Bounty & CYO Camp

I just love when friends and neighbors leave little gifts from the season on my doorstep.  This week it was a jar full of dahlias, zucchini (large & small), delicate lettuces, basil, watermelon and a little note.  It's the bountiful summer season and my herbs are prospering here at home and it inspires me in the kitchen.  After being gone for a week and in a kitchen that wasn't my own, I was looking forward to creating my shopping list, planning menus and cooking for the guys in earnest this week.

Our refrigerator was empty and all we could muster up was a small batch of frozen pancakes that Steve had made weeks ago.  The itch to cook was big and I was went shopping, filled the fridge and made a big coffee cake to share with friends and enjoy over the next string of mornings.

At my office garden plot, I plucked my first tomato of the season from one of my plants.  It was warm and satisfying, sprinkled with a bit of salt.  I came home that same evening to pluck most of the peaches  from our tree.  Last year it didn't produce fruit and Steve pruned it back pretty well the year prior.  They were juicy and sweet.  They had to be shared and eaten fast.

The summer drawing journal has been a nice way to end each day with the boy.  He's still totally into birds and his Sibley's bird book is becoming quite worn.  He informed me on this particular night that "Mom, you are going to be so amazed with this drawing!  Don't look until I'm done." And I was.

Our neighbor Beula left Grady an envelope with a newspaper article about a legally blind Olympian who medaled in archery, as well as these three pretty feathers.  I love that she did this.

I've been reading like a fiend these last few weeks and my August book club was Gabriel Garcia Marquez's Love in the Time of Cholera.  It was epic and haunting and made for a nice discussion.

The super exciting news this week was that my favorite librarian, Terry, got a new bookmobile and we were among her first visitors.  I just loved how every person walking into the bookmobile was so positive and excited about the new rig.  It has seating and 20% more books/media for us to check out.  Twice a month she visits Tomales and it's one of my most favorite few hours.  The camaraderie with the other avid readers and sharing of local stories, book reviews and recommendations.

This week was CYO (Catholic Youth Organization) Day Camp in Occidental.  This was a first for us and I had stayed away due to the religious base I feared would be thrust upon our son.  Our dear friend (who is an Atheist) runs the camp and assured me it was stereotypical camp activities, with a basis in environmental education and only a sprinkling of religious teachings.  We signed him up and looked forward to it all summer.

The week started off with archery, ga-ga mud ball, canoeing and daily swimming.  He played board games with new friends, learned the fine art of friendship bracelet making and enjoyed camouflage day while playing predator & prey (which I'm 100% sure they would never allow in public school!).

While our son was enjoying day camp from 8 - 5 pm every day, we took the time to catch up on work projects, plan the rest of our August fun and sneak away for a picnic with Scott & Jill at Hog Island Oyster Company.  

Thursday night was the optional sleepover night at camp.  Grady wanted to do it, but was really nervous and brought himself to tears the night before the big day.  He thought he might miss me too much and didn't want to cry in front of the other campers.

We gave him a good pep talk and knew deep down he would love the experience, but gave him the option to call if he really felt uncomfortable.

Turns out he loved it.  They ate fireside, cooked copious amounts of s'mores, performed a skit in the outdoor chapel, watched a movie outside, spied on the teenage campers and slept underneath the full moon & a magnificent blanket of stars.

He didn't want to leave when we picked him up Friday afternoon and hid from us upon our arrival.  The counselors gushed about what a great, kind, funny & smart kid he is.  Words that a parent will never tire of hearing.

This week our house was really quiet and come mid-week I almost didn't know what to do with myself.    I missed him, but knew he was having the time of his life.  Instead of counting the minutes until he was home, I made coffee dates, finished a novel, made lists, cooked, finalized a few work projects, thrifted, got my hair and nails done and then I started counting the minutes on Friday afternoon.

We welcomed him home and settled in to watch the 1979 movie classic Breaking Away.  How very fitting.