Saturday, July 21, 2007

Summertime Traditions


I have to say that, frankly, I enjoy every season. Fall seems to always be my favorite, but there are benefits to each, whether it brings blooming flowers and ripe fruit, Christmas lights and comfy sweaters, or flip flops and the smell of Coppertone. We are in the midst of summer, and Ryan and I have enjoyed introducing Carter to some of the finer points of this warm season. We took our traditional vacation, this year relaxing lakeside in Whitefish, Montana for a little over a week. In Montana, we did national park hikes, went boating, and took Carter on a waverunner, sandwiched between the two of us. Carter was less than enthusiastic about his lifejacket, which transformed him into a picture of the little brother from A Christmas Story when he is all suited up for the snow. As of now, Carter has little or no neck, and he was only able to move his head in the lifejacket by slowly turning his whole torso Frankenstein style. His whines of protesting the life jacket quickly ended when the boat zoomed on the water or the waverunner started to go. He loved the speed and, like any boy, found that adventure is a wonderful thing. We watched fireworks for the Fourth which, alas, Carter missed. Since it stays deliciously light and sunny late in the north, we didn't start fireworks until 10:30. Carter was dreaming of boats and waverunners by then.

Today, Carter got to go to Lake Mission Viejo with Ryan and I. There was no limit to his enthusiasm about the sand, lake and playground all being within yards of one another. He ran back and forth until his poor, tired feet were on strike.

Carter has discovered the joys of fresh fruit and ice cream this summer. He waddles over and opens his mouth like a baby bird if mama is enjoying a treat. It is a magnificent weight management plan for me.

Swimming lessons start Monday, and I'm a little anxious that Carter will think it's some new form of discipline or torture. He despises any kind of water near his face, so I imagine he'll hate opening his eyes under water as much as his mommy did. It took a number of summers of lessons and private instructors to solve the issue for me. I did find out later that I was allergic to chlorine and my eye burning wasn't a normal response. Ah, well.

We've also gone to the harbor and baby beach, numerous parks, the zoo, the pool at nana's house, and Balboa/Newport. It will be fun to continue summer traditions with Carter as he gets older. Although, I'm getting ahead of myself, and I have already started dreaming of dipping apples in caramel and doing a car tour of Christmas lights with hot cocoa in hand. Do you have fun summer traditions you want to share? I'd love some fun ideas from my friends! For now, thank the Heavenly Father for the gift of seasons, the fun days with friends and family, and the wonderful sensation of a cool, dripping ice cream cone on a summer day!

3 comments:

Sarah Cox said...

Oh Chiara, this is so wonderfully written. I so just want to "jump on in" your world! I want to go get Ivy & have her eat an ice cream cone RIGHT NOW with me!!!! Too bad she's in bed. :)

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Ryan Hawley said...

Funny, your recent summer traditions sound exactly like mine...