I Love It....I Love It Not.....

I have a love/hate relationship with summer. 


I love the freedom, the relaxed schedules, and not having to wake up at 6:00 a.m. every morning.


I love time at the pool, longer evenings to enjoy the outdoors, and spending time at the lake.


I love fresh produce from the garden, fresh fruit from the store, and eating popsicles on the front porch.


I love bike rides, combine rides, tractor rides, and jet ski rides.


There are a few things, however, that I do not love.  Summer, in fact, would be perfect without the following...

• Sand -- It is everywhere.  I just told my husband in May that our boys have outgrown the sandbox and we could get rid of it this year.  I KNOW they did not hear me say these words, but three days later they rediscovered the sandbox.  The countless hours they spend out there with their neighbor friends are delightful moments of quiet me-time.  The countless hours after they come in are spent sweeping and mopping the floors, and doing laundry.  It is  not worth it.
• Dirty bathtubs.  For the love.  How can one child actually have that much dirt on his body?
• Storms -- I don't hate them, but my oldest child is T.E.R.R.I.F.I.E.D. of storms.  It is beyond normal.  However.....I was nearly as bad as a child.  I know my parents are secretly laughing at me and dancing a little jig every time he gives me a dose of my own medicine. 
• The fighting.  Oh, the fighting.  The stupid, trivial, "I am only doing this to provoke and irritate my brother" fighting.
• 107 degree weather.  Way.too.hot.
• Burning fields --  Yep, still hate it.  Whether it is the field we live in, or the endless...."please respond to control burn out of control...." screaming through my husband's pager, I am not a fan.

Ultimately, though, my biggest frustration with summer is that it goes by too fast! 

I guess that means I should quit complaining and just enjoy the moments that make the memories....except for the sand.  Will.never.like.sand.