last summer weekend

We're at the lake today, getting in some last summer partying and swimming (or trying to). We finally got Dennis down for his nap well after 4 pm, and we jumped in the water for about 15 minutes before the thunderstorms arrived and nixed our plans. We've been swimming a lot this summer during naptime--we'll set up the baby monitor and put it on the dock, and we'll lock the doors so Dennis can't get out of the house--one of the screened porch doors fortunately locks from the outside, and we lock all the others with hook-and-eye latches well out of his reach. It's been a good system for this summer, but I'll bet this is the last year we can do that. He might not take 2 hour naps next year, and he might be a bit more wiley about gettting out of the pack and play (and heck, he'll most likely be too big for it--he is nearly too long for it now). He has done some of his napping in the regular bed, and we listen to the monitor for him waking up. We are lucky that every time he woke up from his nap this summer, someone was already in the house to get him right up. He may never have realized that we were swimming while he slept. He asked to swim today, but I think it was so that he wouldn't have to nap. Our dream baby, the one who went to bed so easily, is starting to protest a little. He doesn't want to miss anything! Tonight when we got home, he insisted on playing with Mr. Potato Head (even though it was nearly midnight and he'd been asleep both at the lake and in the carseat on the way home). We had a little Potato Head party for 10 minutes before putting him to bed, and he cried, but only for a few minutes and then fell asleep.

This has been such a fun summer, especially all the time we've spent at the lake--it more than makes up for not having a real vacation this spring. Thank goodness for the trip to Gigi's place near the beach a couple of weeks back--that was a wonderful break. As we move into fall, we have several trips planned, plus plans to take our camper out twice a month to local state parks. We can't wait, but we can't really start this up until we've finished all the work at Uncle Denny's new house. So much to do, so little time! I can't wait for the pumpkin patch trips and the state fair and the pumpkin train ride... Now if we can only get the threat of swine flu to disappear so I lose my growing fear of taking my child to public places, it could be a wonderful autumn.