Still In Love with Summer

Last year when tharker posted this post on fall, I read it with mixed feelings. I had been dreading fall. No, actually, I'd been dreading winter. I was reveling in the summer days and sad that they were coming to an end.

When the winters are so very cold and last sooooo long, those days of sunshine are a sheer joy-- when the sunshine finally turns warm, and the wind finally stops blowing, and you can shed the long sleeves and the boots and be outside again. I used to look out my windows all winter long and wish for the greenness of the grass and the freedom to wander outdoors without bearing down against the howling wind. I came to cherish the feel of grass under my feet and the wonderful freedom of parking my car in the shade and not driving it except to church on Sunday. We lived in the middle of town, and we walked to the park and the library. The kids rode their bicycles to swimming lessons, and we dragged our red Radio Flier wagon to the grocery store when we needed milk. We took family bike rides around town (no worries about traffic there). My friend Michelle and I would hang out at the pool with our kids in the hot afternoons when our husbands were at work.

So, this spring I wondered if summer had lost its magic for me. I'm no longer living in the middle of town, and I'm 600 miles from Michelle and the pool where we hung out. I have to drive everywhere I go, and the days are hot, not the mild summer heat of the mountains. I wondered, "Would I still love summer?"

Recently, when it was over a hundred degrees for nearly two weeks straight, I was having doubts, but this week the temperatures have cooled. It's been in the eighties and nineties. Some days there is a nice breeze. We can be outside without roasting, and I realized that here or there, I'm still a summer girl. There are so many things I love about summer.

I love the flowers, especially roses.
I love the hum of the lawnmower and the boys eager to earn some cash.

I love dirty faces...... and beautiful sunsets...
...swimming suits and the smell of sunblock and sweat on little bodies.
I love the splashes and squeals of summer games.

I love playing in the grass, and in this case....
... making a new friend.

I love fourth of July gatherings....
(the girls modeling their 4th of July dresses that I made this year)

... and the traditional flag cake...I love sunglasses and cold drinks, hanging out in the shade, and family snapshots.This is the better picture of both of us, but I have to include the next one because the sun was hitting just right on Nathan's short hair, and he'd want me to be sure you all know...... that he still has hair. :)

But, the joys of summer this year have been a reminder of the way we grew up. These are some loves of summer that I missed while we were away...

I love picking strawberries and making jam...
... sleeping on the trampoline... (if they had done that in Montana, they would have been sucked dry by the mosquitoes)
... working outside with Dad...... irrigation circles...





... and the smell of freshly cut hay. (Yes, I love that smell. Whenever we'd drive home in the summer and smell freshly cut alfalfa, it made me homesick. Now it's right in our front yard.)

Here is what I missed the most when we were in Montana....
... a garden! We were able to grow peppers and tomatoes one year, but we didn't have much room, and had a very short growing season. Here, the zucchini grow like Jumunji, and we can replant half-way through the summer and still get a harvest. We would never have been able to grow melons or pumpkins in Big Timber.

While I miss Michelle, and I miss the pool. I miss my house and I miss the quiet little town, there is a part of me that has always belonged here. The best thing about summer here is...

... it lasts a lot longer!!!