Ahh, summer

Here it is, almost 4 am, and I have been awake for almost two hours.  Poor baby woke up at 2 with a fever and a slightly barky cough/cry, so I snuggled her back to sleep, laid down for 30-45 minutes before throwing in the towel and coming downstairs to organize photos on the computer.  Amazing what you can accomplish when you can't sleep!  And since the three oldest are with grandma for the week, I can nap anytime the baby does, so I'm not too worried about not missing sleep.  Life is good!

Want to know something silly about me?  I start mourning the loss of summer on the summer solstice, maybe even a bit before.  My friend, Jenni, emailed me recently and said something like, "Spring and fall used to be my favorite seasons, but I'm beginning to think that summer is my new favorite."  I'm right there with her.  Autumn was my favorite season hands-down for many years, but my preference has been changing recently.  Three reasons I suspect the change is 1) My kids are now is school so I look forward to our playing during the summer.  I really hope to home school someday and I am dreading their going back to school.  I might actually cry when they do this year.  I love my little ducks at home with me.  2) I'm becoming ever more crunchy and am a semi-locavore (eating local foods), so I love all the fresh food that grows in the warm months.  3) While I am not old by any stretch, I do not like the cold.  I don't think I minded it much growing up, but now it bothers me just a bit.  And I love running in the mornings when it's nice and light and I can be in shorts and short-sleeved shirts or tank tops.  Okay, that was four reasons. :)

So here we are, the end of July, people are sending out back-to-school supply sales emails, and I just want to close my eyes, cover my ears and say, "Go away!" so I can peacefully enjoy the rest of my summer. 

We have been decorating in our home a lot and it is a blast!  It's so fun to make your home your own.  My dad made a cute apron hook for all the aprons my sis-in-law made for us last Christmas, so now I can display them instead of hiding them away in a drawer.  Love it!  My niece is going to do a couple of painting projects for me this weekend that I'm really excited about.  Silly confession #2: I am very proud of the decorating ideas I've come up with.  I don't have a Pinterest account *gasp;* all my ideas are my own.  Since corresponding with said niece regarding the painting projects, I've learned that others have done what I'm doing, but I didn't know they did, so I'm still claiming original thought.  I'll post pics after this weekend.  I know, I know, how will you endure a week of eager anticipation?  Console yourself by picking the last of the blueberry crop for this year. 

We did another family picture photo shoot.  Our family is so awkward with pictures that the results are never stupendous, but I suppose that suits us. :)  There are a couple of things I wish the photographer had noticed, like asking me to cross my ankles in the pics on the bench, or not having HH's face in the sunlight on our family pics in the grass, but oh well. 

 

Goombaw came for a visit and enabled HH and I to get away for a night to celebrate our 10th anniversary this year.  Holy cow, 10 years?!?  And HH and I have known each other for almost 20.  Again, I'm not old, but the fact that I can claim statistics like the ones above tells me that I am well beyond my mid-20s.  Besides my knee that sometimes acts up on me, I don't feel older than 25.  Thanks to good genes, lots of people don't think I am older than 25, so maybe I'll say that's my age anyway, but leave out the fact that I have a seven-year old.  Is that deceitful? :)

Guess who is finally walking?!?  That's right, ChunkE finally starting walking about two weeks ago. I love the beginning stage when their hands are up by their ears as they steady their toddling legs.  Also, how fast she tries to walk.  It's as if she's trying to cover as much distance as possible before the inevitable misstep.  She hasn't thinned out yet that I've noticed.  Good thing. Those rolls above her knee give me great comfort.  I'll miss those when they're gone.  Do you know what she did yesterday?  Pooped on the potty!  She felt it coming and said, "Poop" so I took her to the potty, sat her down, and out it came after a couple of minutes.  Awesome!!  I'm going to try potty training her this summer.  I've read that the Chinese potty train their kids between ages 12-18 months.  If it works, I'm done with diapers!  If not, oh well.  Hopefully we can keep her pooping on the potty if nothing else so she won't be scared of it like brother is. 

Now the question is, do I end the post now, with potty training as the final subject, or try to squeeze in one more.  Are you still with me, or was this post too long for our hyper-active attention spans? 

One more paragraph!  Great news!!!  My sister, Moose, moved into the area so we have family near us again. Wahoo!!!  We've seen them quite a bit, which I love.  I know once school starts (ack!) and they establish friendships with people in their area we will see them less, but I've loved having them near and getting together frequently.  Welcome to the area, family of Moose!