Time well-spent...

I blinked, got a little busy, blinked again and WHAM! Summer is suddenly over! It is not a secret---I'm a huge advocate of long summer breaks. For me, it should be an enchanted, carefree time for kids, and myself, of course! I can't imagine it being a"boring" time or even involving days filled with rigid routine or predictable schedules. (Don't get me wrong, those lovely necessities have their place, but that's what the school year is for right?) My little people should have no reason to utter that "b" word. The world is a huge, interesting place with countless wonders to behold! Saying, "I'm bored" is unexceptable! Even my own little corner of the world is a wonderful place for exploration, adventure and enjoyment. And at this point in my life, more that ever, I yearn to capture the bliss and magic that summer brings! And I hope that some lovely moments are remembered by our kids this year, for this is truly the height of their "childhood"...

~Chasing and catching fireflies in our jammies right before bed~

~Popsicles... at least four times a day~

~Running outside for endless hours in the heat and dirt with our friends~

~Tending to the needs of baby birds who had fallen from their nests ~

~Dancing in the rain~

~Skipping through the water sprinkler~

~Sitting on the water sprinkler~

~Wearing flip flops all day, every day~

~Stopping to play at every park we see~

~Jumping into freezing swimming pools~

~Lying on hot cement after a swim~

~Ice cream and nachos at the concession stand~

~Going bare foot whenever we want~

~Staying up as late as we want~

~The diving board~

~Water slides~

~Countless giggles at countless sleepovers and countless play dates~

~Racing on hot, fast, cool bikes and thinking we rule the road~

~Getting super hot and sweaty just so we could have a water fight~

~Fountains ~

~Listening to civic bands in the park and old gentlemen crack corny jokes for the audience~

~Wading thru tall, itchy, buggy grass to jump in a creek w/our clothes and shoes on~

~Roman candles and sparklers, and firecrackers ~

~Admiring the blue, blue sky and the puffy white clouds~

~Daddy's awesome grilled teriyaki chicken wings~

~Shorts ~

~Shade~

~Swimming suits~

~"Muscle" shirts~

~Nauvoo~

~Weeks of "kid swapping" with cousins~

~Watching cicadas crawl out of their shells~

~Loving the feeling~

It's what it is all about.

These cherished moments didn't take a lot of money, just time...

...Time well-spent.