Summertime and the Living is Easy

Cool evenings sitting on the patio, bright little lights flashing around us, children chasing fireflies. Endless games of tag, Red Light, Green Light, and Mother May I. The sounds of the ice cream truck on hot afternoons. The feel of the cool water as you jump in the pool on a hot afternoon. Sitting on the porch, eating popsicles as the juice melts down our arms. Staying up late because all the neighbors are out, kids riding scooters and bikes up and down the street, while the adults stand in yards talking, occasionally yelling, “Car coming!” Even though my childhood summers are in the rearview mirror, some things about summer seem to stay the same despite the passage of time.

Tulsa has so many fun summer activities. There are parks, museums, camps, drive-in movie theaters, splash pads, and pools. Check out this TulsaKids list for the best places for kids to go this summer. As my daughter has said, Tulsa is a wonderful place for families with young kids.

We’re only on week two of summer break, but already, my granddaughter has gone to Pony Camp, and my grandson is in tennis camp. They’ve gone to Philbrook for the Friday family nature hike, played in the splash pad, and gone to the new playground at the Tulsa Air and Space Museum. Sylvia, my three-year-old granddaughter, will also begin swim lessons this week. I’m a little tired just hearing about all their fun!

She loved Pony Camp!

My daughter is the best at scheduling fun activities and vacations for her family. I’m always amazed at the places they go and the things they do when she has days off. She’s the energizer bunny, and her kids love hopping along on all the fun outings. Maybe it’s a good balance that I’ve become more of the stay-at-home and do-simple-things grandmother. I find myself humming, “Summertime and the living is easy.” Maybe that’s a sign (another one?!) that I’m getting old?

This is also our first summer having a pool in our backyard. People warned us that having a pool would be a big time and money drain, and they were right! However, the rewards are worth every bit of work and money! Our house has become the family gathering place, and I couldn’t be happier. There is rarely a day that someone doesn’t show up to swim, and often, it’s all the kids, the grandkids, and sometimes their friends. Yes, I’m washing a lot more towels and going through more groceries, but that’s a small price to pay for family togetherness. Whether it’s a pool, board games, or family cookouts, all that matters is sharing time.

Summer makes me nostalgic for the summers of my childhood. My childhood summers were mostly about riding bikes, climbing trees, swimming for hours, and reading late into the night. I remember meals outside under the shade of the huge oak tree. My dad grilled burgers and then cranked homemade ice cream as we lay on blankets and looked at the stars. It was summertime, and the living was easy, or at least that’s what my memories tell me.

My childhood did not include air conditioning, so we were outside kids!

Whether you make this an easy-living, laid-back summer or go full speed ahead, make sure you spend at least one evening chasing fireflies and running through the sprinkler! School is out; enjoy your summer!