Summer styling

Well, despite a noble attempt involving headlamps, rakes, gloves, ladders, cat food, and even marshmallows… the Spouse has yet to catch any varmints around here. At this very hour, I’m taking a big gamble and having the hole in the garage patched back up in hopes the varmint has since moved on and will not suffocate in between the floors of our house. As of today, the only wild creature we know to be living with us for sure is this one:

Only, Rosie had her summer haircut earlier this week and is looking a bit thinner.

I don’t know why the groomer insists on leaving her eyelashes so incredibly long. She said something about it preserves her femininity, so I certainly wasn’t going to argue the point. I mean, a girl has a right to feel girly even if she has been spayed. Thankfully, this year’s buzz cut is slightly less ridiculous than last summer when she had to be shaved to the skin. That memory haunts her and continues to serve as a reminder to dog owners everywhere of the importance of proper brushing. And, don’t ever let anyone talk you into leaving the hair around the ears long. You can always refer to this visual as proof that it’s not a good look:

Strangely, this dog acts completely different when she has a short haircut. It’s some sort of rebellion against it, I suppose. First thing when I brought her home from the vet on Tuesday, she attacked a planter on the porch and shattered a candlestick. Apparently she cares about her appearance and prefers long hair. And, as soon as she learns to stay out of the mulch beds I’ll oblige her and leave it bushy all year.

Speaking of rebellious behavior… the Preschooler comes to mind. She began swim lessons last week.

She loves the water ~ on her own terms. She just has no intention of putting her head under at any point in time. So, her lessons are a bit of a power struggle between her and the instructor. She repeatedly asks, “Are you gonna drop me?” or, “Am I gonna drown?!” while she attempts to float in an upright position. I fear she may require more lessons and more patience than I {or her instructor} bargained for on the front end of this. We also have a few issues to confront outside the water. When I asked her if she needed to go to the bathroom after her last lesson she said, “No. I’m a fish, and I pee in the ocean.” I suspect “ocean” and “pool” may be synonymous. But, I reminded her that the last time I checked, fish swim under the water. So, she’s most definitely not a fish and not using that excuse. Also, fish don’t eat popsicles. And, post-lesson popsicles are the real reason she goes in the first place.

I’m telling you, summer is wearing me down already and it only officially began on Monday. I blame the humidity, which always reminds me why I’m more of a fall person. But, I’m going to try and make the most of these longer, warmer days by setting aside pockets of time here and there just to pay attention to the people and things around me. {Why is this so hard?} Every morning these day lilies open up outside our kitchen window.

I don’t know anything about flowers, but it’s absolutely amazing to me that these blooms stretch wide open by day and delicately close back up at night. It’s maybe even more amazing that Rosie hasn’t yet destroyed them.

Between swim practices and snacks and squabbles, another little scene I tried to relish for just a second this week is how much joy the girls get out of a simple swing set.

Of course, there are some who don’t require a swing set for their thrills. Just a dress up bin…

She would be more than happy to wear this everywhere all summer, except that the scarves, gloves, and the wig prove to be hot after a few minutes. So, for that reason, maybe I’m thankful for the humidity after all.