Good bye Summer

I ran into Walgreen’s last Sunday looking for some plastic folders for school and turned the corner and came to a sudden halt. “That is NOT a Halloween costume, is it?” I barked to the shopper with the bad haircut. “Uh, yes,” she said, eyeing me warily. “Crazy!” I mouthed. Deflated, I turned and headed toward the rifled through depleted supply of school supplies feeling fifty pounds heavier. I can’t believe it. It’s gonna happen again, isn’t it? Summer is going to end.

It started a couple of weeks ago. I stepped outside and caught that telltale whiff in the air, that smell of drying leaves preparing to drop from the trees. It was barely noticeable, but it was there. Pretty soon other signs have quietly started popping everywhere, slipping up on me like snakes in the grass. A few fall items replaced school supplies in the seasonal aisle at CVS. High school football practice and scrimmages started last week. I bumped into a short stack of Halloween candy at the grocery store, and a buzz through Costco yesterday brought me face to face with an inflatable spider dancing to the music from Halloween. Fall is on its way, and is rushing in ahead of its time. Well, I have just one thing to say about that, “Wait, just a minute! I still have 26 more days of summer! 26! And I’m going to savor every last one of them. Take your cool weather, chili lovin’ self right back where you came from and stay there until September 22nd. Logan is very concerned about when summer is over and fall begins and must ask me at least once per day about it.

I do love fall. Fall will be especially sweet this year since it will be my first fall in 6 1/2 years that I will have uninterupted free time. School is a wonderful thing!! I know I will like the relief from the summer heat. The leaves are pretty, and high school sports kick in again. They’re energized by the change in seasons. I will mourn the passing of summer (except the school part again!!) I hate turning loose of the flip flops and shorts…and the glorious sun. The bad parts of fall mean jackets and jeans, rain, less daylight and the promise of winter gloom. No more waking up to bright sunshine that just won't let you stay in bed and no more barefoot walks to the mailbox. No more long days that give way to lightning bugs and hummingbirds. No more popsicles or homegrown tomatoes at the farmers market. Gone...all gone. For another year. Another long year. Eight months of having to wear a coat or at least planning ahead before going outside. Eight months of unpredictable weather and gray skies.

Accessories with 6?

We went shopping today to "accessory" shop for a few things around the house. For some odd reason Steve decided he wanted to be involved too. (I think he really just secretly didn't want to be left at home with 4 kids because why else would a guy want to shop for accessories when his wife has a BFA in Interior Design?!!) So off we went with all 4 boys! We did pick up a few things but it definitely wasn't the day that I could have achieved alone. Oh well....only 15 more days until school starts and those alone shopping times can begin! Hopefully I will find the final art for the bathroom and pictures will be coming soon!

Great America

Logan won a "free" Great America ticket for reading is school last school year so we finally got around to using it the last weekend before it expired. I use the term "free" loosely since the whole thing ended up far from free. $25 for parking and $15 cups of pop hardly seem free. Not to mention the $15 locker to store your possessions. Regardless the boys had a great time (at least up until the end when Logan declared us "really bad parents for not feeding them again!!) and Logan could mark "visit Six Flags" off his summer must do list. Here are a few pictures from our day. Let's just say that Steve and I don't like roller coasters and the boys seemed to have inherited that too! They did like meeting Dorothy the Dinosaur and Wags the dog from the Wiggles (well...not Logan but the others liked it!) We came home with some reeeally expensive stuffed animals from carnival games too. I can't wait to do it again next year and see if any of their fears change. If nothing else the trip was a good test to see if they are ready for Disney World.

Blackberry Farm Times 3 or 4!!

We spent the afternoon at Blackberry Farm today and we had a great time. It was the annual triplet summer picnic. We all take our kids and husbands to a park and eat and play. Most of the families have three kids but of course we have 4 so that explains the post title. We ended up riding the train, visiting a log cabin, riding the carousel and mini tractors and checked out the petting zoo. The boys had a great time and the weather was perfect. I can't wait until next year!

One of my favorite You Tube Videos

No progres on the bathroom today so far so I'm posting one of my favorite You Tube Videos that really hits home!


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HEFE3B0Rje0#

More to come later....