Now is the time when everyone is talking about the end of summer (although there is still one more official month of summer) and what they didn't do and how terrible the weather was, etc. etc.
To begin, I thought the weather was quite pleasant here in Toronto. It was not super humid but the days were warm and mostly sunny. Since I spent most of summer off of work, I was outside a lot and walking to do errands, working out in High Park, and trying to get to the playground after supper. I don't remember every single day, but I do know that my plans were rarely impacted by rain. I appreciated the lack of extreme heat and humidity (although I do love it when it happens) because it meant easier sleeping for Q (and the rest of us) for both his day naps and at night. Without central air conditioning, the humidity means an algorithm for windows open/closed, curtains closed, and fans on/off (and positioned correctly). Last year I remember being very hot in the evenings (and being pregnant, it was even more uncomfortable); this year it was usually a good temperature and we could even have our windows open in the evenings for some breeze. So to those people that said we had terrible weather, I disagree.
However, because of the lack of extreme heat, it meant we didn't go swimming as much as I would have liked. I really like going down to the Sunnyside or High Park pools for a dip, especially in the evenings, but we only went once. It is also more difficult with Q since he goes to bed so early, getting him ready for swimming takes longer, and he can't swim...so we can chalk it up to that.
We also missed out on some biking this year because Q was too small for the bike trailer. I think he could go in it now, so as soon as we fix my bike tire, then we will go for some family rides. E is getting really good at riding his bike so I definitely trust him a lot more than I did last year.
Another thing I would have liked to do more, but I will also blame this on Q, is go out to eat more. Our window of opportunity for dinner out is smaller than it once was (although he is pretty well behaved), but also we didn't want to go out as much. I was off work and only getting paid EI so our meals out couldn't be as plentiful as we would have liked.
We also missed out on the zoo, Centre Island, the beaches in Toronto, more Blue Jays games (we only went once as a family), Friday baseball evenings in High Park, and the kids street fest in Bloor West Village (we were away).
But we did do a lot of fun things and we especially enjoyed our trip to Quebec, New Brunswick, and Nova Scotia. We got outside as much as possible, used the BBQ, ate local fruit and vegetables, and simply enjoyed our own company. I don't really lament the things we didn't do, because we just replaced them with other fun things. There are many seasons of life, and this one, with a baby, means we just do different things, but we're still having a good time as our family of four. In years to come, we will be biking all over the city, swimming at the drop of a hat, renting paddle boards and canoes, and patio hopping all weekend.
And like I said, summer is not over. We have some more visiting to do, E is spending a few days with his grandparents, we have another camping trip, a weekend at someone's cottage, and the local produce is still in full force. I am not ready to let go of summer yet.
Love to see you are "Rejoicing" in the life you are living this summer! Taking it all in stride. Cheers to the rest of the summer!
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