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Monday, June 21, 2010

On the First Day of Summer

Fun things to do:

1) Find a pool, lake, pond, brook to dip your body into and play/swim.
2) Find a good shady spot and nestle with a great book.
3) Find refreshing recipes for cool drinks and light hearty meals.
4) Gather friends to share some salsa/chips and drink a margarita or two.
5. Decorate your patio/backyard with garden lights and place strategic torches on the lawn filled with the right citronella fuel to ward off mosquitoes and then sit outside to enjoy an evening breeze.
6. Light up a grill and barbecue your favorite steak or chicken. Mmmm, yummy.


For me, the first day of summer is sort of like a halfway point of the year. It's on days like these, when the sun is really giving out the heat, that I stop to reflect upon my younger years and wonder how I got by without air conditioning? I recall constantly playing outside, wearing flip flops, and either rolling skating, riding my bike, or sitting in the shade playing barbies with my two best friends next door. Now as an adult, I really want to retreat indoors and the only way you find me doing anything outside is if it's not too hot or I'm near water or if there is food/drinks/friends involved. That's just me, though.

Today, my kids packed up a few snacks/drinks and decided they were going to the lake (just a fifteen minute drive away). I recall many times I would pack them up to do this when they were little. It was almost free ( usually about three bucks a car load to enter the park) and it was a great way to just let them swim until they were tired out from being in the sun. We would all come home being tanned. Ok, the first few times we'd come home red, but eventually our skin turned darker. I was surprised the kids were making this trek on their own, without their mama. They did ask if I wanted to tag along, but I thought, no. They are young and wanted to have fun. And I really didn't want to get away from the air condition. Ok, I admit it. I'm spoiled. But it's good they did an adventure on their own.

With graduation out of the way now, I can relax. My daughter, the high school senior, will become a freshman in college this fall. She is a grown up now, 18, and can figure out all the how's and why's of her life, with just a little help now and then from her mama. She's gotta learn how to make these decisions for herself and live with her own consequences, right? It's hard to let go, but then again, it's kind of nice too. I've been set free from the 100% demand of being the parent. It's my time to observe and see how well she can do it on her own; if I taught her right. We'll see.

There's time for all that, but for right now, with the temps climbing to 100 degrees and up, when I come home from a hard day at work, I just want to grab a good book and listen to some music. Once in awhile I will venture outside, with a cool drink in hand, and go read a book. And when my hubby comes home from his long day, I will ask if sandwiches will do for supper. Usually he nods as he works going in and out of a big truck all day, in the heat of it all. He's all for kicking back in the air conditioner for awhile and if he's in a really good mood, later in the evening, I can usually talk him into sitting in the tent screen outside, with the tiki torches and the garden lights all lit up. Then it feels sort of romantic for us who are young at heart.