So the season now is officially “Autumn” here are some snippets from Phoenix, a.k.a: The Surface of the Sun.
1. The weather has cooled down considerably. We haven’t been over 100 in well over a week. In fact, I think we have had a few days when it didn’t even hit 90. Everywhere you go you see people starting to wear clothes they have been missing for months – longer shorts, socks, things that aren’t swimsuits. I’ve even dared to wear jeans a few times, even though I immediately regretted is when I had to get into a blisteringly hot car.
Still, when I go for a walk in the morning, it is distinctly not hot out, which is lovely. I even was able to go for a hike at 9am without fear of immediate heat stroke.
2. No more swimming. The pool has cooled off enough that I won’t go in it again until next June, or if I fall in, whichever comes first. The kids would still be happy to swim, and I am sure that people from otehr parts of the country would be fine too. My personal rule is: never swim if the water is under 85 degrees. I might go as low as 80, but no lower!
3. The kids had Fall Break. a whole week off of school. Of course the three schools weren’t off at the same time, but it was still a much needed break for me. Especially when the ones who have to leave earlier had the week off. B-L-I-S-S. I could get used to sleeping in until 6:30. I think that whole week I only had one cup of coffee per day!
Of course this “break” of theirs made me feel like I had a break too, and so I posted, in fit of stress, Listless: Breaking Up With My To-Do List. The results have not been pretty. I’ll post a better update on Monday. There is no real break for mamas, and trying to check out like that is just Not Allowed. I’m leaving the post up there as a lesson to myself to make sure a life change will stick before posting about it. Gah.
I have so much catching up to do.
4. The outside beckons. Suddenly the kids are outside all the time. Nightly showers are needed to scrub off their grime. I feel like going for a walk, or a run, or just being outside. I joke that my favorite outdoor activity is going back inside, but that is only partly true. Sure inside is cleaner (or is supposed to be) and has more comfortable floors and couches and somewhat fewer bugs. (Excepting, of course, our current ant invasion.) But outside… trees, rocks, breezes… I think I need to buy a hammock.
5. I told you so. Every year, people in Arizona increase their bitching about the weather as September ticks by. People wonder aloud, shouldn’t it be getting cooler yet? Isn’t it cooler by this time other years? To which I answer, No. It is never cooler in September. There may be a few scattered cooler days, but it is not, in general, much cooler. Sometime during or after the second week in October it begins to cool off. Every. Single. Year.
And suddenly we all start to remember why we bother to live here.
6. Baking time! Or at least it feels like it. I’m not baking because I am trying to avoid gluten again because my stomach is a mess and I hate trying to make something only to have it fail to turn out edible. Maybe I will buy a pumpkin candle.
7. I’d love to wax more nostalgic about beautiful seasons, but I need to turn the A/C down, I’m hot sitting here in my jeans and cardigan, and I have to-do lists to write.
Happy Fall to everyone! Stomp in some leaves for us if you can!
Go see Jen @ Conversion Diary for more Quick Takes!