Welp, tomorrow is the first day of school, so I guess that means it’s officially Not Summer right about now. I have mixed feelings about this. On the one hand, I do love me a good change of season, and there are things about summer that I am pretty much done with (namely: super hot, burnt grass, 12 hr kid days with no breaks, don’t want to cook). On the other hand, there are things about summer that I love, of course (beach, lazy days chillin’ with kids, Alex home more, garden veggies, light until 8pm, Alex takes kids to the pool a lot), and I will miss those things. Fall is my favorite season, however, so I mostly look upon the end of summer with a generally positive attitude. We went shopping for school supplies the other day and my heart leapt!!
I wanted to update this blog more this summer but I am usually pretty wiped after looong days with the kiddies. Hopefully I will write more once we get in our routine again. In the meantime, here are some brief highlights of Summer 2011, courtesy of my cell phone and Twitpic:
Aidan on the last day of 1st grade
Harper’s cukes were great! This summer we grew three kinds of tomatoes, cukes, 3 types of peppers, canteloupe, okra, and lots of herbs.
Maeve’s hair grew long enough to do fun ponytail tricks.
We had a yard sale with our neighbor friends. It was so great to get rid of junk (my fave obsession) and we made $150. Aidan sold his origami at a little table and made $2.50! Nice!
Eno River, so fab. We love this place sooo much. One trip Aidan must have stood in a chigger patch, though, because he was chigger bait for weeks, poor thing.
LOTS of time at the museum. Aidan attended two weeks of day camp there (Jr. Lego Robotics and Jr. Architects — both huge hits) and we spent approx. 32 hrs per week there. Love it. Never gets old. Maeve is the newest addict — every single night at bedtime as she lays her head down she says, “Mama, we can go to the wy-seum?” She knows it’s the MUseum but for some reason sticks to her way of saying it. She wants to lock me down every night. I’m sorry to tell you that I lie to her every time she asks. I know it’s not right, but hey, it’s bedtime, and sometimes bedtime requires drastic measures. “Yes, sure, we’ll go to the museum.”
Harper got his first library card! I paid $92 in library fines! (Wish I were kidding.) I have a bad history with the library — don’t ask. But I’m walking the straight and narrow now!
Durham Bulls games! I think we went to three this summer, including one that I organized for my extended family. We had over 3o relatives in attendance — it was awesome.
Lots of time spent hanging around the house playing. Crafts, games, friends — good times. Mostly in pjs.
Popsicles. Man, I love these Tovolo molds. We get so much use out of them. Fave blend is a watermelon smoothie — watermelon, strawbs, rasp sorbet, lime, and a pinch of salt. YUM and great for using extra watermelon leftovers.
4th of July bike parade in Watts Hillandale. So much fun, so incredibly hot. They ran out of lemonade and cupcakes, too. Huge bummer, so we went to Mad Hatter’s and made amends.
Out on the town. Scratch bakery, bowling, Alex and I at Harry Potter 7.2, Duke Gardens, Alex and I at Hillsong United concert. Fun!
Out of town trips. Amazing week at Wrightsville with my family, lots of time in VA with the fam as well. First pic here is at Wolf Trap venue in Vienna, VA. Second is Mae and this ridiculous pink dog that my dad bought her at the beach, which, of course, she adores.
But the biggest news to come out of the summer is………..
We’re moving.
Around the corner. No, really, I can almost see it from my house.
We got this wild idea about the middle of July, we got our house on the market in about seven days, and we sold it about eight days later. It was so crazy fast, you guys. It has been a huge stress and has taken up most of the second half of the summer. I am PRAYING that it is worth it, that we will be happy in our new house, and that the move itself goes well. We were supposed to be moving in two days, but it’s now been pushed back a couple of weeks and I am having a hard time with the change. I have been majorly STRESSED these past few weeks and I have been trying to get a grip but failing miserably. I’m so ready to get it over with! More on the move later…
In less stressful news, tomorrow is the first day of second grade and we are super excited. We met Aidan’s teacher on Tuesday and she was awesome. I think I love her. The kids in the class seemed awesome and I just KNOW it is going to be an amazing year for him. We were thanking God in the hallway right after we walked out of the Open House! We feel so good about it.
Alex’s students start back tomorrow and he is majorly stressed as well. It has been such a busy couple of weeks for him, working round the clock and trying to fit all of the moving/financing logistics in the midst of everything. We are both kind of shell-shocked right now. When Alex works a lot, I’m with the kids a lot, so we could both use a nap. Takers? 🙂
Also, Alex turned 35 over the weekend and I failed miserably at his birthday. Our friends Jon, Em, and Bruce, freshly returned from a summer away in Colorado, saved the day and brought cake and smiles while I paced around in circles wondering what boxes to pack next. I swear that I will throw him a proper party befitting of a 35 year old. Probably in March.
It was a great summer and I am so thankful for all of the time that we spent together and privileges that we enjoyed. Stressful move and all — even that will turn out to be a blessing in the long run.
And now I will go dive beneath my covers and sleep the contented sleep of a tired woman who has earned her rest. Tomorrow, my beloved Routine arrives and one day, in the not too distant future, Structure shall reign again in this household!
Second grade pictures coming soon!
love to all.