Is it fall yet?

DSC_0165, a photo by MelissaandSusan on Flickr.

I kinda hate August (which is funny, because I love the name August and Lucy would have been named this were she a boy). I digress. Anyway, summer in the south sucks and once we hit August I just feel like we are weary and dragging ourselves across the summer finish line. It's like we can see fall, but one step outside and we are smacked in the face with the humid reminder that there's no need to pull out the jeans and sweatshirts. It's like living inside a dryer with damp towels.

If there is one thing that's crystal clear this year, it's that Theo thrives on preschool. He needs structure, a routine to our days, to see his friends, to play and to be somewhere that isn't with his parents for a few hours a week. When he's bored he turns from a cute imp into a one-step-away-from-homeless-imp. He and I butt heads more than he and Susan do and lately, I feel like all I do is correct him. I'm sick of it and I know he's sick of hearing it.

And Little Miss has been Captain Crankypants for days. It could be her remaining hold out teeth, or it could be that she is also just tired of the heat, humidity and summer. She's off to preschool this year too and I think she will love it, if she can get over her extreme shy-ness.

Today I packed them up and drove them 40 minutes to Durham to the museum. I didn't care that it would be hot, we just needed to do something different. And I needed to just walk behind them and keep them safe, but let them dictate their own fun. I get weary of being the cruise director. They had a great time, even though the train broke and we only stayed a little more than an hour. They ran, burned off energy and left me to just take some deep breaths and follow behind with a camera and some encouragement. Glorious. And even more glorious is that they are both asleep now. Cleaned up, down to skivvies and resting in a cool dark room does wonders for napping.

And I am free to sit on the couch, look for fall crafts on Pinterest and count the days until the dog days of summer are over.