Indian Summer

Although it's nearly November, last week and into the weekend we enjoyed some pretty warm weather.  (Not Oahu-warm, mind you, but warm, nonetheless.)  We'd had some cooler weather earlier this month, but then we had a brief resurgence of summer -- the kind of weather that, when I was growing up, we always referred to as Indian Summer.  (I've thrown that link in there mainly to reassure myself that it's a legitimate thing to call the weather, and not somehow, well, politically incorrect.)

While Daddy studied for his midterm exams and wrote his midterm papers, we girls hung out in the backyard, taking advantage of our last chance at summer fun.  What better to do with a warm, sunny afternoon than indulge in some water play?

It started out with a few buckets of water and some toys...

But eventually we pulled out the sprinkler, which delighted Kathleen. She loved running and splashing through the water, but she most loved filling her little tea cup from the sprinkler. (It would have been faster and easier to dunk it in one of the buckets of water sitting around the yard, I suppose, but somehow that wouldn't be the same.) Once the cup was brimming with water, she'd trot over to offer me some tea. I'd thank her, pretend to drink it, and as I handed it back she'd say, "Would you like some more, Mama?" And then we'd do it again. Fortunately for me, I just got to sit in the sun on the stoop while she waited on me!

Madeline was not so enamored of the sprinkler. She'd get excited about it when she watched Kathleen play in it, and she'd toddle over to it, her little face full of anticipation. But then the water would hit her, and she'd start to cry. And who can blame the poor child? When you've grown up swimming in the bath-like waters off Lanikai and Waimea Bay and Ko Olina, Santa Clara county tap water is a bit of a let-down.  Luckily, Madeline found plenty of amusement in a bucket of water.  If only she were a bit stronger, she could have moved it wherever she pleased.

The new week brought with it some fog and cooler temperatures, so our summer toys are away for good now.  We were glad for one last splash, though!