Summer summer summer time!

 

This week’s Spin Cycle, brought to you by Gretchen at SecondBlooming is on summer. Here in Indiana we’re in the full swing of it.  Heat and humidity.  It’s not been as bad as last year, and unlike last summer (knock on wood), we’re not in the middle of a full-on drought.  But Gretchen wants to know:  What do you think of when you think of summer? 

Growing up in a home with one of my parents being a teacher, summer always meant summer vacation.  No school, sleeping in, freedom, playing flashlight tag outside until being forced in the house, playing Euchre with neighborhood friends, bike rides, vacations with the family. 

Now that I’m all grown up and in the “adult world” (which means what, I’m not sure), I don’t get that freedom and time off.  If I want time off, it means hoarding vacation days throughout the year to ensure I have enough to use.  So I do value that time more when I have it.  Summertime for us is time spent during the weekends as opposed to during the week when we work.  However, I’m not going to lie.  T and I have become quite guilty of letting the weekends fly by with all of the things we have to do around the house without taking the time to do special day trips or summer-type activities with Aubrey.  That is something we both recognize and know we need to alleviate.  While Aubrey is not quite at the age where she realizes what is going on and can be pushing us to go to the pool or play outside, we do need to take more time to do things like this even if they are short activities. 

While on vacation, Aubrey got to do a lot of firsts in terms of summertime activities.  Sorry I don’t have any pictures this week to post.  Like I said yesterday, I’m totally writing all of these while in the car coming home since I have too many pressing deadlines during the week.  But I do promise loads of picture posts from vacation next week!  So what kind of firsts?  She got her first trip to a lake.  Little miss no fear was all about the pier in South Haven, MI.  The pier to the lighthouse on the beach in town isn’t blocked off, and she was leaning over, trying to get into the lake.  It kind of scares her Mommy just how little fear she has.  She stood in the (cold) lake water on the sand, giggling every time the water washed over her feet.  She played and walked in the sand for the first time.  She rode a carousel for the first time.  She played in the pool for the very first time and absolutely loved it, starting off first with a inflatable baby pool and then a regular, grown-up sized pool.  I was worried she’d be freaked out, but she wasn’t.  She loved it. 

Summer has become more of a time for making memories now that I’m the parent.  And that’s my desire for Aubrey.  Big trips aren’t necessarily the only way to do it, but making memories that Aubrey will cherish.  And like Sarah from Crazy, Love Gamble Style, documenting them.  And I promise to post them next week…you know, the ones we documented last week.  Promise!

So that’s my summer spin for the week.  Stop by Gretchen’s and see what others she has to share!