Summer time is hands down my favourite time of year. In our family, July and August are typically jam packed with fun adventures. We try to spend the least amount of time at home, opting to be outside. We camp, we swim, we stay up late, and we go on at least one long road trip each year. By the time that September rolls around, we are suntanned, happy, and ready for the crisp autumn air.
This year has been a bit different. With a baby due in August and a huge backyard to landscape, this summer has involved a whole lot of time at home. Aside from a short mountain trip for my birthday, we haven't left the city. Ryan has spent every dry day (and some rainy days) outside, slaving away at the seemingly endless job that is our backyard. He goes straight out after work and comes in when it's time to sleep. The kids have had more screen time and fast food than I care to admit and my patience levels have reached a record low.
It's hard not to feel like we are missing out, and impossible to not feel guilty about our lack of fun. Both of my girls came long past their due dates and neither without medical intervention, so I feel like odds are this one won't make an early appearance. But I know that every pregnancy is different, so I do the responsible thing, and stick close to home, no matter how much I long to flee the city.
I keep seeing a post on Facebook about how we only get 18 summers with our kids, and how we need to make them count. Meanwhile, I'm turning on another movie and making peanut butter and jam sandwiches for lunch for the fourth day in a row. We spend most of our time in our air conditioned house for the sake of my swollen feet and lack of energy. Am I letting my kids down? Will they be sad when summer ends and we didn't do anything spectacular? Will they remember how grumpy and lazy Mommy was? Am I ruining their childhood?
No, of course not.
I hope that when they think back upon this summer, they'll remember cuddling on the couch with their little hands firmly pressed upon my belly, feeling their baby sister move. I hope they'll remember afternoons spent in the pool, and Mommy making giant splashes trying to climb into her inflatable donut.
I know for a fact that they'll remember eating far more ice cream than they'd normally be allowed, because Mommy's cravings have been out of control. I hope they'll remember playing hopscotch and blowing bubbles on the driveway, because we don't yet have a yard for them to play in. Most of all, I hope that they remember this summer as the summer that they met their baby sister. All of these long, boring days spent cooped up indoors are going to be so very worth it in just a matter of weeks. Aaralee talks about the baby every hour of the day, and Briley asks me every morning if she is still in my tummy. They are going to be such good sisters. This baby is going to be loved so much.
July has been pretty uneventful, but August will be here before we know it, and so will our brand new family member. Our summer adventure is only just beginning.
