BLOG CHALLENGE: Things I Love About Summer

You know, they say that Texas has 4 seasons just like the rest of the world. It's just that ours are Almost Summer, Summer, Still Summer, and Christmas. For that reason, I'm not a big fan of good ol' summertime. But this year's been different. Because of all the (highly unusual) rain, the temperatures have been tolerable. We haven't even hit 100 yet! I'm actually enjoying summer again, sorta like I did when I was a little kid.

I love the sound of cicadas at dusk. As the sun settles into the horizon, and sometimes for a few hours afterward, the air is saturated with the song of the cicada. To some, the sound is irksome, but for me, it conjures up memories of playing tag at dusk, just as the street lights came on... another hint that the day was over and it was time to go inside.

I love the boom-boom-kaboom of fireworks. We're 7/8ths of a mile from the Botanic Gardens, where the Fort Worth Symphony Orchestra presents Concerts In The Garden every Friday and Saturday night. Each show culminates with a fireworks show, and at the beginning of every summer, it takes us a few performances to remember that the booming is a result of the season's pyrotechnics. "What's that? Gunshots?? Did someone blow a tire? OHhhhhh. It's the fireworks!" We can see them through the trees from our front yard, but the best viewing spot is from the boys' bedroom window upstairs.

I love the concerts themselves. This year, we only made it out to one performance, and that was tonight. We invited our friends Ray and Julie to go with us, and we all kicked back in the soggy surroundings with our picnic, our drinks, and the smooth sounds of Dark Side of the Moon. The FWSO did a tribute to Pink Floyd, my favorite favorite favorite band of all time. It's so cool to be sitting outside while the music plays, watching the sky turn darker and darker, noticing the first star and making a wish, feeling the breeze pick up as the sun goes down... and just chillin' with good friends.

I love late nights. I'm pretty lax about the kids' bedtime in the summer. If we want ice cream at 10 o'clock, well okay then. Let's do it! You wanna play Monopoly, and it's already 8:30? Sure. Why not? I love that we're not bound by a school schedule in the summer, and that we can play as much as we want.

I love the colorful Crepe Myrtles that line every street in town. One of the only species that's hardy enough to survive our Texas heat, Crepe Myrtles are grown in abundance here. We have 4 on our small lot alone! My favorites are the ones that bloom a deep blood red, but those seem to be few and far between. The most common ones are white and bright pink, but when July brings golden-brown lawns and withered, sad pecan trees, the Crepe Myrtles are a welcome spring of color.

And finally, what I love about summer is the travel. It's vacation time, and that means that we get to go places, and people we love are often passing through! Our guest room gets a big workout in the summertime, housing our Fortress interns for 8 weeks each year, and accomodating any number of friends and families on random weekends throughout.

At this moment, I'm singing summer's praises. Ask me in another 4 weeks how I'm feeling, though. I have a sneaking suspicion it won't be as pretty. ;)

The Challenge: Summertiiiiiiiiiiiime, and the living is EEEeeezzzzzzy. Tell us how you feel about summer. This summer, a childhood summer, summer traditions, random summer memories, summer sights and smells and sounds. Whatever. Wax poetic about summertime!