When we were at the park on Saturday enjoying the warmer weather, a reporter and her cameraman went around asking people what they thought about spring arriving and about how the temperature would climb as high as twenty degrees the next day. I preferred not to comment. I don't think my kind of comments are the kind they were looking for anyway.
Don't get me wrong. I did enjoy sitting on a park bench watching the boys swing on the monkey bars, sliding, running around and generally getting way too much sand in their shoes. But to me, spring will inevitably usher summer in, and I happen to be a winter baby. I wilt in the sun, which is a nice way of saying that even with a hat, sunglasses and plenty of water in my stainless steel bottle, I inevitably get a headache and start wanting to puke. Most years I am happy to watch summer from the cool confines of my air conditioned office's window, commuting to work early enough to beat the heat of the day.
I got a taste of what is waiting for me on Sunday, when the temperature did indeed rise above twenty degrees. It didn't take long for me to feel drained and then the headache kicked in. There was a silver lining in this, though. When we came home for lunch and I gratefully sank into a chair in our cool, shady kitchen, the boys and their friend from across the street asked if they could go back to the playground alone. Seeing as it is only a block away and most of their classmates were already there, I agreed, so long as they promised to cross at the four-way stop sign, not in the middle of the road, and also not to talk to strangers, unless it was obvious that the stranger was the parent of a friend they might meet at the park. So after lunch they went back to the school yard and I took advantage of their absence to pick up and vacuum the kitchen and living room. Daughter was busy mixing icing for that evening's cake decorating class.
Yesterday was another hot day, with the thermometer indicating 25 degrees by late afternoon. Needless to say, I cringed going outside, hoping to make it to the school and back without feeling too hot and sticky. I guess it's the fact that the warm weather came so fast, I haven't had time to acclimatize yet. And by the time I do, spring will be over and summer will be here with even hotter temps. :/
This summer I don't want to put the children in day camp, since I won't be working. I do hope to enjoy the summer with them before I (hopefully!) start university in the fall. I am not sure how to let them enjoy the heat while at the same time avoiding feeling sick and uncomfortable myself. I will have to think about it, because I don't want them to miss out on anything because of me. The ideas I have so far are A) to get our outside activities taken care of early, like maybe hiking or biking from 8 to 10, before the heat really gets unbearable, B) going to museums to enjoy the air conditioning and C) spending plenty of time at the pool. I know the children will like doing all of these things, I just hope they won't get bored of them by the end of the summer, especially since a vacation out of town is definitely not in the budget. (I believe I clarified that point in yesterday's post.)
The one thing I would really love to do is to spend the hot summer afternoons in our cool living room - I have thermal curtains that are pretty good at keeping the heat out - and reading some of my favorite books. Unfortunately, I am not really counting on being able to do that. For one thing, Daughter doesn't like to read, or so she claims, although she is always happy to get new books out of the library. For another thing, Second Son doesn't read yet, so he couldn't join in unless I read to him, which would mean reading his favorite books instead of mine. Third but definitely not least, the two boys don't have the patience to sit still and read for too long. They are young and full of energy and unless that energy is channeled into a positive activity, they will inevitable start picking on each other, yelling and eventually hitting. So I will have to come up with something less calm, more physical for them to do in the afternoon. 'Cause I don't want to go outside until the evening, when the heat of the day is finally starting to withdraw.
For now, the school year is yet far from over and I do have some time to read every day. I will take advantage of that time while I can. I do love to read and I enjoy posting my reviews on goodreads. Short as some of them may be, they do allow me to write, which I also want to keep up with. And speaking of reading-related web sites, you can enter a draw to win three book at candle beam book blog, a book blog. Obviously. The books seem very interesting. I didn't go for all thirteen entries, but I did enter 'cause it would be fun to get some interesting books in the mail.
I leave you to have a nice day and enjoy the heat if that is your thing. :o)
I'll be hiding somewhere in the shade.
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