Thankful #9

I am thankful for the seasons.

Spring is a renewal.  It brings hope that life goes on and things will grow again. 

Summer is fun.  Kids playing outside, popsicles, swimming pools, and late nights and late mornings.

Fall smells good.  It brings new school years and the start of fun holidays.

Winter brings calmness.  No outside work, just enjoying being inside.  And of course Christmas!

Missing

I miss summer. 

I miss sleeping in until 7:30, waking to the sun, not a blaring alarm clock.

I miss staying in my pajamas until 10 and not caring because no one had anywhere to go.

I miss lazy afternoons, relaxing and not worrying about homework.

I miss staying up late with my boys, playing board games until midnight and laughing at stupid jokes.

I miss summer.

Really? 6 more weeks? Argh!

I am so tired of winter.
I'm tired of being cold.  I'm tired of snow and frost and shoveling.  I'm tired of empty flower beds and brown lawns and naked trees.  I'm tired of coats and gloves and boots and socks.
I want sun and warmth.  I want flip flops and flowers and green grass.  I want warm breezes and swimming pools and capris.
Saturday was so nice.  It was warm-ish and it really felt like spring.  I was in heaven.  Then Sunday morning it snowed, which dropped reality back into my lap.  It was still January.
Then the stupid groundhog had to go and see his shadow.  6 more weeks of winter.  Such a harsh reality check.
Dear husband, let's look for a job somewhere warmer.  Not too hot, but warmer in the winter would be nice.  How about if we just get a winter home in Australia, move back and forth, and avoid winter all together! 
Anybody with me?

What I am going to miss about summer

1. No cooking. Because The Doctor is a high school teacher, he has had the summer off. So he volunteered to take over the cooking. It has been HEAVENLY! To look at the clock at 4:30 and not panic about what I am going to make? Priceless. And he is such a good cook. He doesn't follow recipes, he makes everything up.
2. Sleeping in. I have trained my children NOT to wake me up. I will sleep in until 8 or 8:30. Which doesn't sound that late, until you realized that during the school year, I get up at 5:25 so I can shower. We then read scriptures from 6 to 6:30. This year, The Teenager is in high school, so he will be leaving the house at 6:45. Then The Artist will leave at 7:15, and The Chocoholic will leave at 7:45. The Princess is in afternoon kindergarten (barf!) so at least I will have more time to do her hair!
3. Pool time. We have been taking private swimming lessons from a sweet girl in our ward, so we have been going to the pool 3 times a week. And I have been getting in and enjoying the sun too. I have really gotten to enjoy that. I know that we can still go after school, but then it's homework time and almost supper and it's more crowded. This is our last week. Sob.
4. Projects to look forward to. We have finally had a smidgen of money this year to do some things outside. We got our fence finished off and the kids have slept outside. We got the flowerbeds done in the backyard and it looks awesome. We have a thriving garden, and when I finish this post, I am off to bottle tomatoes! And we are supposed to be getting a sprinkler system put in the backyard soon.
5. We have done some fun family staycation things this summer. Most notably, we went to Lagoon for the first time. I know, everyone is so shocked when my kids said it was their first time. It was expensive! Even with sweet discount tickets from a new writer in our ward, it cost us $180 just to get in. But it was so much fun! All the princess wanted to do was ride the Merry-Go-Round. That was the first ride she went on and she was so happy, she was crying!
6. Spending time with my hubby. When he starts teaching again, he will leave the house at 6am and not get home until 5:30-6:00 at night. Monday through Friday. He is also teaching at Argosy University on weekends, and will be teaching an online math class for BYU-I. He will be so busy. I guess I will catch up on my TV!
7. The rest of the summer. I know that summer isn't "officially" over, but with The Chocoholic starting school this week and The Princess starting next week, it feels like it!

I'm melting

Every January and February I talk about how much I hate the cold. And I do. I hate being cold, I hate coats and socks and boots and extra laundry. I swear I would rather be hot than cold.

And then July and August come and I remember that I hate the heat. I hate sweating and being cranky and dry lawns. We sleep with the windows open and a fan blowing on us all night long, so that is extra noise.

I have decided that I like spring and fall. I like warm days with the windows open and wearing shorts, and then the nights cooling off and having to put on a sweater.

So I guess I hate being cold, and I hate being hot. I just like being warm.

Fall

Why I like fall...

• Opening windows again
• Wearing flip flops
• Leaves changing colors
• The smell of fires in fireplaces
• Harvesting the garden
• Warm days, cool evenings
• Back to school

Why I hate fall…

• The smell of the furnace the first time you turn it on for the season
• Digging up the garden
• Spiders invading my house
• Getting a cold
• Getting cold
• Raking leaves

Summer

Why I like summer...

• Not cold
• Wearing flip flops
• Watermelon
• My anniversary (June 19th)
• Capri’s
• Boys' buzz cuts

Why I hate summer...

• Shopping for swimsuits
• Wearing swimsuits
• Gets too hot
• Bugs
• Weeding
• Camping
• Dandelions
• Back to School (year round school)

Spring

Why I like spring...

• Opening windows again
• Wearing flip flops
• Shedding coats, gloves, hats, scarves
• Planting the garden
• Flowers

Why I hate spring…

• Rain
• Mosquitoes
• Surprise snow storms

Winter

Why I like winter...

• Christmas
• My birthday (December 19th)
• Sweatshirts and sweat pants
• Sweaters
• Hot Apple Cider
• The first snow
• Christmas carols
• Watching snow flakes fall softly to the ground
• Fires (in fireplaces)
• Sleeping in the sun shining through the window

Why I hate winter...

• Cold
• Black snow
• Yellow snow
• Cold
• Coats, hats, gloves, socks, boots, shoes, etc.
• Cold
• Wet carpet from the snow
• Wet socks from the wet carpet
• Cold
• Driving in the snow
• Cold
• Post Christmas depression
• Cold
• Can't wear flip flops in the snow (well, you can, but your toes get cold!)
• Static cling in my hair
• Cold

Seasons

I have been thinking about why I like each season, and why I don't. So for the next 4 days, you will be treated to my "Why I love" and Why I hate" lists.

It started out as one post, but when I am trying to fill 30 days up, I will stretch things out where I can.

Gotta love NaBloPoMo!