Summer

Ah, warmth and humidity. I couldn't be happier. It's not so muggy that it's uncomfortable, just wet enough to make the heat hotter and my skin rejuvenate after the arid winter.

Kelsey and I spent Saturday morning at the farmers' market, our first of the season. It was fun to wander with the throngs and lie down in the grass and watch people go by.

We spent the afternoon at riding lessons, where she started posting. She was excited, but it tired her little legs out. They told her she did a good job for her first time. I sat in the car and read, occasionally interrupted by a rather foul-mouthed man working on putting up a fence.

The rest of the day was spent at my brother's cottage along the Wisconsin River. My sister-in-law Lee was visiting from Utah, and my nephew Ben came up from Illinois. We were a happy, noisy bunch, which drove my mother crazy. She kept plugging her ears. Lee said she wished Clint were there. He would have enjoyed himself.

Sunday was spent cleaning a bit. It was needed more than a bit.

Today we finished the touch-up painting in the basement. We picked a melted mint ice cream green. I can't remember what they called it. Paint colors always have such crazy names. Kelsey was fantastic helping with the entire job. Her roller had gotten a bit heavy at one point, so there were some blobs that needed attention. That's what we took care of today. I think it will be nice once the carpet is in and the furniture is back. We got indoor/outdoor carpet so that if we flood again, we can vacuum it up easily. Also, it will be wonderfully new carpet, not permeated with decades of filth.

Kayleigh worked on cleaning her room today. My goodness. The deal was if she cleaned her room, Eric would put a computer in there. So, she cleaned her room, then she and Eric worked on transferring files here and there. Unfortunately, the computer that was supposed to go in her room didn't work. She was pretty disappointed. One of Eric's friends came over to try to help after everything Eric tried failed, but it still didn't work. I told her to go mess up her room quick. She was not amused.

We had the first trip to the pool today. It was nice. Warm, breezy, sunny, not a lot of people. Kayleigh stayed home and did homework, but I did homework poolside while Kelsey and Eric swam. Summer school starts tomorrow for me. Four credits in four weeks. Sounds fun and a bit intense.