Hello Summer!

School is out, though things haven't quite slowed down yet.  I just finished up a heaping dining-room-table-full laundry marathon, which featured two items of note:  FIVE sweatshirts that my middle school son unearthed from his locker on the last day of school, and the last of the school-year uniforms.  This means fewer hanging shirts and more folded T-shirts, fewer socks and fewer khaki pants.  Woo to the hoo!  But the school uniforms have been replaced by baseball uniforms. . .pants, shirts, socks, special baseball boy undies. . . I don't mind - it's a nice change!

Speaking of baseball, have I ever mentioned that I love watching my kids play?  On average, we have  about 10 games a week between the four kids who play.  Add in practices and actual other life things, and it makes for a nutso schedule.  But that aside, I really, really love watching them play baseball.  Until they started playing four years ago, I hated baseball.  I thought it was so ridiculously boring and slow.   But from the first moment my boys stepped on the plate, I was hooked.  It isn't slow at all (well, the younger kids' games can sometimes be a bit laborious--), and watching my boys grow as players and young men has been a gift.  They've learned from their coaches, both good and bad, and they've learned valuable team skills.  I'm thankful for all the time we've spent on ball diamonds in the last four years -- and I'm also super glad they aren't into soccer!  Play ball!

Since school has been out, we've also had a few conversations with our kids about screen usage.  We are really trying to encourage them to self-regulate -- to watch their own activities and make healthy choices. We are also trying to make some changes ourselves:  be less reliant on our phones and more present.  We have seen a lot of good already -- brothers playing blitz ball, lots of books read and art created.  I am hoping for some long-lasting shifts in all of us.

So hello summer!  Here's to sleeping in, late(r) nights with the kids, reading a book (or two or twenty), vacations, camping, family reunions, and togetherness. Cheers!