I Love Summer

As I have previously written, I love summer. Many of my childhood memories are wrapped up in summer esccapades. I love that there are no serious committments during the summer and that we can do as we please and just enjoy life. I know that when I was a child I never put much thought into what responsibilities my parents may have had and I know that my children likely don't think of the ones that Seth and I have either. As it should be. Childhood is about enjoying life and making memories and experiencing as much as can be experienced squished into the period of 100 days of summer vacation. I love that these days can be spent watching cartoons and sitting in our pajamas until we are ready to not be lazy anymore. I love that the kids can spend hours splashing in an inflatable pool roughly the size of a large bathtub and they think its Christmas in July. I love that they are enthralled with the family of ground hogs that live in the garden and amazed at the next full of growing baby birds. While I love how the leaves on the Oak trees in my yard glow in springtime, I love how they shine in summer. The sound of laughter floats on the breeze, mixing with it the sounds of birdsong. Our sweet Golden Retriever romps in the grass and tries to catch various birds or play with the groundhog babies. Everyone is lighthearted and happy. I love summer. Some of my best memories are wrapped in sunshine, melting ice cream cones, and catching fireflies. I want the same for my children.
My children are still very young, but can appreciate the beauty of a blooming flower. They understand the difference between a dragonfly and a damselfly and think that both are incredible. They love to pretend they are baby ducks and I am the mother duck when they see ducks at the lake. The idea that an insect can light up at night and twinkle like the stars is astonishing to them. They like to find shapes in the clouds and often wonder how soft a cloud really is. They are full of questions and wonderment and oftentimes that leads us on a quest to find out why or how. In the end, they are even more mystified and intrigued. Summer is the perfect time to explore the world and discover things, and my children always gives me fresh perspective and appreciation for this beautiful wonderful planet we live on. They have truly scientific and inquisitive minds. You mix that with their natural ability toward creativity and imagination, and you have a summer that will never be forgotten.
So while Seth and I have decided that we might not jump at the oppurtunity to camp in the forest at the foot of the White Mountains anytime soon, we do not regret going for an instant. We are looking foward to many many more adventures with our kids. We have even taken to calling our outings "adventuring" and use it as a verb. I love when my kids ask us when we will go adventuring again.
We can't wait to explore the beach for sea creatures and sea shells. We can't wait to make memories at the fair. We look forward to nature walks and learning about the different plant and animal life that shares the Cape with us. We look forward to seeing how many adventures and how many memories we can pack into just a few short months before school starts up again. Our family looks at the world in wonderment and we thank God for giving us the privelidge to live here. We treasure our time together and love exploring.
What are your favorite things about summer? What about this world amazes you? What are your favorite summertime memories?