Yes, I do know that we have at least two more months of hot weather. I’m a planner.

I can’t even remember the last time I did it it’s been so long.  And normally, in different times, it’s something that happens every day.

I wore jeans yesterday for the first time in months.  

It’s been a mass of hot days and bare legs and ridiculous humidity, of swimming and riding bikes and playing in the dirt.

In other words it’s been awesome, one of the best summers of my life.  We haven’t really ventured away from our everyday routine much, mostly staying around the house.  But still, I’ve loved it.  The warm weather arrived just as I was getting the hang of having two young children.  Adele’s settled into her schedule and both she and Sebastian have developed and grown by leaps and bounds.  

Anybody else ready for pumpkin carving?

And so we’ve had fun with each other.   Sebastian has started interacting with Adele, treating her more than just that lump who cries a lot.  And she’s developed her own personality, becoming more than just that lump who cries a lot.

We’ve had some hard days and some days when I wasn’t sure I was the best person to be raising these children, but overall I feel pretty good, like the pressure is finally letting up some.

And now summer is winding down and schools are starting for the year.  Sebastian will be going to his first day of preschool next week, which I can hardly believe.  All the fall decorations are in the stores and thoughts are leaning toward pumpkin patches and crisp mornings.

Or maybe that’s just me.

Every year around this time, since I was a kid, I begin to feel tired of the heat and dream about autumn and apple cider and cold, dreary, rainy days.  Sometimes even Christmas.  I think Sebastian may have that same personality trait because we’ve been looking at Christmas cookie books for a month now, and discussing Santa Claus and reindeer.  He’s asked every day for the past two weeks if it’s time to snow yet.  

Maybe it will snow yesterday!*

Maybe so.

There’s nothing in the air that would make me feel this way, no relief from the oppressiveness that hits me as I walk out the back door.  Just a simple turning of the calendar page.  For me it’s time.  It’s time to start planning for sweaters and hats and socks that I need to knit to keep my family warm, for ways to celebrate the coming holidays with food and friends and crafts.

It’s time to think about long pants and jackets and cold fingers.  

And, possibly, time to wear jeans again, even if it means pretending that I’m not miserably hot and uncomfortable. 

*We’re working on that time thing.  Lots of different things happened or will happen ‘yesterday,’ whether it was last week or two weeks from now.  It’s a process.