Thursday night.

Trash night.



"Honey, did you take the trash out to the curb?"  "Honey, can you put new trash bags in the trash cans?  Please?"

10:00  Bedtime

Routine

Routine is comforting.  But it also gets boring.  How do I find the balance?

Tomorrow is the last day of school.  Finally.

Then Routine goes by the roadside.  Wayside?  Curb?  I don't always remember quotes and phrases.

In fact my memory is sadly awful.

A new season begins:  Summer!!



Time for staying up late and sleeping in.
Time for ice cream and an inflatable kiddie pool.
Dining al fresco.
Time for adventures and spontaneity.  Vacations.  Road trips.  Making memories.
Family time.  Sunshine.  Beach time.
Sunscreen and mosquito repellant.
Maybe even camping.  Finally.



It will fly by.  No, seriously.  Summer Break is only two months this year.  That makes my heart break a little bit.  If I dwell on it it's over before it even began.

So I'll stop to enjoy it.  I'll slow down to soak it up.

I'll relish the noisy neighborhood, because it means kids are living and loving summer.

I'll appreciate the dirty laundry and dirty hands and dirty fingernails, because it means my toddler is making memories.

I'll savor the flavor of fresh fruits and vegetables, because it means the Lord has provided a bounty in our own backyard.

I'll inhale the aroma of a multitude of flowers that are mixed in the same bed of dirt as weeds that need to be pulled.

I'll pause to cherish the moments.  All of them.