Summer 2006 Is Officially Started

The last couple weekends havent been exactly pool weather. Last weekend was raining and this weekend has been complicated and a little cooltoo cool for swimming anyway. But I have not doubt it will get better.

Summer at least got off to a good start. We had a long weekend capped by Memorial Day. Although Memorial Day has more immediacy during war, for Mister it is still the official start of summer and it is a time to look forward to school ending and hot lazy days.

On both Saturday and Sunday, we were able to hit the pool on the first weekend it was open for the summer season. And the water wasnt terribly cold. Cool, but not heart attack-cold. We also got some good badminton in. Mister is getting pretty good at it and it is actually a lot of fun. No net. But we get good volleys going and a little trash talking and arguing over whether a shot landed in bounds to add to the fun. All in fun, of course.

Plus, when we went to Meijer to get some sand to make a sandbox for Lamb, I spotted a croquet set. I'd been meaning to get one for the last couple years but kept forgetting. And there was a nice one sitting right in front of me! Seventy bucks? Oh, 20% off. Only $56.00. Hmm. Still too much. Look right. Another set for $40.00. Minus 20% so make it $32.00. Good, but whats that to the right? $25.00! With the discount, only twenty bucks! Come to poppa, cheap set. And I got the two bags of sand for less than $5.00. Man, this was an easy shopping trip.

The sand box was easy to set up and it sits on the patio with some beach toys ready for Lamb the next time she is here for some outdoor play.

And the croquet set was a hit. Though first I had to tape up the cheaply made seam that burst on the carrying bag. Now I know why it was only $20.00. But hey, the rest of it was just fine and though I was much better at it than Mister, who didnt quite have the hang of hitting the ball far, he enjoyed it. Still, I could see he was disappointed at losing so I resolved to adjust the skill factor balance.

On Memorial Day, with my Ex at work, Lambs day care closed, and Mister off of school, I decided it would be a nice time to have my parents meet Lamb. They always ask Mister about her when we visit. Mister was a little unsure of taking Lamb. I'm not sure whether he was worried that my parents would like her too much, or what. But at my parents', Mister was the perfect, patient brother (where did that come from?). Lamb was shy only a little bit at first, retreating repeatedly to my arms at first. But she was ready for my parents cat that Mister told her about. Lamb brought her own stuffed cougar for the cat. My parents were just great with Lamb (as I knew they would be) and treated her like a granddaughter. My dad did his usual stuffed animal on his head and shoulder routine and Lamb grabbed her kitty off every time. And then put it within my dad's reach only to snatch it away when my dad reached for it. Lamb enjoyed the foot bounces by my mom and even mentioned it days later. Lamb enjoyed the keyboard my mom has and ate the pizza and pudding for dessert. She even used the bathroom twice and avoided any accidents.

My sister and her boyfriend came by, too, to meet Lamb for a bit before they had to head off to a barbecue. They thought she was very cute and were impressed by how much Mister obviously loves her. And given how well Mister acted, I have to conclude that his worry was whether Lamb would be treated nicely and not that she'd steal his thunder. He is so protective of her (when he isn't insulting her) that I should have figured this out right off the bat. Hes a good big brother and a good boy.

Anyway, a good weekend to start the unofficial beginning of summer.

The next weekend started with the ice cream social at Mister's school. It is the social event of the season that signals school is just about over. It is a carnival that has some little games, inflatable climbing and bouncing rides, hot dogs and ice cream--of course. And a book sale.

I bought a couple books for Mister including a reprint of the original War of the Worlds; plus a couple for Lamb, too. Dora and Winnie the Pooh books.

Mister grabbed some cotton candy and I had a dinner of two lukewarm hot dogs. Joy.

Then I was drafted at the inflatable obstacle course. It was very popular with no supervision initially, and so it became an air-filled Lord of the Flies arena where small children were at risk of sure death as older children roamed in tribal gangs. So a bunch of us parents were asked to supervise. I was put at the chokepoint where kids could climb up the wall to a slide before they headed for the exit. For a good 40 minutes, I kept the kids in order, making sure one was over the top before the next started up, gave the kids tips on how to get up the wall, helped the little ones up the wall, and otherwise made sure nobody bled, caught fire, or lost a major limb. I didnt lose one on my watch, although when it was over I noticed one of my toes was jammed up pretty bad. I hadn't noticed when that happened. It got better in a couple days, so nothing broken. Mister spent the rest of the trip on the obstacle course having a ball.

Over the weekend, I even managed to fix the sound on Misters computer that mysteriously went away a few weeks ago. A few games still had sound so I knew that the speakers were good. So I went through the trouble-shooting guide and everything looked good. I just clicked on things semi-randomly and when I got out of the system stuff, the speakers magically worked again! Mister was pleased. It seemed like the clicking equivalent of hitting it with a stick.

And we had more croquet. This time I gave Mister two shots per my one and he was able to kill me. Next time Ill make the course bigger to force him to hit harder and give me a shot at winning. By the end of the summer, I bet he won't need the handicap I've given him and he'll kill me in this game. I hope so!

Yep. A good summer already despite the gap in swimming pool weather.