Friday, August 5, 2011

Those Lazy Hazy Crazy Days of Summer

Is it August already? It must be: it is hot! The wind is hot, the grass is hot, the water is hot. The pool is more like a hot tub by the end of the day, and the water flows hot from the faucets. We have had just a few summer thunderstorms (maybe two) in the past few weeks, and are desperate for more rain. Hot, hot, hot! The thermometer on my car read 108 today as the kids and I drove home from the market. Tonight I let them play much longer outside than usual--until 8:30. The sun was setting. It’s just too hot to play outside at any other time of day. They were having such a good time swimming and playing that I hated to bring it all to an end. Darling is really doing well with swimming. She is really starting to stretch out her movements and keep herself afloat while she moves through the water. She amazes me every day. Doodlebug is still shy about the water and wants her floaties. I have no problems with her leaving the shallow end-- that makes her too nervous! She is like a little water bug, though: she loves to splash! Pumpkin is quite the little daredevil. He did not want to get in the pool (the water was hot!), instead I let him play with the hose for a little bit. Then he wanted to swing and climb the tower. He also is very fascinated by the ants that have made a home in our flower bed. He watches them scurry around for many minutes at a time, and can very clearly say “An-tuh!”. He is very explosive with the t-sound! I know I will miss that when it disappears.

I found a pill bug (I used to call them roly-polies), and showed it to the kids. I had always thought that it was so much fun the way they curl their bodies up when you touch them, but the kids were far more interested in the dragonflies. There must have been two dozen dragon flies zipping over the grass in our backyard. Darling decided that she wanted to catch one, so she chased them around for several minutes with her net before she came to me, panting and sweating, and asked if I would please catch one for her. Lol. I hope the neighbors didn’t see me stalking dragonflies and waving my net around like a madwoman. I caught one, though! We put it in a pickle jar and looked at it closely, with its double, iridescent wings.

Then Doodlebug was determined that she would catch one, too:

This dragonfly had a yellow body, and it was not happy to be caught! I told the girls it would suffocate if we left the lid on the jar, so Darling took the lid off so it could breathe, and of course it escaped. Everyone was happy for it to fly to its home, though. That gentleness towards animals makes me so happy to see. I try to encourage that every chance I get.

As you can see, Pumpkin was more interested in the marigolds. He loves the garden and is always poking around there whenever we're outside. He loves to help me water and insists on holding the water hose. It warms my heart the way that he wants to help me. I want to nurture that quality--I hope it won't ever fade!

As you can see, we're always up to something and yet not really up to anything. How are you spending the final days of your summer break?

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