in the groove

We are certainly adjusting nicely to the lazy days of summer. My kids have a tan (well as much tan as kids who favor their 1/2 Irish mother can get), I am sporting what I like to call my savage tan (again-see the Irish comment), The house is staying wonderfully clean because we are pretty much never in it, and we are all staying up late, the kids are sleeping late and everyone is in a vacation-type mood.

As of right now, we don't have any big summer plans-thanks mostly to gas prices and the price of heating oil that is lurking just around the corner for us in the fall. We are also going to be saying goodbye to our 11 year old car soon and a reluctant hello to a car payment for the first time in about 4 years. So, it's close to home for us but we are making the best of it and having fun together. The summer days go so quickly-we've been out of school nearly a month already and I am not sure where it went.

So, all this brings me to my gratitudes for summer, I am thankful

that I can be home to share summer with my kids

for the pool we belong to

that we are all healthy

for family

for summer birthdays

for the beauty of creation in this season

for 99cent shakes at sonic

for packed lunches and dinners eaten at the pool

for sunscreen and chlorine scented kids

for air conditioned libraries and movie theaters

for the 20 minutes of reading time required daily to get a free Dairy Queen blizzard at the end of the month

for friends