Signs of Summer...

Well, the 90 degree temperatures and raging humidity are certainly subtle indicators that summer is right around the corner. Temperatures can be flukey, though, so you can't just rely solely on them to tell you what time of year it is. Pollen helps me to differentiate the spring from other seasons. As the worst of the tree pollen starts to slowly (OMG SO SLOWLY!) fade, I can tell that school is just about out and that lazy hazy days are soon to be upon us. Well, minus the lazy, anyway.

Other signs? Well, they exist, too.

They come in the form of the Radnor Hunt steeplechase races in Pennsylvania, which generally occur at the tail end of spring. Blue skies. Sunshine. Long grass. Muscular fancy racing horses. A husband assuming his coveted role of bookie for the day. A toddler without a nap due to the excitement and balloons. (Who can really nap when balloons are around, right?) Money lost. Laughs gained. Good times.



They also come in the form of hayrides and strawberry picking. Seriously, it is sometimes hard to tell that we live 15 minutes from center city Philadelphia. Head in just about any other direction, though, and you are bound to find solid evidence that we truly do live in the Garden State. With summer so near, the first batches of early varietal strawberries are at their peak. We took advantage of that fact, and we went a-picking out in the fields. And a-taste-testing out in those same fields.

(I did offer to pay for whatever Finnley might have consumed illegally, but they said since they didn't weigh her before heading out it was really hard to weigh her after to tell what was taken. Phew!).



And, there is no other stronger sign that warmer "life is a party" days are near than a kiddie pool in your backyard. We have one. We are official. I broke it out yesterday, and Finnley (and Batman) broke it in. They are both in awe and in love. Oh, what small amounts of bright blue molded PVC filled with air and water can do for the soul.



I have now seen a glimpse into what the next few months will entail. The good. The bad (well, Finnley is still heavily practicing "2", afterall...but we won't get into that right now). The amazing. The semi-permananent suntan lotion and citronella bug spray smells. The earlier mornings and later nights. Dirty feet.  Messy hair.  Grilled meals.  Ahhh.....it all looks pretty good to me.

Bring on the sunshine, I say. Bring. It. On.