A Day at the Beach

Out of sheer boredom and a driving to desire to Get! Out! of the! HEAT!, we took a drive north.  It brought us to Port Huron, and the melding of the St. Clair River with Lake Huron.  Until recently, we did not know about the sandy beaches and calm waters of the Lake.  Nor did we know of the random beach closures due to E. coli.  By continuing our journey north, we prevailed.  A lovely stretch of sandy beach was found and claimed to be our own: Lakeport State Park  Day Use Area, to be exact. (Note: this location requires the Michigan Recreation Passport.  We didn't have one, but it was mid-week & the entrance wasn't staffed, so we took our chances.)

This man was in love with the sand, the water, and the sunshine. 

This girl paddled and dove and built a masterful sandcastle.

(Look at those legs!  I swear, she has grown 3 inches this summer)

Although the beach was far more rocky than my old Southern California haunts, we acclimated.  A few feet into the lake, the poky rocks turned to soft sand and I was content to hover in the water while my children plotted and dug and poured sand to their hearts' content.  Despite the sizzling sun, it was still 15 degrees cooler by the lake than at home.  After hours of sunscreen, paddling, rock throwing, moat building, and snorkeling, we headed home.  

Our evening was capped off by spotting this:

  Although we personally did not taste-test the efficacy of this statement, I stand by my credo: If you have to use neon to claim how great your food is, it probably isn't.  

Tangled

It seems this is truly a year of changes, as Big Sis did something I never thought would happen.....

She had her hair cut!

We had talked about it for a while, but I really didn't think she'd go through with it.

Before:

(hair halfway down her back)

After!

She is adorable with her bob, and it seems to offer the best of both worlds.  Long enough to still use headbands, hairbows, and even form 2 ponytails, but short enough that 80% of her tangles have been eliminated. I think she loves her new Summer 'do!

Nowhere to Go, Nothing to Say

My husband asked me today why I haven't posted lately.

My response:  "I don't know.  I just don't have much to say.  And I'm sure nobody wants to hear me talk about how much I'm looking forward to getting out of here and on to Ohio."

To be clear:  I will miss the people, but not the place.  More on that later.

And really, I'm trying to live in the now.  Every day that we wake up to cool breezes and sunny skies feels like a gift.  Summer is NOT my season, but this weather makes every day a joy.  I've been trying my best to embrace summer, and enjoy the little moments.  The kids are staying up late and sleeping in.  We play and dance and take walks and ride bikes and eat popsicles.  We splash and run and kick and jump.  Sometimes we shop and paint nails and pile on the bed to read stories.  So raise your glass to all the good that summer can bring.  Because so far, I am enjoying every minute of it.

Summer Resolutions

Summer, I am not a fan of you.  I know you know, but I just wanted to make sure we're on the same page. I don't like your heat, your humidity, your blazing sun.  I don't like that your favorite gifts are burned skin, frizzled hair, and beads of sweat.

But Summer, I am willing to do my part to make things better.

Instead of lazing around the house all day, we're going to get up each morning & work on our chores and workbook pages.  We're going to plan something different to look forward to each week - a picnic, a playdate, an outing to the splashpad, an indoor playplace, a trip to the movies - something to get us out of the heat into the fun. I signed up Big Sis for a daycamp at a local elementary school, so she'll have crafts and playtime in the afternoons.  We're going to take walks and snap pictures and eat popsicles and splash in the tiny blowup pool in the backyard.

So Summer, what are you going to do for me?

Summer Recap

A few days after the Autumn Equinox seems like the perfect time for a summer recap, especially since I haven't blogged in almost a month.  

4th of July sparklers

Then the kids & I were off to Julian, CA for my sister's wedding.  

A short drive later, we were in Nevada for 3 weeks with Grandma & Grandpa!

There were fashion shows....

A camping trip in the new "rig".

Lots of time spent throwing rocks into the stream. 

And of course, the post-camping clean up.  

Big J wanted to be just like Grandpa, 

so when it was time to wash the car

he pulled his quad up & got to work! 

A little brother/sister bonding time.  

(Believe it or not, they did take turns)

A real highlight of the trip was riding on the Big Quad with Grandpa. 

A freak hailstorm rolled through one day. 

In less than an hour, the temperature dropped almost 40 degrees.  It hailed for over an hour, then we had blue skies and sunshine once more.  

September brought the long-anticipated return to school. 

First grade began with a new school, and she is loving it. 

And finally, I had to squeeze in a photo shoot!

This is not one of the 'best' shots, but it has character, and I love it.  

Yep, that's about it for summer 2010.  

No need to document the many days spent melting in the Detroit heat, nor my constant whining about it.  

I swear, wherever we move next is going to have central air.  

I insist.  

Summer Happenings

Big Sis worked on this tooth for weeks.

Daddy finally had to yank it out.

Traumatic for all, but the Tooth Fairy's visit made up for it.

We've also been spending lots of time on this.

Good thing it's summer, and he can run around wearing as little as possible!

I think we started a bit early, but he's doing well.

(Note: the quilt on the couch was a precautionary measure)

The above is just for cuteness.

We call it "sleep-pouting".

It doesn't happen often, but is highly amusing when it does.

His new signature move.

When performed while shouting "Check out The Two!", it never fails to bring smiles.

Thanks to Big Sis for gifting him with this.

Summer is Kickin' My Butt

I'm going to blame the heat.

Yes, yes - it's the heat!

The hot, hot heat - with extra humidity!!

I know, you think I am whining (and I AM), but seriously. This morning it was 83 degrees inside the house, with 73% humidity.

Although I am grateful (so, so grateful) for the window A/C units we purchased in May & installed in 2 of the bedrooms, I still melt into a greasy puddle by the end of each endless summer day.

By 7pm it takes all of my energy rouse myself enough to douse myself with icy water and then collapse onto the bed beneath the constant humming of Energy Star machine-cooled air.

Even the 100+ degree temperatures of Nevada did not exhaust me in the same way. At least there we could open the windows after sunset and let the cool mountain breezes bathe us in refreshment.

I am also in the midst of a new workout routine and a 5-day "food plan", so that may have something to do with my lethargy, too. More on that later.

I guess the point of this post is that I have little to report. For now.

It's supposed to cool off on Friday, so perhaps my creative juices will percolate again & bubble over by the weekend.

Hope you are having a lovely - and cool - summer.

The End of Summer

This is the first summer in years that I have been eager for summer to begin, and enjoyed every day of it. We had such a great time. We had family come to visit, went to the Zoo, hit the farmer's market, went to Chicago for a long weekend, I started (and stuck with!) an exercise program, participated in our first 4th of July parade, Big Sis had swim lessons, I had a birthday, we went to the Fair, we hit the park a ton, went to the pool..... it doesn't sound like all that much, but we kept very busy. And of course Big J changed so much over the summer - he's a totally different boy! I can't believe it's now September and school starts this week. It'll be Christmas before we know it! Could I use any more exclamation points?!!!!!