The Best Time for Summer Is Fall

I think this is my favorite time of year: end of summer, beginning of fall. The days are still warm but the evenings and mornings are beginning to bring the crisp smell of autumn. The morning sun is relaxing but the bustle of school days and fall sports is invigorating.

We have had warm, sunny weather over the last week, and since it's after Labor Day, we locals are reclaiming our beaches. Around here we consider the beach crowded if we see more than two people within a half mile of us when we go. I've taken Anna a few times a let her cover herself head to toe in sand, which she loves. She also loves wading into the water, even though it's 55 degrees. Why are children impervious to cold when near water? And what's so tasty about sand?



This morning I worked at a nice new coffeeshop/cafe down by the docks. Lots of people were crabbing off the docks and heading out fishing. That's fall. That's SmallPort. I love it all. (Except the guy who brought in fish smell with him. You, sir, are on notice.)

Tonight is the first home high school football game, one of our favorite things about small town life. The weather's great, we should see a lot of people we haven't seen much in a while, and hopefully Anna will have a great time. We just hope the Fightin' Irish do not require a name change to the Frightened Irish or perhaps Blighted Irish. They were a bit, uh, blocking avoidant and scoring challenged last year.

More shots from our beachside photo shoot!

Steeped in Summer

I'm hoping to get a little extra work done this morning since I have a teenager here hanging out with Anna. The great thing about teenagers is that they will work for food.

Summer weather has returned after strange thunderstorms last week and too much fog on the beach all summer. When it's too hot in the Valley the moisture is pushed to the coast. But in winter when it's colder there it will pull it through so they get the fog and we get sun. Or as we say, it's beautiful here because the Valley sucks. Ha!

Last week I did walk the bridge on a beautiful morning and yesterday the beach was fantastic. Anna and I waded in the water and ran from the waves. She loves to be chased and to run even if she's not. She'll run around the house from wall to couch to wall: Run run run run run SAFE! we say, and she laughs and runs to slam into her next safe base. I see a future in baseball as a pinch runner.

Oh, but what I said about infrequent bathing? Does not apply on beach days—she had sand everywhere.

Small price to pay for life by the bay!

Freedom Fog

Home alone (with Anna) again. Aaron left for Young Life camp early this morning. Since I'm not swamped with work this time, I'm not quite sure what to do with myself so far. Maybe it's just that I'm tired and this blah marine layer of clouds, but I can't quite get myself going on any of the many small tasks and decluttering projects I'd like to tackle. Need to find the zone.

We have had a busy couple of days. Aaron had a lot to get done before camp and it seemed like kids were being extra flakey about not committing, then telling someone else they wanted to go, then not doing anything at all to make that happen. You might think we could just ask their parents to make a decision and stick with it but around here a lot of parents are just as flakey and some of them don't have working phones (and I do mean at home or anywhere, not just not having cell phones) so getting ahold of them and getting signed health forms to them and back was a headache (not that said forms include any information anyway since there is often no health insurance).

SmallPort always has fireworks on the 3rd, and nearby Hippieville has them on the 4th, so you can get a double dose if you want. On Thursday, the 3rd, we parked our friend's truck down by the bay and planned to car pool from our house to that base point. It was a really nice day until about 5:30 when a horror-movie-esque fog swallowed the town. (I really like using my horror movie voice: "It's . . . THE FOG . . . Nooooooo!") Here is the scene at 9:00 p.m.:


And here is where they shoot off the fireworks. See it? It's right there, in THE FOG.


A little less summery than last year.

When the fireworks started you could only see the bottom half of them. They were half-circles instead of full circles. But five minutes into the show, a little breeze kicked up, just enough to blow away THE FOG enough for a nice show. Chilly though!

Anna quickly learned to say "Oooooooooh" with us, although she probably didn't know why (are there owls?). She liked watching the fireworks and dogs ("Whoof!") and kids ("Babyyyy!") and was not freaked out at all by the fireworks. Not even the cannon sounds of the can't-be-legal ones somebody set off by us on the beach. Of course the real fireworks aren't very loud since they're set off basically over the ocean and we were across the bay.

We opted out of the Hippieville parade and fireworks display on the 4th, but in the afternoon I did go with a friend and Anna down to Hippieville to see one of our students/friends sing. Now that town is a display. A public display of affection . . . for tie-dye. And long skirts. And beads. And hemp, in all its many forms. We saw:

(1) A cool chick grooving on the guitar. Yay Jul!


(2) Pirate hippies and (3) Marge Simpson?


(4) Colonial pirates? and of course (5) fairies! (Duh, where do you think the La De Da Parade came from?)


Ah, Hippieville, USA--home of the fashion free and brave!

Yaaaaay, freedom!

Anniversary Parade Day

Happy 11th Anniversary to us! The town is throwing us a parade. Okay, not really; it's Beachcomber Days.

It's the kind of weekend when it's great to live in a small town. We can go to the parade, see lots of people we know (in it and watching), and hopefully have an elephant ear, yet not have to deal with huge crowds. Tomorrow there are the sandcastle contest and the wonderfully silly bed races.

I'm meeting friends for the parade and I'm excited to zip Anna around in the stroller and see how she likes her first parade (though I suspect fire truck sirens may not be a hit). And yet I'm a little sad that Aaron's not here for it, especially since it is our anniversary.

It's not that we're big mushy-gushy anniversary-celebrators; we're usually really low-key. But last year was our 10th and what did we do? I don't even specifically remember, but I think that's because the answer is NOTHING. Aaron had only been home from his heart surgery a week. He was still drugged up and tired. I was charting his drugs and holding my breath for adoption travel plans. I do know that last year I went to the parade with my mother-in-law, who was out here for the surgery, and everyone was asking about Aaron.

So it's kind of a bummer that he's not here today, but he returns tonight and will be happy he at least won't miss the bed races tomorrow. I will just be happy he's here! But Anna has been great for me, really, and we've gotten out and done a lot--walks, beach, playground, trying a friend's Wii Fit (I shalt covet!).

Okay, enough whining--time for a parade!

The Good Life

I'm sorry I have been absent from this blog for so long. We have been busy living the good life.

On August 2 my parents and my brother and sister-in-law arrived from Michigan and Colorado to visit Anna and, I suppose, us. To say my mom was a little bit excited to meet her first grandchild would be one of the greatest understatements in the history of grandchildren. Family activities included adoring Anna, taking pictures of Anna, grilling food, giving Anna toys, taking pictures of Anna, trips to Safeway, taking pictures of Anna, trips to the beach, making Anna laugh, and, oh yes, taking pictures of Anna.

Saturday we did drive down the coast to do the tourist thing. Anna chose a popular chowder restaurant for her first PDD (Public Display of Defecation). This is now known as "getting Mo'ed" or a child who has "Mo'ed out." Apologies to those would-have-been (had I not made them ill) diners I passed by during our hasty, inelegant evacuation. Since they had to see it, why shouldn't you? (Go on, zoom in. I dare you.) (Why are you mad at me, Anna? Your sick grandma's the one who took the picture.)


Other than that little episode, Anna was a great traveler, tourist, and restaurant patron. Sadly, my brother and sister-in-law could only stay until Monday, but Mom and Dad were here through Sunday. Here are some photos of other activities we enjoyed:

• dressing up silly, pretty, and sporty

• trying new foods

• wave and whale watching

• making interesting size comparisons (during volcanic mouth activity)

• training up a child in the way she should go so that when we are preparing our thrilling 4th-quarter comeback she will not depart from it

• learning to fly

Hanging at Home

It is good to be home, and we have been out and about a bit too. On Saturday Joyce and I went to the Beachcomber Days parade and walked around town a bit in the perfect weather. Sunday we had worship outside in front of the church and then a BBQ to benefit the scholarship fund. Aaron made it down for the BBQ.

After a couple hours home recharging we all went into town for our favorite cultural event, the bed races. Sadly, only two entries. Young Life has got to get a team together next year. Briggs can build an aerodynamic pirate ship/iPod/slingshot or some such elaborate craft. But I digress.

Aaron's energy level is obviously up, although I think I hear some, uh, "relaxed breathing" coming from the recliner again now. His pain levels are definitely down during the day, but he still has trouble staying comfortable and sleeping at night. Keep praying for sleep, please.

With this summer weather and no work, I feel like I'm on some sort of unauthorized summer vacation. I haven't even cooked, thanks to church folk. I am ready to tackle my to-do lists, packing lists, shopping lists, and household disaster zones.