Finally, summer

I absolutely live for this time of year. We're just in our first week, but now that both girls are done with school, the house has that relaxed summer feel. Waking up to open windows with air already warming. Fresh strawberries from the garden on my cereal. Bare feet on warm hardwood.

The biggest boon for us this season will be the neighbor's new pool. This is not just any neighbor, but the home of both girls' best friends, and they are like family to us. It is very kind for them to include us in their new luxurious swimming situation - we have already been over there several times even though the late-spring weather has been inconsistent with lengthy boughts of cool rain. I hope we can repay their hospitality in some way... I'm thinking of something on this page. Four feet of fun, baby!

Today there is great excitement in the works. We're hosting our annual end-of-school sleepover for K and her closest school friends, and this year's theme is 'spa party'. It will be nice - not as elaborate as last year's competitive games/treasure hunt extravaganza, but more relaxing for everyone involved, I'm sure. I am making the facials and foot scrub, and the girls will make their own bath salts, putting them in small jam jars to take home. I have to come up with some way to decorate the jars...maybe J and K can do that today. There will also be nail polish involved. Yeah. I am just hoping my bathroom (the largest in the house, and therefore the most appropriate for a 'spa' scene) isn't completely trashed after all the unsupervised treatments.

J is so excited she can barely contain herself. I promised to give her the treatments while the girls are off doing their thing. Right now she is making cards for each of the guests, humming and narrating her progress softly to herself, occasionally tucking her hair behind her ears.

Off to clean the bathroom, cut up the fruit for the spa tray, and make up those treatments! Here's to a whole summer of things to celebrate...