Summer Lovin'

Summer of 2019 has come and gone faster than a shake of a lamb's tail, and I would be lying if I said I wasn't mourning the end of summer more than usual this year.

There's quite a bit of anticipation for the upcoming school year on my end: a dear friend/coworker/librarian extraordinaire no longer in the building, a new crop of kids with a reputation preceding them, my own stupidly high standards for myself, typical stress and workload, and the rat race pace of life, among other things.

There is so much good about the beginning of another year, though: more experience under my belt, a chance to better what I didn't do well in the past, new students to form awesome relationships with, and more time with my work friends (or with a select few, because - let's be real - we don't get to leave our classrooms very often).

Anticipations abound, both good and bad, but the real reason I'm not ready to accept that the school year is nigh is because this summer has been so very wonderful.

My sweet friend Bethany had asked me way back in June if I was excited for this summer, if I was expecting it to be the best summer ever because we have Ben.

My honest answer: nope. I was kind of expecting it to be a bit of a dud, full of sleepless nights, housebound days with a fussy baby, spent not traveling and going stir-crazy, at my wit's end just ready to get back to school. I was mostly just feeling sorry for myself that I couldn't get out of Oklahoma for a good chunk of the summer.

Much to my surprise (and my joy!), this summer break has been absolutely lovely. It hasn't been filled to the brim with travel like summers past, but it has been absolutely filled with the people I love most: Patrick and Benjamin, with a heavy sprinkling of family and friends throughout. It has been spent putting our new home together, slowly but surely, bit by bit. It has been spent creating and tending my little garden, loving on those luscious plants, running all the errands to this store and that, putting each element in its place just so.

This summer hasn't been spent in front of a television (our Apple TV hasn't worked for a while, so our television consumption has drastically decreased, a hugely different picture than last year's pregnant summer spent parked on the couch), nor has it been spent in front of a computer (I am terrible at checking email during the school year, let alone during summer, and I stay far away from computers); there has been more phone time than I would like to admit, but I/m working on that. Kind of.

I anticipated that this summer would be a bit of a drag with our lack of travel, but it truly has been such a joy being at home with my guys, watching Benjamin grow and learn every single day.

We did have a bit of travel, though. They were important travels, too! We took a trip down to Texas to see my baby brother Joshua graduate from high school (brb, crying), a day trip during torrential downpours to Ree Drummond's Mercantile on my birthday, and our first kid-free overnight trip to Eureka Springs (we were gifted one night at our favorite B&B by precious for our baby shower and it had to be used by July)! That's more traveling than some people choose to do all year long, so I'll take it. They're sweet memories of our first summer with our boy, and sweet memories of missing our boy but enjoying some time just the two of us which is both wonderful and rare.

Someone asked me the other day, what do I do when I just need a break from Ben, when I just need to get away for a bit? Honestly, I was completely shocked by my answer: I told him that I don't feel that way. During the newborn days, I absolutely needed a break, needed to get away and have time to myself. Ben is so easy going and fun these days that I don't need the same kinds of breaks that I once did. Now, going to run errands on my own, no baby in sight, is SO much faster and easier... I definitely take advantage of those opportunities when I get them. It's nice to be able to concentrate on my grocery list when I'm by myself, but it's also way less fun. I do a lot less smiling when I'm running errands solo. During the upcoming school year, I'm positive that I'll need time to spend by myself and recharge, but that happened regularly before Benjamin came around. It's part of the territory when you're an introvert with a high-stress, with-people-all-the-time job.

Benjamin is officially 11 months old and is going, going, going all the time! You can't take your eyes off him for five seconds without risking death and destruction. Okay, so maybe that's a bit extreme, but we didn't have eyes on him for a handful of seconds the other day and he smacked his face into his bookshelf after slipping on a book. Poor baby. This boy LOVES books. I feel like all parents say that, and maybe it's true, but he truly would spend most of his day sitting in your lap if you just kept reading book after book. He doesn't sit still for much, but always for books!

His favorite activity is to go to his bookshelf and pull off ALL the books from the top shelf, then pull out his baskets of toys from the bottom shelf and dig through each of those. He does this approximately 27 times every day. The bookshelf was actually Patrick's mom's in college; it just makes my heart swell knowing how much she would love how it is fostering her grandson's love of books today.

Ben's all-time favorite book is still Vegetables in Underwear, with There's a Bear on My Chair and Big Red Barn coming closely behind. He has a few books that are reserved for when he is in his high chair, and he squeals and giggles at the babies in his First 100 Words book every time.

He is also crazy mobile and crazy quick, another reason you can't take your eyes off him! Ben has a hilarious little crawl - his right leg is totally normal, and he hikes up his left leg and uses his left foot to push himself even faster. This kid scoots across the room and down the hall in mere seconds, and he is now a champ at pulling himself up and cruising around all pieces of furniture. Just today, he popped up from behind a coffee table, grinned at me, and proceeded to grab my chapstick for himself. Four teeth with three others visibly making their way out, practicing taking steps, growing interest in solid foods and drinking all the water he can, chasing us from room to room, flirting with himself in the mirror and every girl whose attention he catches, clapping and being so proud of himself for existing... these little details tell me that our baby boy is approaching toddlerhood at an alarming rate. And let me tell you, he is SO MUCH FUN!

I'll blink and he'll be one. We're on a countdown to his first birthday and I can hardly believe that it's almost here! The old adage is true: the days are long, but the years are short. Those first three months were absolutely brutal, riddled with so much anxiety, pain, frustration, desperation, and doubt amidst the joy of this precious life. Months three to six were much less tumultuous, and it has just gotten even more enjoyable since then.

Patrick and I have so much fun with Benjamin, so much fun being together as a little family of three. Every single day is truly a joy with these two, and I'm so sad to see our first summer together coming to an end. I can't stop time, but I can soak up every snuggle, giggle, and wiggle I can, especially during these last days of summer lovin'. Actually, that's exactly what I plan to do.