June 19, 2012

early morning tree climbing at the park

I haven't listened to her Bug Song in years but Mary Chapin Carpenter's lyrics have stayed with me. 
You gotta know happy - you gotta know glad Because you're gonna know lonely And you're gonna know sad
Yesterday was one of those good days.  I'm often reluctant to let myself feel joy in the moment.  There's too many things that can and will go wrong down the road.  (That's just my personality--and it gets in the way of lots of things.)  But yesterday, as I watched my kids play in the summer sun, I was filled with happy and glad

I don't worry that this blog will take a treacly turn because there's been plenty of posts where I complain about the not-so-pretty side of being an SMC.  Like this one.  Or this one.  Or even this one.  So once and awhile, I'll indulge in a post that is just about my dream come true.  I'll leave out the parts where one brother wanted the hose in the pool and the other brother screamed that he did not.  I'll leave out the part where they bickered about the water level (Henry wanted it a centimeter higher than Liam's self-imposed limit.)  I won't even mention how both boys ignored my warning that the water would be very cold unless we waited for the sun to warm it up and how they both screamed and wanted to come inside when they found out that I was right.

We started the day by taking Henry to the park district's Farmer Camp.   I spent the next two hours running errands with Liam.  This doesn't sound special--but it is.  Liam and I rarely get to spend time alone.  He is quite the conversationalist and very easygoing when his big brother is not around.  I enjoyed his company immensely. 

At noon, the boys took a turn at the playground near camp and then we piled in the car to head to the post office.  The post office was the only lowlight of the day but the boys made the best of it, running in the vestibule and inadvertently slamming the double doors in countless patrons' faces.  Upon arriving home I made their favorite lunches, wrapped up Liam's untouched  portion (the entire plate as usual) and sent the boys upstairs for their siestas.  That's what we call them in the summer and it is a much better received term than n-a-p.

After short but adequate downtime, we headed into the 90 degree heat of our backyard. The rest is history.  Or at least well-documented memories:


adjusting the water level (again)

even our old dog enjoyed the sunshine

picking raspberries while their suits dry
time to get back in the water!

3 comments:

  1. Great pictures. And a tip with the pool: (We have that same pool, by the way) Fill it with hot water from inside the house. It will use up all the hot water and eventually start filling with cold water, but that all mixes together to make the water the perfect temperature right off the bat. My kids don't ever want to get out. :)

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  2. Glad to hear you're enjoying the good times as much as lamenting the bad...I know i have some pretty rotten days with Elena & am at my wits end, then she'll do something completely precious & she reminds me that it's not always so bad.

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