Wrapping up the Summer

The end of summer is always so bittersweet. It marks the busiest time of the year for John and a sort of impending doom for me, but it's also usually some of the nicest weather of the summer. This year, I decided to get out of dodge for the last full week of summer and visit family and attend my 20th high school reunion.

First stop was Nana and Grandpa's. They orchestrated quite a 24 hour visit for us. They prepared a delicious dinner with Aunt Lynn and Cousin Catherine the night we arrived and then a morning at a farm and a local swimming hole the next day. Cally hadn't seen Nana and Grandpa for two and a half months and I think they were all pretty enamored by each other:

Cally gets to see farm animals a lot, but this was her first experience at a petting zoo. As you can see she was pretty much in heaven:



And after an exciting morning at the farm, Cally showed Nana how much she loves the water:


Next stop was Grandma and Bumpa's house with special guests Kesley, Jameson, Paula, and James.

We all spent some quality time at the beach, but some of the best time was spent at the house. Grandma has accrued a number of great toys for the kids and they were happy as could be playing "Animal Picnic":


playing "Restaurant":


playing with Gus the cat:

and being read to by Grandma:


And I even got to go out with high school friends two nights in a row during my reunion weekend! It was such a treat to see so many of my girlfriends and their husbands. I felt a little lost without my own wing man, but loved hearing about what folks are doing 20 years after high school.


Today, I was driving back from visiting a friend down and Huntington and noticed that some of the trees are all ready beginning to change colors. We had just been on a hike with eight dogs and three little people. We'd munched on blackberries and marched through stinging nettles. The sun came out and we took a dip in the pond. Summer still feels like it's in full swing, but like the leaves beginning to change, my life as I know it is beginning to change. Tomorrow begins the abrupt transition from "Summer Katy" to "Working Mom". I love the seasons-- the distinctions that they each carry and the transitions along the way. My job and family life is so directly tied to those seasons and transitions. It's hard to mourn the end of one, when the excitement for the other beckons over the horizon. Of course I'll miss carefree days of summer when I have no agenda and don't have juggle daily walks with Cally and Zephy with lesson planning and grading. I cherish the time that I've spent with Cally this summer, she's my little buddy, and I know that the transition back to school tomorrow will be tough...... just like stick and mud season can be tough in Vermont. But I really am already looking forward to apple picking, fall foliage hikes, biking through crunchy leaves, first snowflakes, stacking wood and cozy fires.