Summertime, Socially Distanced of Course

Our summer is quickly coming to an end with schools starting soon.  Our oldest goes back to college in two weeks!  The youngest goes in three weeks and our middle goes in 4.  Three kids at 3 different schools is fun, really.  I am thankful they are all in-state.  We are 1 hour and 15 minutes from two of the schools and 1 hour 30 minutes from the other.  They are just far enough away that coming home is possible but not likely to happen too often.  For the first month, they will stay put and we will come to them if they need anything.  The semester will go quickly as they will all be home for 8 weeks the end of  November.  Already looking forward to it! 

Monday our state becomes a masked state.  I know it is a controversy, especially if you have clinical reasons not to wear a mask.  I just wear mine and go about my life.  Hopefully, this trial will ease some soon. 

We did manage to get up to Lake Michigan for a day trip on Jeff's staycation week.  We were able to avoid the crowded beach.  We had a yummy lunch at one of our favorite restaurants.  We walked up a dune trail.  We sat on the beach and read books while Grace produced a lovely watercolor.  I never want to take for granted again these times with my kids at the beach.  I was tempted to despair a little.  I wanted a week at the beach, not 3 hours!  But I realized that 3 hours was more than some get so I needed to be thankful for them.  

We have been riding our bikes, playing disc golf, walking to the little park when the weather is not unbearable. We were going to go camping but the weather turned super hot and humid so we have put that on hold for September and October.  I am looking forward to camping this fall, something Jeff and I can do together without children.  

Speaking of the empty nest, since the kids have been home since March, I am ready to send them off!  It is time for them to be working towards something productive. Yes, I will miss the daily interactions.  I will probably not hear from the oldest very often.  I will eagerly await any and all text messages.  Thankfully, I have been down this road a couple times now and I am prepared for the emotional toll.  I am actually looking forward to a few of the perks of the empty nest, especially, less food to buy and fewer dishes to wash.  It has been 22 years since Jeff and I lived alone.  

Summertime freedom is almost over but there is still a lot of summer left to enjoy! 

Blooms at the Fair

One of my favorite places to linger at our state fair is the master gardener's exhibit.  It gets more elaborate each year.  So many people labor over this garden.  It is a work of art.  It's an excellent place to have fun with my camera.

The Park Across the Street

When we were looking for a house to rent for the next year, we decided amenities were key.  This house has turned out to be situated in the perfect spot for our family.  Just across the street sits a beautiful little city park that boasts a giant sledding hill, corn hole, porch swing, shelter house, playground, firepit and a connection to a multi-use path.  Did I mention that it also has a Little Free Library?  Well, it does!  I have already donated a book.  The sledding hill is quite steep and so fun to climb to the top.  Up there one can see for miles.  There is also a table with a chess/checkerboard. We are planning to use this park for our required PE minutes.  Who knows?  Perhaps we will find a house to buy in this neighborhood next year.  We won't go far, that is for certain.

Lately

We finally got a short break from the oppressive heat and humidity, but it is on the way back.  That is the nature of late summer.  School is back in full swing, so it seems as if the weather should turn to more mild temperatures.  Fall is still a while away.

Our herbs are doing rather well at the moment.  We are enjoying fresh herbs in bread and sauces.  I am thinking of how I want to dry and store some for the winter.  These herbs are the only plants the bunnies did not destroy.  It also helps that we have had some wonderful rain recently.

This week is our first home football game for our local high school student.  I go to hear him in the band, of course.  It is a quite festive event.  This week they play the nearby rivals.  It is sure to be a crazy time.

Overflowing!

We have had so much rain lately that the garden boxes are literally overflowing!

I am in love with these boxes and have hopes to get a few more next year.  I can see that we need one just for tomatoes, one for herbs, and another for vegetables. The box dedicated to flowers was well worth it.  I adore Zinnias.

One Last Bloom

We are about to have our first hard freeze, which means saying goodbye to all things blooming.

So, I cut this last Hydrangea that was blooming so spectacularly while the rest of the blooms were dry and papery.  What a gift a late bloom is!