Long, long days

Summertime is awesome, and part of that awesomeness comes from the very long days, which I loved as a kid. I have fond memories of playing until almost 10:00 at night, when the last of the dusky light was snatched away from us. After the heat of those summer days, the cool of the evening would keep us out, playing whatever games our child-minds could imagine, until parents firmly escorted us back into the well-lit house. The smell of the cool, dry grass is still one of my favorite summer scents. The other side of the coin isn't quite as fun. My kids get up with the dawn, which at this time of the year in this part of the world means they're getting up at around 5:30-ish. Getting them to bed before dark is pretty challenging as well, so all of us are a little sleep deprived. Most of the time I cope by making sure we spend as little time in the house as possible, since somehow outside time cheers us all up. Even so, I'm kinda looking forward to the days getting shorter again.