hello june

Here we are in June. Can you believe it? I can’t. To me, summer isn't marked by Memorial Day—especially not this year, when Memorial Day came so early and the kids were still very much in school—nor by the solstice, the official start of summer, at least as far as the calendar goes. Rather, summer begins in June. The days are warmer and longer so one can comfortably do summer-ish things, such as riding a bike or gardening.

The arrival of June is a relief, too, because May wasn't such a great month for me. We were super busy, and at the same time, many plans were in limbo so I felt like I was in a holding pattern. We had a lot of family visits, which increased my stress level significantly and derailed my personal agenda. I didn't get much done and the house got messier and messier. My writing suffered. But it's done. Time for a fresh start!

With my family, I managed a few great activities this past month, though I think the biggest highlight had to be adopting cats. Becoming pet owners has been a very positive step for all of us. The boys love to play with Trixie, the kitty, and chase her around the house. The boys have also, with prompting, cleaned litterboxes and cleaned up the attendant mess. John likes to spend quiet time with Nancy, who barely tolerates Trixie and hides from her for most of the day. Oh, the cats are far more fun than I imagined they would be.

We're also deep into our soccer season. Winston is playing in the Littlehawks league on Saturdays, which is mostly skill building through fun games and a short scrimmage. It's an awesome hour of runaround. Simon's Blackhawk team is starting to gel as a team. Each player is playing better than when the season started. They've got excellent foot skills—one of the things at which Blackhawks excel—and they're not afraid to use them. Simon, who has always felt comfortable at defense, is now also playing a bit more aggressively at midfield.

June heralds
~ warmer weather, which may even creep up toward hot
~ sleeping with the windows cranked open
~ stone fruit (hallelujah! I’m climbing off the locavore high horse to gorge myself with peaches, cherries, apricots, plums)
~ summer break from school (no more homework or rigid bed-and-bath schedules)

June is also for hunkering down. Here are a few things on my to-do-list:

~ clean the yard (pull weeds, pick up sticks, landscape, plant herbs and flowers), a perennial
~ throw away ALL the clutter that bogs down our existence (do I write this every month?)
~ have a blast with the little boys as they have a fun summer ahead of them

June, I'm really glad to see you!