I know it's been forever, because unfortunately that's just what happens in summer. Not because I don't want to sit down and write, but because I physically and mentally can't. Not that it's some big challenge to write this stuff, but at the end of a summer day after driving 40 miles around a two mile radius I am, well, hot and exhausted. Who isn't? With the stifling heat of the last few weeks, when we are actually home I allow the kids to take over my computer or sit with the X-box in the cool air of the basement for stretches of time so that they too can relax, be still, and literally chill.
Every day when I'm piloting my Mommy bus about town I think of posts I would like to write yet as soon as I am able to get them from my brain to my fingertips, I'm cashed. Done. Spent. Over it. One of the topics I have wanted to write about is exactly the psychology of the inertia of summer- that constant spin, the perpetual motion, the days that melt together until, BAM! It's August 1st. It really is a hamster on a wheel scenario that is a whole lotta fun, exciting to be a part of, and a true blip in time that leaves you breathless. All the good, bad, sweaty, sweet, non-stop excited exhaustion that is a Midwestern summer is in full swing. I know it's not good practice to quote someone else's stuff when finally sitting down to write after a long absence, but this one was just too good. I know we can all relate to this and my blogging heroine Peevish Mama just captured the feeling of summer so perfectly.
"It’s amusing to me that a mere couple weeks ago, I was fretting about how it just didn’t feel like summer. Now I have my head so far up summer’s ass, I can’t even see straight. Or maybe my head is up my kids’ asses, or my minivan’s ass. Or maybe Edina Country Club’s ass. Or Neutrogena Ultra Sheer Dry-touch Sunblock’s ass. Whichever ass it is, and pardon the vulgar metaphor, I was under the impression that this summer was streaking by and I was helplessly watching from the sidelines. Same blur as a couple weeks ago, different reasons."
Is that not perfect? At least for the folks in my 'hood I know it is. I love summer, truly I do and I believe this is one of our best on record. I am loving the sports, the pool, the impromptu BBQ's with friends that erupt when they hear a cork "pop" from over the hedge, the 24 hour out-of-town visits from best friends, the excitement of family arriving for a few sweet days of laughter and reconnection, my anticipated dread/love for our upcoming roadtrip to California next month- it's all fabulous stuff but seriously, I am so far up summer's ass it's not even funny.
It's a lot to be packed into a small space on the calendar, but the exhaustion is sooo worth it. We have been afforded a few lazy mornings this past month and a half when baseball practice graciously allows us to sleep late and linger in the morning. I must say it is an absolutely delicious slice of heaven to enjoy the stillness and cherish the fact that I am not dashing to and from fifteen different places with the perpetual fear that one of my kids or God forbid someone else's is going to be left standing in the 99 degree heat wondering where the hell I am because my head has finally spun straight off my neck. I know these peaceful mornings would be the optimal time to write, but instead I have chosen to savor the luxury of doing "nothing" amidst the daily tornado of doing too much.
As I did last summer, it is fun to look back on my phone and enjoy the photos from the past couple of months. Here a few of the highlights.
A summer BBQ
A solid summer haircut (clearly this is the "before")
Mother son moment at Minnehaha Falls
Every summer needs a magical concert
And a parade
My golfing cutie
A beautiful lakeview
And it's not over yet.
Cheers!
And it's not over yet.
Cheers!
