Monday, July 20, 2009

Summer funk

When my husband and I decided to get married a few years ago the first person we called with news was my British raised mum. We were in Thailand when we made these marriage announcement calls. My mum's first reaction was not "what wonderful news", but "how is the weather"... It has since become our family joke that when ever we call with important news we warn not be asked about the weather. I mean growing up in Israel the weather was never an issue and we could never relate to mum's sun frenzy. Now I can whole heartily understand my mum's weather reports addiction.
I never thought I would have to write about summer funk, or about weather for that matter. But the weather this summer has not been kind at all. Six weeks after giving birth to my second child (in June mind you), we had only a handful of hours (not even days) of sun rays...
So much rain has drenched us that my 3 year old daughter had yelled in extreme delight when she actually saw the sun hanging over the golf course we drive by on our way home from daycare.

My day dreams of walking to pick up Zoe from day care with her baby brother sleeping in the stroller have been shattered by severe thunder storm warnings... And it seems they always start at about 4pm. Pick up time.
It is hard for me to admit but it has been emotionally draining. I have become wary of pick up time in the torrential rain when my sweet girl looks up at me and asks "where are we going today" (meaning "anywhere but home please"...).
I think that what has also struck me is that though I live in an area where climate is an issue year round there is not much you can do with a child after 4pm. Museums are closing up as you leave to go there, shopping malls do have some sort of confined suffocating germ harboring play areas, playgrounds don't have any sort of cover over them (so even if the sun does come out for 30 minutes all the jungle gyms are soaking wet). Play dates with other kids are hard to come by when you are a foreigner (not really keyed into the rules of engagement of playdating). I mean healthy 3-4-5 year old children need to run, let off steam - not sit around all afternoon make art projects, watch TV, or wonder in shopping malls.
It has been challenging to say the least.
Though today I can't complain we had some sun and managed to splash in the pool for a couple of hours -Today was fun.