The nice thing about summer break is that there's actually time for the kids to help me cook and to take walks by the pond to gather goose feathers and for the kids to come up with their own crafts. That's all we really ever need: more time.
The impetus for the pool party was that last year Alice kept asking to go to the pool in the evening, but it's really hard to do because of supper and bedtime. So we made a deal that we'd do it once a year on the summer solstice. But then last summer I was way too sick (especially in the evenings) to go to the pool, so we didn't do it. This is my year to reclaim everything. Then I thought, rather than just us, let's see if a few neighbors would like to join us.
It was great fun. We ate together up on the deck, then the ladies gathered and chatted on one end of the pool, while the men visited on the other, and the kids ran everywhere.
