The small summer things in life are happening at the moment which don't seem too word-dependent (my excuse for not writing too much). I mean do you really want to know what it was like at the pool for us? Within the time, there are moments for me, as mother, to remember and to hold (Cody finally getting the nerve to jump in five feet water, yet clinging to my neck until we reached the side safely. At 11, he's making small steps still which is good. Me doing a cannonball quickly-subtly in order to show him, and then he saying loudly "I love you, Mom, for being the only mother here who can do a cannonball!" So much for big momma splash under the radar. :)

Daughter summer things are happening too. We had to crack down on her; all the neighbors saw her car parked in the "grounded" spot on the cul-de-sac (her prom dress wadded up in the back seat??0). But, she didn't run. She kept her cool enough to earn her privileges back this time. We just went out to lunch, talking and laughing as old. This feels good for the moment.

My husband and I are planning for some vacation. We cut down a tree together. We do our typical walks and talk-throughs together. One night, I moaned all that needed moaning out of me, and the next morning it was gone. I'm so glad God made marriages and good men.

Spirituality is a recurring thought too. I'm reading a wonderful book on mysticism called "Wonderful and Dark is this Road: Discovering the Mystic Path" by a Catholic writer named Emilie Griffin. I have lost track of this deeper aspect of spirituality, because I've been increasingly migrating toward the shallow (to be honest) and toward the responsibilities of homemaking/parenting (which isn't bad and spiritual awareness can be fully engaged in the day-to-day, but I haven't yet realized how to do this well). I also read "Reallivepreacher.com" -- which is blogger Gordon Atkinson's book (it was on a 90% sale shelf!), and it is wonderful. I laughed and cried and walked away feeling ministered to at a time when I needed it. I also read Upton Sinclair's "The Jungle" which only makes me spiritually exclaim, "Pray before eating that beef/pork/chicken!" And, I thank God with more appreciation for the development of labor laws.

That's my summer in a not-so-nutshell. If you are still reading this (!) and would love to tell me what you're reading, please do. Would love to hear!