on the brink of summer

Mother Nature is finally starting to get that we are on the brink of summer and she is cooperating to give us sunshine and higher temperature than the typical spring 60s. This week, we were getting up to as high as low 80s, and with more amount sunlight in a day, I finally have the luxury of hanging outside with my girl after I get off of work for at least a couple of hours before heading inside, clean up whatever we accumulated in just two hours and call it a night. It really is bliss. What could have made it better is if her father is right there with us enjoying the time, but he is doing what he needs to do.

The one night that he is able to come home earlier, we were blessed with high enough temperatures during the day that heats up our sad excuse for a pool (more like a large outdoor bathtub), so we decided to jump in to give it a whirl. It had taken its residence in our backyard for more than a couple of months now, and all that is standing between us and it is the abnormally low temperature for this time of the month in Northern California. It was still cold, but enjoyable nonetheless.

I really adore this picture because it really does capture the sheer joy she feels as her hands and feet touch the water. There are few things in life that could ever make me that happy, and she finds it in water.


I love everything about this bathing suit that I got on clearance at Target. This is the first one piece suit that I ever own, and I love that it is flattering in all the right places and that I don't have to be constantly conscious about my body.

I always find a sense of nostalgia in sidewalk chalk. My sister and I used to play hopscotch in the backyard using chalk to define our squares and mark our numbers. While that was years ago, seeing sidewalk chalk always evoke these memories for me, of the times when I was approaching my teens. Sidewalk chalk is now a permanent residence in our modest yard. I wonder what material items I brought home to my girl will become a resident memory for her years from now.

For now, we draw with chalk and we eat chalk.



For some reason, this picture make me happy. It must be the chalk-covered toes.

I am now at a point where I can read her face to see what she is feeling because my girl is an expressive one.

Curious, happiness, temper tantrum.

But, when she is in the swing that her Daddy built for her in our backyard, there is only one expression pasted on her face, sheer happiness.


She really is lucky to have all the things that make her happy all within reach: water, swing, chalk and toilet papers.

Uh-oh. She found it. There is no stopping her now.

Tomorrow is Friday, and I'm really looking forward to the weekend and the celebration of fathers.