Karen Foley
Lynn Raye Harris
Ellen Hartman
Diana Holquist
Samantha Hunter
Shirley Jump
Dee Tenorio
Jeannie Watt
Summer Fun
Summer in New England is wonderful, but this year we have been absolutely deluged with rain. I think the month of June had 21 days of rain. The river has been high for weeks and the water is running dangerously fast, making it difficult to even walk out on the docks. My gardens are suffering from rot because of the excessive moisture, and my house smells damp. My sister canceled her annual camping vacation because let's face it; who wants to be stuck in a wet tent with three kids? But when the sun does come out...ahhh. Wonderful.
My husband and I made a pact; since the weather forecast calls for an extremely wet summer, we've decided to get out and do something fun with the kids every day that the sun does come out. This is a huge departure from our typical summer routine, which usually finds me on my patio with my laptop while my husband works on his boat, and the kids stay indoors and IM their friends.
This weekend was a beautiful weekend, so on Saturday we packed up the kids and drove to Newburyport for the annual Riverfest celebration. There was a five-hour free concert on the harbor, lots of food and fest tents, sidewalk sales, street performers, and more people than I've ever seen in this small waterfront community in my entire life! We went on a harbor cruise, then found a shady spot under a tree and listened to the music, before finally grabbing some delicious Indian food at one of the food booths and heading home.
Yesterday, the sun came out again. This time, we headed into Boston to see the tall ships. I had to keep counting heads to make sure my three giggly, teen-aged girls didn't try to stow away on the Romanian ship...the Italian ship...the Brazilian ship...
We waited in line to board each ship for what seemed like hours, but there was a gorgeous breeze off the water and the attention that the young sailors gave the girls made it all worthwhile, at least, in their opinion. We walked the entire length of Boston's inner harbor and had lunch at Quincy Market. Then we took an open-air trolley ride back to the car. All in all, it was a perfect day.
Since today is also sunny, we're planning a picnic supper at a local riverside park when we get home from work. Tomorrow, the girls want to go the beach and play at the arcades and have beach pizza for dinner (beach pizza is somehow very different than pizza you get anywhere else...). After that, the weather forecast calls for more rain, but I think if we can get outdoors now, it'll be okay. On Monday, we leave for a week of hiking and kayaking on the Maine coast, and I'm keeping my fingers crossed for more sunshine!
What about you? What's your idea of summertime fun? And how do you deal when the weather is less than perfect?
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Truthfully...
hubby has to drag me outside with both hands and a shovel. I'm just not an outdoor girl anymore. I love me a gray day, though. Hot days make me sick. Over the years, I've gotten better though and when I want to give hubby a treat I say really sexy things like, "Let's go for a walk...with the KIDS!"
Gets him every time. :)
We usually hit the malls or the fashion district in LA or tour Japanese markets. And as my reward, we usually stop in a bookstore.
He's good to me.
Dee
Truthfully, Dee...I'm not so
Truthfully, Dee...I'm not so much an outdoor girl anymore, either. I hate being hot and sweaty, I hate anything that requires exercise, and I LOVE my rainy days with my laptop! But my husband is a very active guy and the rainy weather has him feeling cagey and irritable. He can't stand not being outside doing something, so this is my way of making nice. If I suggest doing things with the kids, like going to the beach or into town to a festival, it means he can't ask me to help him sand his boat, or paint the trim on the house, or mow the lawn, etc.
It's so quiet today...my hope is that it's sunny and everyone is out doing something fun!
AC
If it's 90 degrees or above I would rather stay home with the AC blasting and watch some DVDs or read. If the weather is nice and bearable I like going for a walk on the park.
Tough Stuff
Jane, you're made of tougher stuff than I am! If it's 80 degrees or above, I'm in the house with my ACO cranked! I do like walking, but the weather has to be right...in the 70's and a light breeze is perfect for me!
Gotta get out, LOL
I love being outside doing anything. No news to you guys, but after being trapped all winter, I am practically clawing at the screens to get out. Windows open, forget the AC (we haven't had to use it much, but Mike put it on the other day because it was humid... I would have rather just had the windows open). I like some rain/storms if it's not every day, and as long as it's warm. We haven't gotten pelted as bad as New England has, but it's been a downer summer, weather wise, that's for sure. I love being outside in the yard, or kayaking, or walking or just sitting in the sun or in front of a fire.
I do like being inside, though, and having all of the windows open while I write or do just about anything, but we have taken to even eating lunch, etc outdoors everyday... gotta store it up since before long we'll be closing everything up again. I really do have to get a year-round warm weather house...
Sam
Sam, I also prefer to have
Sam, I also prefer to have open windows during the summer than to have AC on all the time. My husband, on the other hand, insists that AC is the way to go, especially if it's humid. I'm not crazy about the look of them in my windows (blocking the sunlight) or the sound of them running all the time. I was thrilled when our big one died last year, but a neighbor just gave my husband three more! They're stacked in the our driveway right now, covered with a tarp...
About four years ago, my uncle gave us a portable AC for our bedroom. It's an upright unit, on wheels, with a flexible tube that connects to your window (looks just like a dryer tube). I hate it. It's big and takes up a lot of floor space, and there's no easy way to vent it out the window on a temporary basis. As soon as summer is over, I kill myself dragging it into the attic, and hope that come summer my husband doesn't have the energy to drag it back out again. This year, so far so good!
Oh, God, Karen...
That's a freakin' nightmare. I would rather just sweat or take a cold shower, LOL -- we have central air, the house came with it, and while it doesn't cool the upstairs as well (the ductwork narrows) I could never stand having all of those AC units... OMG. I feel for you.
You know, in our old house, no AC, but we found ceiling fans worked miracles. Loved them. I would have them now if our ceilings were high enough...
Sam
Yes...I love ceiling fans.
Yes...I love ceiling fans. Our bedroom has a cathedral ceiling and we do have a fan in there. The girls rooms are wired for fans, and we actually went out and bought them each one about two years ago...they're still sitting in the bedroom closets, in their boxes. I need a handyman!
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