In addition to celebrating Canada Day, today marks the official start of summer in our household — Indy wrapped up his final day of school yesterday (Belle finished last Thursday) which means we’re now in Summer Mode.
Regardless of when the calendar says summer started, it doesn’t feel like it truly arrives until the backpacks are hung up and the lunch boxes are packed away.
To kick things off, I thought I’d do a little Summer Celebrations roundup, which is basically a warm-weather edition of Happy Things Friday. Here are a few things I’ve been appreciating lately:
- The smell of freshly cut grass. Nothing says summer quite like it.
- Leaving the house without layers. No jacket, hat, or socks. Just sandals and bare arms. It feels so freeing and joyful…until the humidity hits.
- Our heat pump. When that sticky heat does arrive, I am oh-so-thankful for our heat pump, which doubles as an air conditioner.
- A cold basement. Regardless of how hot it is outside, the basement always retains a bit of a chill which is such a relief on sweltering summer days.
- Cold drinks. We came back from an outdoor adventure recently and I cracked open a can of sparkling water the second I walked in the door. It was ice-cold, and I swear nothing has ever tasted more divine.
- Bright mornings. It’s light out when I get up and it makes everything feel easier. There’s something about waking up to sunshine that jumpstarts the day (and my circadian rhythm).
- BBQ season. I don’t touch the grill — ever. That’s John’s domain, and I’m more than happy to outsource that entire category of summer cooking to his capable (and patient!) hands.
- Kids outside. No snowsuits, no gear, no fuss — just running out the door to play. Simpler times, and the kids spend hours and hours outside.
- Independent mornings. My kids can now entertain themselves and even fix breakfast before I get up. I don’t have to be “on” the moment their feet hit the floor.
- Summer food. Some things just taste better in summer. Fresh berries (and other fruit). Corn on the cob dripping with butter and plenty of salt. BBQ on the deck. Hotdogs roasted over a campfire. Coffee sipped slowly from a travel mug by the lake.
With summer comes a bit more chaos (mostly in good ways), so my blogging rhythm will be a little more unpredictable over the next couple of months. Some weeks will look like my usual 5-posts-a-week routine, and other times I might disappear completely.
I am going to try to keep posting on Fridays because the Happy Things series is such a grounding and joy-sparking practice for me. But if I go quiet here and there, just assume I’m reading a great book, preparing snacks, or tackling Mount Laundry from the latest round of camp clothes.
Also: I’ve got a few Gratitude Guest posts lined up that I’m really excited about. I can’t wait to share more fresh perspectives!
Your turn.
- What smells, tastes, or sounds signal summer to you?
- Do you grill…or outsource that to someone else in your family?
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I didn’t get to read any blogs until later this evening. I was about to go to bed and then I decided to read one more post. I clicked on the lucrative one and this one popped up. No comments yet – what? I’m here first? I’ll circle back to read about lucrative stuff tomorrow.
I love summer. It’s my fav month. I’m twining you with the grill. Coach is the only one who grills. Some of my friends can’t believe I don’t grill, because it’s so easy. Well, if it’s that easy, then I’d end up doing dinner almost every night. No thanks. Coach loves to grill and he works late Tu/Thurs, so when he’s around and willing – have at it.
I love relaxing at the pool with a good book. The smell of Hawaiian Tropic suntan lotion always takes me back to summer as a kid, because my mom would use that to get a good tan. We usually get to a beach once a summer and I love the feel of the sand between my toes and the cool water. Summer is the best. My fav summer thing is having my kids home. They are a ton of fun. They do eat a lot, but that’s OK.
Enjoy your summer and no worries if you are less active here. I hope that you find lots of time to relax.
Ha! Like you, I have no desire to learn to grill properly because that will just pave the way toward me cooking more!
I don’t like summer much. But the relief away from the backpacks and morning rush is real ( at least for a few weeks).
Summer is the sound of the cicadas humming through the day , early morning bird songs, freshly cut grass, and the strong winds bringing the smell of rain before a storm.
I have mixed feelings about summer. I find it tiring and when the kids were little (and I was often still solo parenting) it felt soooo hard to fill all the hours. But now that the kids are bigger and more independent, it doesn’t seem quite as daunting. I don’t like the oppressive heat, though.
I LOVE the sound of cicadas. Brings back such happy memories of summer afternoons spent in the hammock as a kid reading books.
Happy first day of summer break! It really does feel like summer only truly begins once school’s out and the routines shift.
Freshly cut grass and the sound of kids playing outside – two of the best summer signals. In fact, I can hear them right now, and it’s such a joyful soundtrack to the season!
And yes to that first icy sip of a cold drink after being out in the heat, it’s pure magic.
Can’t wait for the Gratitude Guest posts! But if things go quiet, I hope it’s because you’re deep into a great book… not just buried under camp laundry. 😅
As much as I love the cool drink after a hot outing…air conditioning has been my best friend lately. It has been so hot and humid (and it’s the latter that really gets to me; dry heat is so much more manageable).
The kids have been outside playing so much and have just loved it!
I also do not touch the grill. That’s for Rob to do. I do all the other cooking, he can deal with the fire (also, am scared).
Holy moly Indy’s school went late this year! There’s something kind of annoying about going on MONDAY JUNE 30. At least they could have ended on Friday, rude!!!
I love summer so much. Right now the windows are open, it’s 20 degrees already (and it’s only 4:30!) I can hear the birds sing…it’s heaven. I love stepping outside into the warm, soft air. It’s just so wonderful.
Yay for summer! Summer adventures! Summer everything!
I’m scared too! Adding spark to gas just doesn’t sound safe and appealing to me.
Yup. School was insanely late. And, also, making everyone come back the DAY BEFORE CANADA DAY? So rude, right?
You know what’s crazy- I looked at the calendar last night, and when this week ends we’ll be HALFWAY THROUGH our summer vacation! I can’t believe how different our school schedules are. Anyway- yes, I absolutely love that first day of hanging up the backpacks and realizing you don’t have to pack a lunch.
I love having no school and I love the lighter mornings (getting up i the dark should be outlawed). Other than that- summer in Florida is kind of… disgusting. You just want to be in the AC as much as possible. And we get a lot of thunderstorms, which I actually enjoy (now that I’m not trying to herd a bunch of kids to the beach or waterpark). I do have very fond memories of summers growing up in the midwest though.
i love the photo of you and Indy drinking coffee by the lake! I’ll just enjoy summer vicariously through you.
I know, our summer is just starting when yours is finishing!
I have washed and put away the lunchboxes and it feels SO FREEING!
Like you, I hate, hate, hate getting up when it’s dark outside. Though I also prefer when it’s dark by 8:00ish at night. These days it’s still light at 10 pm and it just makes getting wound down for bed that much harder.
I love summer. I especially love all the summer memories I have growing up. Such sweet and innocent memories!
I do love ice cold drinks – water especially. And my ice maker froze last week and I needed to defrost it. So I was without ice cold water for a few days. I felt like I was in Europe drinking warm water. Yuck! Luckily we fixed it by watching You Tube.
Summer growing up was magical. I think our generation had it best? Some screens, but not many. Some oversight from parents, but not too much. Some organized activities, but lots of free space.
Warm water is the WORST in summer. We don’t have an ice maker and that is a dream for me at some point. Though we do have a water cooler that we fill with local spring water and it means we always have cold water at our finger-tips.
I rarely touch the grill. I can if I need to but I leave it to Phil typically. The smell of food grilling in the neighborhood is one of my favorite smells! The scent of sunscreen is another one, although sunscreen is a source of stress for me as I continue to struggle to find something that doesn’t bother Will’s sensitive skin. Sigh. I thought we found one and now he started to break out from it. Bleh.
For tastes, it’s corn on the cob, food off the grill, and my mom’s potato salad! For sounds, it’s the neighborhood ice cream truck which plays a little clip of Fur Elise over. And over. And over. It’s not my favorite but it’s a sound of summer! Secondly, the sound of lawn mowers (another thing I do not do).
Oh no! I’m so sorry Will is breaking out again. Argh. I thought you had managed to find something that would work. It sounds like a moving target since he’s developed sensitivities to things that used to be okay for him, right? Sigh.
I have never purchased ice cream from a truck like that; do they even exist in Canada? I’m not sure.
I mowed the lawn yesterday. Not my favourite thing, but it needed to be done. Some summers we have hired it out, but it’s good exercise and takes me about an hour, so I just don’t like spending money on something I can do myself relatively easily. Usually John does it, but since he was away, I wanted him to come home and not have to do that immediately (good thing, too, given his health!).
It’s funny how when there is grilling involved Hubs is on the scene and manning the grill. He calls himself the “Patio Daddio”. I *can* grill but I usually don’t get the chance. Hubs is responsible for all grill maintenance.
Happy Canada Day and happy summer! It’s my favorite season as well.
I have zero desire to have anything to do with it. And John LOVES it. Why take away from his delight, right? I’m happy to write myself completely off a particular job.
I hate the oppressive heat of summer (though it’s been OK around here so far…) but I love the produce.
Indy’s last day of school was on a Monday? At the very end of June? Is that because they have to plan for so many snow days? Or do they start really late? That’s crazy.
I like to grill, and so does Ted. I think we’re having grilled chicken tonight actually.
The heat isn’t what’s getting to me so far, it’s the darn humidity. I feel like I could wring out my clothing after a few minutes outside. But in a few months I’ll be complaining about how cold it is and that snow’s on the ground, so I guess I am just a complainer when it comes to Canadian weather.
Yes, the late end IS because of snow days. Nova Scotia doesn’t limit snow days, so they automatically plan for extra days in the year. We have 195 days of schooling, where the neighbouring province DOES cap snow days and only goes 185 days.
Ugh, humidity is the worst. It keeps things pretty and green, but it feels terrible. It’s a dry heat here, so it’s arid and everything turns brown and looks dead. Also fire, but I guess you get those too. 🙁
Happy Canada Day! I am not the grill-er in the family. Years and years ago, our starter home was about 3 minutes from the highway my Mr took to work. One afternoon, I decided I wanted to surprise him and grill dinner – I was trying to char a bell pepper to make some sort of sauce when the grill caught fire and he could see the smoke from the off ramp; I have never lived it down. To this day I don’t know what I did wrong. Grilling is on my list of things I want to learn before I turn 50, though…. (with a fire extinguisher close by!)
Okay, that story is HILARIOUS (and thankfully has a happy ending).
The very first time my mom asked me to boil potatoes, I put them in water, turned on the stove, and then went next door to our neighbours house to borrow some books. Of course, when I came home, the pan was dry and the house REEKED of burned food. We all have accidents, and in your case it’s a great excuse to let the Mr take the lead on that side of culinary things!
Wonderful snapshots of summer, Elisabeth. Enjoy 🙂
Hooray for summer! Yes to all the things you listed – and no packed lunches!
We ended up with a spontaenous beach picnic and swim on Monday night, which felt very summer vibes. He’s had a few days hanging out while we WFH, and a few days at camp, and we’re off to Portugal in 2 weeks. Looking forward to piles of fresh fruit.
I hope you have such a great trip to see your parents. Enjoy all the beaches and fruit and live your best summer life <3
Dang, now you have me craving fresh corn on the cob dripping in butter that I’m not allowed but will gladly suffer in order to eat said corn, even if it means cramps later. And did I just do a run on sentence? Ha! Ha!
You’re lucky you can grill, as we’re in an apartment, it’s forbidden (fire hazard). Enjoy the holidays and whatever the weather throughs at you and I look forward to reading your posts as and when.
We haven’t had any corn yet, but I’ve found myself craving it already. We did have BBQ last night and that was delicious.
Gosh, summertime must be the BEST time for you after getting through winter AND the kids being done with school. Yay! It’s pretty much business as usual over here, aside from my insane electric bill since it’s now so hot outside and my AC is working HARD.
I just had some burgers from the grill that my stepdad made and OMG, so dang good! I wish I had more of a chance to enjoy grilled food, but alas, I live in an apartment so it’s not something I could do myself if I wanted to!
It is soooo nice to just be able to go outside. It sounds so simple, but it can be quite complicated and time-consuming in the winter months.
I know our heat isn’t anything compared to Florida, but I am LIVING because of AC right now.
I love this post—so joyful! We are currently in Queensland, experiencing summer-like weather without the extreme heat. I also leave the BBQ to G, except when he’s out, then I do a not-so-great job because I’m always trying to get the accompaniments ready as well. I have had many leaping flames from the BBQ.
BBQ’s intimidate me! I’m happy to leave it squarely on John’s shoulders.