This morning I’m sitting at a Starbucks for the first time this summer with my usual misto with oat milk and a Perfect Bar. The music is too loud (#midlifelady) so I’m slightly regretting my decision, alas!

Soon we’ll be packing our bags and heading back to Arizona. I’m not ready to leave! I’ll miss our house and neighborhood, the tall shady trees everywhere, all the water, and the mild temperatures. (For locals the weather has been hot in the 90ºs. I will not call anything below 100º hot.)

We found even more to love about being in Eau Claire this summer and very happily found ourselves with a growing social circle. People are so nice! I wouldn’t describe people in Gilbert as not nice but in a matter of weeks we’ve easily made new friends and have been invited for dinners and walks in a welcoming way that feels different.

Summer bests

Highlights this summer have included:

+ We’ve had some truly wonderful family time together just the five of us: laughing, being together, and finding the best company right within our own family.

+ The boys have loved the weight lifting camp they are doing through the university! This has been a great part of our summer schedule. It has the boys getting up earlier four days a week, biking to camp, and being active but still getting home before 9:30 a.m.

+ All the kids have done organized activities. In addition to the weight lifting camp, Cedric is playing on a 3 v. 3 basketball team, both boys are playing on a rec soccer team (Chris is coaching both teams; what a guy!), and Maeve has been doing a gymnastics class. Cedric also went to a fishing workshop.

+ The boys biked all over town on their own. They enjoy a fair amount of biking freedom at home but they can get so many more interesting places here.

+ Maeve and I attended great library programs and passed many house at the library and children’s museum. Nearly every time she would inevitably find another little girl to befriend. I love seeing her so friendly and confident.

+ We hosted! Our nephew stayed with us for almost a week, my parents and their dear friends were in town, and we hosted my cousin and her family over the 4th. It’s fun to show off Eau Claire and I’m thankful for the quality time and memories we made.

+ Going to Camp Ehwaee (Eee-how-ee) with Maeve for two nights. The camp is beautiful, we met so many nice people, and had a great time. It was a really special experience with my girl!

+ Eating delicious pizza at Stone Barn on our way home from Girl Scout camp with the family. Wood-fired pizza in the most picturesque rolling green hills of Wisconsin; no notes!

+ Spending the day on the river Big Falls County Park with our family. I can’t wait to come back to this beautiful park next summer.

+ A dinner date with Chris to Kingfisher Supper Club. We had a great meal and conversation overlooking the Chippewa River, and the drive to and from Durand is beautiful. Afterwards, we drove around downtown Eau Claire looking for historical houses and reading the front yard plaques.

+ We had the exterior of our house painted! A project we’ve wanted to do since we bought the house. We also updated our letterbox, house numbers, and exterior light fixtures. Less fun: we replaced our dishwasher unexpectedly, blerg!

+ We met the former owner of our house and two of her three adult children. She lived here with her husband and raised her three kids from 1963 until 2019. They were so lovely and it was a really special visit. One of my favorite moments was when they pointed to a tiny hole in an archway and said,”That’s where we always hung the Christmas mistletoe!” I had never noticed the hole before and that’s exactly the kind of small but significant little thing I love knowing about a house and all the living that’s happened in it.

+ Dash had an entrepreneurial summer to earn money to buy a phone (what a milestone for him and us!). He learned to mow lawns and held several cookie stands for which he baked cookies using ingredients he bought himself. I’m so proud of him! And he’s proud of himself too, especially since he earned enough to buy himself the iPhone he wanted. Relatedly: Dash finished reading First Phone and we had several thoughtful conversations about phones and phone use. We’re putting the finishing touches on a phone contract and I feel really good about how having a teen with a phone is going so far.

+ We discovered Eaum Yoga which is beautiful, has great classes, and is more affordable than similar studios in Gilbert.

Summer challenges

The challenge of the summer, as is the challenge of every summer, is having less of a schedule and fewer activities for the kids (especially Maeve) which means very little downtime for the parents. My Wednesday work mornings have been great but not enough time for me to feel on top of everything plus really recharge.

I think next summer will (need to) be the summer of day camps for Maeve. Doing new things separated from us has been hard for her in the past but she has grown so much! She loves to make new friends and by next summer she’ll be even more confident. If I had a few stretches of the summer with several hours a week to work, relax, or putter that would be a beautiful thing.

Looking ahead

A new school year is on the near horizon for us. (As a reminder, our school district is on a modified year-round calendar and we have longer breaks during the year. That’s why we’re going back to school just as you might be hitting your summer groove.)

We just got Dash’s 8th grade (!!) school schedule. I have a color-coded spreadsheet of school supplies so that I can easily put in a Target order. Next week we’ll get Maeve and Cedric’s teachers and have Meet the Teacher.

As much as I’m not ready to leave Eau Claire, the energy of a new school year and my love of routines is lifting my spirits. More to say on school re-entry soon…

What good things are you finding this summer, friends? Is anyone else feeling the pull towards new notebooks and pens (both of which I bought for myself this week) or are you enjoying luxuriating in summer?