament?), what are we going to do with ourselves for the next 4 months? Little people can only be in the sun for so long. But they can't be cooped indoors too long either. We don't have a pool. The playground equipment will burn our buns.

I haven't pandered for advice for quite a while, but tonight, dear friends, I come to you with a question:
What are you going to do all summer? And do you have any suggestions for us?

11 comments:

  1. let's see. this summer we'll pack up the kids and head to the ocean in cali for a few weeks. then, we'll head down to moab for a short camping trip. i say pack up the kids and head to oregon for a few weeks! or, come to utah and visit old friends in the oak hills 7th ward!

    ReplyDelete
  2. I'm not crazy about summer either. I love spring and fall, but I despise being sweaty and gross, and I confess my kids don't play outside during the day very much all summer long. Early morning and late evening, but afternoons--ick. We do tend to spend a fair amount of time at our community pool, and we have an inflatable pool in our backyard that's our go-to activity of choice (usually the lucky kids get to splash in that while I'm sweltering next to them in the garden).

    ReplyDelete
  3. Come play with us! Sometimes a change of scenery is all you need (and another air conditioned house). I'm with you though on the whole summer thing. I get tired of the bathing suits and wet towels hanging around my house, but the kids certainly love the pool.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Well, I am from Arizona so I don't mind a little heat. However, I do respect my kids skin and don't want them in the sun (all the time). I do think an inflatable pool is worth its weight in gold. You can fill it in the morning and by 12 it will be 80 degrees.
    We are BIG fans of indoor playgrounds at all of our malls- excellent choice of activity.
    We love visiting:
    Barnes and Noble
    Ikea
    Aquariums
    friends
    pet shops

    And a change in scheduling is always in order for the summer. We get up and OUT by 8 a.m. so we can get an hour of play in before it's way too hot. That way at 10 a.m. I'm not lamenting that it's already too hot. I've already had them out for an hour.

    Good luck...Florida was hard in the summer. Water, water balloons, water and popcicles.

    ReplyDelete
  5. The public library- always air conditioned, and usually something interesting going on. If all else fails you can always make up a quiet game to play while wandering the maze of library aisles, like a "follow and copy the leader without making a sound, but from 10 steps behind" kinda game. Tough question, though...

    ReplyDelete
  6. summer I plan on eating a lot, enjoying not being pregnant and sweaty, playing outside, and going to the pool. That's about it for us.

    It will be so awesome...

    ReplyDelete
  7. This is the very question I have been pondering myself as my kindergartener and 3rd grader finish up their school year. I'm checking out the Parks and Rec programs for our city along with swimming at the community pool and hanging out at the library. We are planning to do a craft a week, catch up on some scrapbooking, reading books together, and just enjoying one another! Sounds like all the above suggestions are right on track!

    ReplyDelete
  8. I saw your comment on Anne's blog and when I saw what you wrote about today, I just had to comment. I hate the summer! Virginia isn't as bad as Texas, but we have really terrible humidity- the second I walk outside, my curly hair becomes a tangled ball of frizz. And the mosquitoes, and ticks, and earwigs, and cricket spiders, and bats!! And through all of this, us "ladies" are expected to glisten, not sweat.

    I could go on and on, but I'm sure you get the idea :) Your daughter is adorable and I love that hat!

    ReplyDelete
  9. I loved you post, even though I love Summer! But I do hate being cold, so I can sympathize with you.

    Your little girl is absolutely cute!!

    I'm planning on swimming, barbecuing, making low fat ice cream, gardening, and staying cool. Good luck with Summer!

    ReplyDelete
  10. I can barely figure out what to do with myself for one day...let alone an entire summer.

    good luck though

    and I LOVE Lily's digs. She looks older (but ever as sweet) all of a sudden. Stop that.

    ReplyDelete
  11. I am wondering the same...we have 2 totally different age groups to please here...9 yr old and 1 yr old...hmmm

    We have a covered blow up pool so I am sure that will be fun for us. Library, painting, 50 cent movies, swimming at friend's pools (invitations anyone?) And I am at a loss...

    You guys should come over for a "movie day" Jeffrey would love to have Henry over to our place to watch a movie and play in the water with him! The girls could play in the pool too :)

    dont be a stranger!

    ReplyDelete