Beating the Heat

Being the warm weather birds that we are, you can bet your bottom dollar we are thriving in this summer's delivery of hot and hotter.  With our air conditioning hardly a match against near triple digits, we are beating the heat the best way we know how ... cold water straight out of the house.  Add in some galvanized tubs from the hardware store and that is how we are spending our days.  I got creative this year and bought a bifurcated hose connector so that Jack and Amelia each have their own hoses.  It may well be one missed opportunity for a good lesson in sharing, but my backyard grass has never been greener.  :o)

I would be remiss if I didn't mention the grilling we (Mike) has been doing.  

I will definitely miss our back porch when we leave.  It is certainly not anything fancy.  But we have a covered portion of the porch that has a large ceiling fan ... large enough to keep both the heat and bugs at bay.  We eat dinner out there most evenings, and Mike and I sit back while Jack and Amelia duel it out with the hoses till the lightning bugs come out.  After they have caught (and likely killed or badly injured) 10 or so, we decide it's best for both the lightning bug population and Jack and Amelia that we all come in for the night.  

One of my favorite parts of summer ... the cicadas.  Do y'all love their song as much as I do??

A long time ago (LONG ... like, when I was in the fifth grade long ago), I found some that were just about to "hatch" from their brown casing.  Having never seen this stage, I jarred them (with holed lids, of course) to take to school with me.  Wouldn't you know I set those jars on the dryer in the garage and momma ran a load of laundry that evening ... and well, I fried those little guys.  I found them the next morning, melted at the bottom of those mason jars.  So, naturally, I feel I owe the entire species a little adoration.  

August feels like such a special month to me.  Maybe because it is the last month of summer, and I want to savor every moment of the fleeting season.  There is no denying that late summer has a special charm all its own.  I'm trying to finish all of the things on our "summer list" ... and I'm only about halfway through!  

I have so many things I want to cram in before the summer's end.  I'm on a mission!  :o)  I also had challenged myself to BLOG EVERY DAY for the month of August.  And, well, I missed the first day.  So I will put that on my list of things to work on ... alongside of the item:  

Learn to take decent pictures with a tripod.

Oh, well.  As my daddy would say, "Speak at ya tomorrow."  ;o)

 

 

Comments

[Bri]

Hooray! Best news I've heard all day... you'll be blogging EVERY day this month?!! Can't wait! And may I just say, my very favorite photo of this whole post is the tripod one of your neck and Amelia's blurry but cute polka dot bathing suit! LOL!!! I am still laughing over that one. That is just too perfect! And honey I hear you on the heat wave and the hose. Such inexpensive fun! I too love August, although my grass has seen better days come this time of year. Great pictures. I feel *a little* caught up. Can't wait for more!

[Michele]

Loved this post. We absolutely adore the cicada's daily song in the summer. I grew up in Idaho so they have been a real treat since moving to the South. Your dryer story made me laugh out loud. Our son is a budding entomologist (sorta) and our freezer is full of insects! Hope I haven't served some of them for dinner and didn't realize it! :)

xoxo michele

[Julie, the Mama]

I don't know if I am laughing more about the dryer story or your goal of blogging every single day for a month. I sure hope you are right though.

Your summer nights sound PERFECT to me. I'm gonna tell you what - that Mike can flat out grill up some good looking food.

[Carol Harrell]

wooohooo, my favorite other gal is back, I am going to enjoy every August post. I have missed you and your precious children. As if I needed more calories this summer your recipe seems to be calling my name. I love pound cake and ice cream and a little suace just tops it off perfectly.
Love & blessings
Carol Harrell

[Ali]

Oooh! I'm excited that you plan to blog this month! I've popped by your blog many a times to see if you had posted anything new but, figured you were too busy living to blog! I've missed your sweet posts though! Your blog is one of my favs!

We haven't had any fireflies this summer! I feel sad for my kids! Next year I'll try earlier to hunt down some fireflies so my 3 kids can understand the wonder and excitement of catching fireflies! So cute that your kids have had plenty of fireflies and "water hose" time! Love that each got their own water hose! That is a wise and generous Mommy decision! :)

~ Ali

[Ali]

Forgot to say your cicadas story made me giggle! Sounds like something my 7 year old son would do! He's been catching cicadas all summer long! Their song just sings "its summer!"

~ Ali

[Amy]

glad to see you're back to blogging and that your family is doing well! your babies are precious as always, and look way TOO grown up! when did THAT happen?!?! :(

[Katie Tardiff]

Hip, hip, hooray, Katie is BACK! I, too, love your blog and was so sad to see you away for a while. As I type this, I admit I haven't blogged in forever either. Life just gets in the way sometimes, doesn't it? ;)