Apple Day!

A gorgeous, warm, pre-fall day for one of our favorite traditions.

 A mix of wandering and sampling and sitting and relaxing.  Coffee and donuts and really tasty cold fried chicken and books and conversation with our treasured friends.

Happy.

 Plus we had a lot of fun posing for silly photos.  The children decided that I was the Deer Queen...

 ...hence the genuflecting.

I could get used to this kind of treatment. And these kind of days...

This one really sums up our life with our boy these days.  At least he was WITH us and IN the picture.  Can't complain.

The last "dog days of summer"

In a vain attempt to catch up on the FULL MONTH I am behind on this blog, here are some uncaptioned photos of: 

* Dog Swim at Lakewood Pool (pretty much the best thing ever).

* A double rainbow (magical in every way, including the conversations with passersby as we shared it with them...)

*Dinner with friends we don't see enough

*Chalk Fest!  Hot as blazes but fun as always

*Woofstock!  Also crazy-hot but full of the excitement of Winter's big win in the sock race!

*Soccer... one of the constant views of our fall...

Back soon with more interesting writing, and more seasonal photos...

Labor Day Weekend (Airplanes and Water...)

 What a marvelous Labor Day weekend we had!  Hot as blazes here in the CLE (the weather did not get the message that this weekend is the "end of summer") but that just meant we had an excuse to be in the water all the time.
Seriously.  I believe our weekend went something like this:  Pool, lake and pool, pool and then another pool, pool and lake.
Oh, how I will miss summertime.  It is so good.  Water is so wonderful.  The pool is so relaxing and the lake is so beautiful and life is so grand when we're on leisure time AND we're outside. After a hard transition back to school, three solid days of "summer redux" was a gift indeed.

A hot, sweaty, amazing gift.

To recap:
First- a showcase of some of Nat's photography from the weekend. Featured here:  the endless-summer party that is the Edgewater dog beach, and lots of Blue Angels. Air show weekend is so festive.

 It was interesting to reflect on our privilege, that these fighter jets flying over our city sparked awe and excitement instead of terror...

 The kids and I watched the Monday Blue Angels show from the water at Edgewater and it was awe-inspiring indeed, planes roaring overhead as they banked and turned.  The actual 'performance space' for the show was miles away near downtown-- but the turning zone was directly above us, apparently.  You could float on your back and read the writing on the underside of the planes, and the whoosh of engines took your breath away.

What's a visit to the beach without some posing on the script-Cleveland sign?  It's one of my favorite places, and not just because it provides a picturesque backdrop for photos.  More, it is a gathering place for the collected diversity of our city, people from all nations and backgrounds waiting in line to pose, taking in the view, chatting with one another as they offer to take a photo of the group. There were so many languages being spoken, so many beautiful families.  I love this city. 

Some other highlights of the weekend: 
A Saturday night date to the E. 55th marina, where we went expecting a beer and a view and got live music and an amazing buffet too.  I am definitely a fan of this little hidden gem of a place.

A Sunday afternoon holiday cookout/feast with my cousin Steve and his family.

We enjoyed a terrific meal and a tour of their lovely new home in Avon, and the kids had a great time with their cousins, walking together to the community pool.  My kids always seem more grown up when they are with cousins.  I don't know what it is-- but their cousins somehow bring out Jack and Ivy's independence like no one else.

Closing down Cumberland for the season...

We managed to visit our little neighborhood happy place three out of 4 days this weekend, including the last day...

I'll miss the early mornings at practices and the afternoons of floating around in the deep end...We made good use of our pool membership this summer, I think!

Until next year, Cumberland!

Until next year, summer!

Love you!