summer gratitude

"There shall be eternal summer in the grateful heart"

Celia Thaxter

Our trip to Disney was magical. After Twist's dance group performed in Tomorrowland, they were asked to dance again in front of Cinderella's castle. Twist said, "That's a big house, but I think we can rock it!" And they did.

Our baseball all-star experience stretched from an expected two games into twelve games and a play for the state championship. (Maybe next year!) Seeing the boys play as well as they did more than made up for our summer fuel bill and all the ballpark nachos!

Sunny was invited to take part in art classes at a nature center near our home. The teacher talked her into placing three sketches in a local art show, and all of them sold. I've been telling her for ages that she's talented, but a stranger's wallet seems to have convinced her.

At the end of the last school year, I didn't know if the school district would be continuing the pre-k program at all. In a providential sweep, the district chose to fully fund the program and asked me to write our curriculum standards and procedure before the pre-k program is implemented across the district. This is an incredible opportunity, and one that I hope will benefit not only the kids I have in class this year, but the kids and families who come through the pre-k program in years to come. It also has the added bonus of a pay raise, which is also wonderful.

With this summer in my pocket, my heart is certainly grateful. I find that my gratitude extends not only to the summer we had, but also to the fact that it is drawing to a close. We're just a couple weeks away from the start of school, and we're all secretly anticipating our return to the classroom. (A family of nerds, I know!)

But before I start sorting school supplies and uniforms, I think I'm going to make this ice cream cake which is a simple as it is delicious. And that's yet another thing to be grateful about.

Tiny dancers

These girls dance through life. Literally. Down every store aisle they are tapping, shuffling, and spinning to and endless set of eight counts. When they stand in line, their feet dutifully come to fifth position. I love to watch them in rehearsal, practicing at home, and certainly on stage. My favorite though, is the dances they make up together, most of which end up in this pose.

How does your garden grow?

This little plot of land is definitely a family affair. My parents, my aunt, and I are tending this little plot of land together this summer. I love walking out to the garden every afternoon, especially with the kids. Twist heads straight to the cucumber vines, Justice studies the carrots, and Sunny plucks the tomatoes.

Green beans and cucumbers go from this...

to this...

It's a fabulous process to watch and take part of, especially with family. We laugh and talk and complain about the heat while we're snapping beans, pickling, and canning, but in the dead of winter, it's simply lovely to have summer spill out of a jar and land in a delicious pile on our plates.

Dreamcatcher

Justice's favorite game, hands down, is baseball. Even if you pit it against any video game, baseball wins. This year Justice pitched some, but he found his niche on the field behind the plate as catcher. He told my dad, "I think I'd rather throw out somebody trying to steal second than hit the ball over the fence." I enjoyed watching him this year as he settled into the fundamentals of the game he loves, and really had fun on the field.

When all-stars were announced, Justice stood on the line and clapped for each boy called, adding a little yell when three of his teammates were called. When Justice's name was called as the starting catcher, I was struck by the genuine look of surprise on his face.

Little man, whatever dream you are chasing in life, I pray that you do it with as much intensity and integrity as you have played this season. I hope you remain determined in working for what you want and humble enough to never assume any honor ought to be handed to you. You are amazing!

Sweet summertime

I know I said I'd be blogging more, but summer caught me in it's glorious snares.

I've been tending the garden, which is yielding green beans, eggplants, tomatoes, okra, squash, cucumbers, potatoes and peppers in generous portions. It's high time for the true southern staple: the vegetable plate, anchored with macaroni and cheese, of course.

The kids and I have been indulging in snowballs from the local shack. Sunny prefers "frog in a blender" (lime and strawberry), Justice likes "tiger's blood" (strawberry and coconut), and Twist is working her way down the list of flavors in alphabetical order. I believe "fuzzy navel" is next. I have a list of favorite flavors that work on a revolving schedule...toasted coconut, banana, watermelon, candy apple, and vanilla almond.

I've also been reading. Here are a few of my latest...

• Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle Stop Cafe by Fannie Flagg
• The Discipline of Grace by Jerry Bridges
• Five Skies by Ron Carlson
• Stop Dressing Your Six-Year-Old Like a Skank and Other Words of Delicate Southern Wisdom by Celia Rivenbark

Our Disney trip is rapidly approaching, and Twist is counting the hours until she can finally strap herself in to Tower of Terror. I'm just trying to stay on top of the laundry so that everyone can leave with plenty of clean underwear and socks.

And there was much rejoicing

School's out! The past week has been sheer insanity but it's all over now...at least until August 1. This means more time to do laundry during daylight hours, eat breakfast in my pj's, and most importantly, to spend lots of time with my own kids. This summer we're planning to go to Disneyworld, a first for all of us. Hopefully I'll be able to meet up with some dear friends (nudge, nudge, wink, wink Becky!) sometime during the summer, too. And of course I'll have time to post more on this ol' blog.

But for now, there's a porch swing and a glass of peach iced tea with my name on it.

I said it

Over the past few days I have had to say things that I never, ever thought I'd have to say.

These gems are from preschool:

• Don't put corn in your ear!
• We stand still when we are at the toilet. You may not be the "peeing sprinkler" here.
• Never, ever lick someone else's snot! Your tongue is NEVER a tissue. (chin to forehead, people! It is by far the grossest thing I've ever seen.)

And these are from home:

• Why on earth did you put jello in your sister's shoes?
• Would anyone like to explain why there are fourteen Barbies loaded in the dishwasher?
• That's cold cream not sour cream!