Whimsical Last Days of Summer

Well... Today I just don't know what to write about. I feel like I have done so much in the past few weeks, yet I also feel like I have done nothing at all. Most of the things that we have done are family memory building activities. I haven't been canning, though I really should, I haven't been preparing things for the fall, or anything of that nature. I have been relishing in the last few days of summer vacation and loving being able to stay at home with my kids and doing things at a whim.

For example. Tuesday, was one of the hottest days of the summer. It has been a really chilly summer and the heat was nice. Since it was so hot, we decided to go to the beach at Pinehurst (A near by conservation area). It was so nice. My husband took off a few hours off work and came with us, which was a really nice treat. That beach was nice because there was lots of shade that was close to the water. Also really nice change rooms. If we had more time we would have gone for a little hike or something but it was just nice to be out in nature, on a beautiful day, being cooled off at a little lake. We packed a picnic lunch full of yummy snacks and cheeses and tomatoes bought fresh from the Farmer's market that morning. Really it couldn't have been a nicer midday activity.

Today I happen to have the van at home which is bit of a rare thing, quite often my husband has it at work. So, I took the kids to the St. Jacob's Farmers Market. I had the little one on my back in my Boba (best baby carrier ever!!!), and the other two walking along beside me. The girls loved seeing all the different things for sale. What they really wanted to do was bounce in the bouncy castle. So I let them and they even paid for the ride themselves! They were so excited to give the worker their money. They felt so proud. We then had lunch at Conestoga Fries which serves their food from a covered wagon. It was fun. The girls especially liked it because their favourite babysitter works there and served them. After lunch my middle girl bought a dream catcher. She found the most sparkly one there. My oldest bought a package of candy for us all to share and one for my husband. (We then drove to his work which is nearby the market and surprised him!) We walked back through the vegetable/fruit vendors and the girls loved calling out all the different kinds of food they saw. We saw some yummy corn so we are going to have corn on the cob with our dinner tonight. It will be delicious!

It is nice when you have days like this. Not to hot, beautiful sun and clear skies, and nothing on tap to do. It is nice when you have the flexibility to go ahead and do things and not worry about time off etc. 

When you decide to live off of one income your life becomes one of trade offs. You trade off exotic vacations for staycations. You trade off going to fancy resorts, to going to camp grounds and local parks. You trade off big renovations with making do and doing a little at a time. You trade having to work every day 9-5 for the ability to be flexible about where you want to spend your energies and time that day. 

There are times when I wish I could go to an office and someone else could look after my 18 month old because she does drive me crazy! But then there are days like this, when all the kids are sweet, the dishes are done, we have the car, and we are ready for adventure. I like these days the best. It is worth the trade off.