Dear Summer, Thank you for the gift of time

How many times have you said “if only there were more hours in the day?”  And how many times have you vividly imagined all you might accomplish with those precious few extra hours?  It recently dawned on me that the summer season gives us this gift of time.  By its very virtue, summer provides extra hours of daylight – a few hours in the morning to get a jumpstart on the day and a few more in the evening to relax and unwind.

As one who is constantly juggling work, kids, fitness, writing, an outrageous to-do list and a strong desire to connect with my husband on matters more substantive than potty training and dog walking, these extra hours which summer so effortlessly bestows are a true gift and one that I’m utilizing to its fullest extent. 

With sunrise at 5:30 and birds chirping long before, I’m all too happy to routinely get out of bed at 5:45.  Mind you, this is the same time I set the alarm the rest of the year but, during the summer, I’m far less likely to hit snooze; I’m eager to get up and get the day started.  The early light allows me to squeeze a lot in before the tots get up at 7:30ish.  Of course, there are all the daily requirements – the dishwasher, the dog, making lunches and getting in my morning run a few days a week.  But these things are part of the LyonsDen routine in any season.  The additional benefits I reap from the early sunrise include reading the paper on the front porch or, in the case of an early riser, reading Dr. Suess on the porch while the dew is fresh and the air is clean and clear.  Should I choose to leave the comfort of the porch, I might run for a few more miles, water the plants, clip a few flowers to brighten the kitchen or possibly settle in the yard with my laptop and work on my writing… it’s so easy to be inspired with a large cup of coffee and the soft sunlight glistening through the trees.  I am so grateful for these moments and will miss them when the days grow shorter.

As the sun shifts from East to West, it has a soothing effect on our typical end of day chaos.  The fact that school is out also lessens the pressure; we’re not hustling to get homework done and the clan in bed by 8:00.  Even so, dinner still needs to be served and the bedtime routine still reigns supreme.  What’s different then?  It’s the attitude, I think.  It’s more laid back.  We’re not literally racing against darkness when we use the grill.  We make plans to make the most the evening time we have together. We squeeze in a post-work trip to the pool, possibly with friends.  We relax our standards a bit.  Dinner just might be grilled chicken with peaches and watermelon served on a beach towel.  Popsicles might melt on the same porch where we started our day as fireflies float by… actually, I think they now bolt by for fear of being caught by one of our little Lyons Cubs; gentle though they try to be, they’ve squeezed the lights out of more of our flying friends than I care to admit.  But I digress. 

Perhaps best of all, summer’s extra daylight hours give my husband and I something we truly cherish – more time with our kids and each other.  Des and I rarely have a quiet moment but find that summertime affords ample opportunities for a shared cup of coffee or glass of wine on the porch (Again! That porch! How we love that porch!) We actually get the chance to talk about more than the kids and to-do lists.   We also relish the morning Suess time and evening swims with the kids.  The “family fun time” in the midst of our manic weeks is a rare pleasure.  We know this time is precious.  And, like summer itself, is fleeting.  Which is exactly why we’re committed to making the most of it.  Thank you summer, for answering my wish for more hours in the day.  Now Old Man Winter, if you're listening, could you please lighten up a bit?  And yes, I do mean that literally!

Tuesday Tip: A Pull Up is NOT a Swimmie



A few weeks ago we were headed to "opening day" at our pool.  I pulled the beach towels out of the basement, located swim suits and swim shirts that still fit the kids and checked the sunblock for expiration dates.  We seemed to be in pretty good shape until I realized we didn't have any swimmies (a.k.a. swim diapers, water pants, you get the idea) for the triplets. 

I decided we had two choices -- let them go bare bottom, which seemed reasonable enough given that they are 2 1/2 and dabbling in potty training OR put them in pull-ups given that they are just dabbling in potty training and it would be poor form to provide a pool-clearing "floater" or two (or three!) on opening day.  Our choices sparked an interesting conversation between me and Des, a real introspective of the type you might expect to see on 60 Minutes or 20/20.

"What's the difference between a Pull Up and a Swimmie?"  "Is it just the packaging and clever marketing?"  "Are those CPG giants P&G and Kimberly-Clarke out to get us yet again?  Convincing us that we need day diapers and night diapers and pull ups AND swimmies?!"  "Yep.  It's a conspiracy.  They are just preying on the vulnerability of parenthood and have tricked us into thinking we need all this stuff."  "Well, not us!  Screw it!  This summer we're not buying those Swimmies!  At $10 a pack, we'll be bankrupt by Labor Day anyway.  Little guys, go for it... put on your pull ups and hit the pool!"  And so they did.  And this is what happened:

Close up of exploding post-swim swimmie

It may be hard to fully appreciate the impact of the water-logged pull up; this picture doesn't quite do justice to the fluid-filled interior that erupted up and out of the little guys swimsuits, leaving an almost snowy-like trail from the kiddie pool back to our chairs.  As they waddled by, weighted down, confused and embarassed, onlookers couldn't help but laugh.  Ok, I couldn't help but laugh myself.  In fact, Des and I almost wet our pants we were laughing so hard.  The poor little fellas didn't think it was funny though...

"It's not funny.  Could you just buy me some Swimmies?!"

The morale of the story?  There is indeed a difference between a pull-up and a swimmie and good corporate citizens and reasonably competent parents will indulge their children with both! 

Summer Concert at the Lyons Den

Tonight was another one of those nights. I left work a few minutes early so I would be home for an important call at 5:30.  I walked in to the typical throngs of little ones looking for an uppie and chattering about their day.  Unfortunately, I promptly dismissed them, ignored their chatter and hid in the bathroom until my call was over at 5:45.  I then reentered the kitchen, kissed them all hello and acted like it was normal to have a mom who is hiding in the bathroom one minute and all love and kisses the next.  My fleeting attention was not lost on them as an unusual evening unfolded.


I had just gotten dinner on the table at 6:00 (gotta love leftover night!) when a few of our neighbors started to filter into the yard.  Then a few more.  "We're here for the concert," they announced.  I had to admit that I had no clue what they were talking about.  Then a few more filtered in.  Then I noticed about ten sippy cups full of water lined up by our back gate and a blue bucket newly and neatly labeled in Liam's handwriting "Money."  I excused myself to go back into the kitchen and ask my five mischievous kids what was brewing.  They erupted into an excited explanation -- "We're having a concert!" "I play drums!" "We made tickets!" "They gave us dollars!" "Gonna sing songs!" "Is dinner over?!"  And so it was that I learned that in the brief window between the last day of school and first day of camp, my five tykes turned into both budding performers and junior extortionists.  


Unsure of how to proceed, I decided that the show must go on.  Dinner could wait.  None of us wanted to disappoint the gathering crowd, each of whom had apparently paid a dollar and was now holding a sippy cup of water.  One of them was wise enough to remark to another "You might not want to drink this, I think it might have come from the hose earlier today."  As Ciara circulated and made sure everyone had "refreshments", Liam was collecting more money while the triplets tottered to and fro.  With an authoritative bang on a pre-school sized drum, the "concert" began -- a cacophony of percussions that included that drum, some maracas, some bells and a good old-fashioned spoon on a Lego box.  It was just the type of "concert" you'd expect from a junior set quintet; it was more noise than music and I was kind of horrified that they had charged folks for the experience.


Don't get me wrong, I would have made them return those dollars even if the performance had been stellar but, I think the kids have a few lessons to learn from their performance art endeavors...

1. Don't take money from friends and neighbors.
2. Practice makes perfect.  
3. Water does not a refreshment make.
4. A mom that hides in the bathroom instead of saying hello when she gets home from work isn't all bad.

In fact, that very same Mom might let you leave your dinner on the table, chuckle at your concert, and then offer up a stroll to town for ice cream.  All because these days between school and camp and summer days in general are far too fleeting and deserve to be enjoyed.  God only knows what tomorrow will bring but for now, I think I've nipped my petite extortionists in the bud. I'd keep your dollars in your pocket though, just to be sure... 

Sure signs that summertime has arrived

Memorial Day weekend typically marks the unofficial start to summer. The pool opens, the lemonade flows and the sunscreen is plentifully applied. The beach towels are brought out from winter hibernation, as are the buckets and shovels, swimsuits and sandals. Although there are still a few weeks left of school, summer is in the air – especially this week as the heat and humidity provided temperatures well into the nineties. With Memorial Day now a memory, the spirit of summer is here to stay and and I for one couldn't be happier about it.

For starters, the sun is up long before I am. This is such a welcome change from the dark days of winter when my morning runs occurred in darkness and the kids had to be dragged out of bed.

Bedtime slides by a few minutes or a few hours, depending on the day. We might read a book on the front porch as the sun sets or hang out in the backyard as the moon rises. Either way, we’re more lax about the bedtime routine and grateful for those extra moments with our little ones.

Dinner is simpler. In fact, breakfast and lunch are too. I probably shouldn't admit this but some days, we even skip lunch, instead snacking on hearty helpings of watermelon, blueberries and granola bars in between meals. Dinner itself is quickly prepared on the grill or on some evenings, a simple grilled cheese might suffice. And my, isn’t that nice!

Morning prep time is dramatically reduced. It’s amazing how easy it is get out of the house when you don’t need to wrestle and cajole five kids into gloves, hats, coats and boots! It’s just shorts, shirts and crocs and away we go… with time to spare!

Of course, as great as summertime is, it’s not without it’s own unique challenges… like for instance slathering sunblock on five slippery kids or publicy bearing my bod in broad daylight; the stark whiteness of my legs has been known to blind even the mightiest of souls but even so, I’ll take summertime and it’s carefree attitude and relaxed routines for just as long as it lasts… which, based on the current outlook, will be a long time indeed.