Not yet August, yet the end of summer

Since when did the end of July become the end of the summer? It was even cooler today by at least fifteen degrees.

These last few days have been exhausting. Too much has happened for me to really process. First, we went to Lafayette. That's not what prompted me to post, although there's a lot say about that trip. It was good.

It's been a time of wonder and discovery for the kids, these dog days. Today, we saw a walking stick, biggest I've ever seen, as long as my hand. It was on the glass door of a Pizza Hut where we were attending a fifth birthday party. When we got home, after decompressing from the Jungle Gym (emphasis on "jungle," as in kids running around like maniacs, and where Olivia did not stop for two solid hours), after that we went outside. Partially to wake me up, but also to enjoy the weather.

Wendy was at her new job as a bartender and then went to host a women's wine drinking dinner (WINOS, Wendy calls it: women in need of socialization).

So I made some coffee and we headed outside. We got the bikes and the bubbles and the soccer ball. Sophie's getting good on the bike and I suggested maybe we could raise the seat and take off the training wheels. Maybe Emme should have hers, she offered, and she could get a new one for her birthday? Emme was on the scooter mostly, and Olivia rode the tricycle and played in the dirt.

Another part of this story is that Sophie just lost her front tooth, after many days of anticipatory wiggling. So, a big deal around here. She asked me if she looked funny, the beginnings of self-doubt. I told her she looked beautiful, which is true. The Tooth Fairy "exchanged" her tooth for a new notebook (pink, with little, round ornamental mirrors on the front). The next morning she began drawing and writing the epic story of a princess and a giant "wevre" bird.

So, she's riding her bike and circles back around to pick up a stick. "I think I recognize this stick. I bet it used to be a stick bug." And then, while riding away, on seeing one of the training wheels wobble, she says with her eyes wide, "Daddy, it's loose! I think I'll let it fall off on it's own!"

Emme is starting school very soon, and she feels like she's been waiting forever. My sweet sweet Emme. She feels so grown up. Wendy is going to be lost for a few days.

And just this evening, James came over to share some news. He's taking a job in Hot Springs, teaching at the state-funded high school for gifted students. Plus he's getting paid good money for the gig. So I'm happy on the one hand, of course. But terribly sad on the other, knowing "how way leads on to way," to quote an overused but applicable poem.

Yes, lots of change.