Summertime, and the Living's Easy

For a person who craves structure and routine as much as I do, I am really enjoying these laid-back, school-free days. Probably because we get to fill them with things like trips to the lake. The kids and I spent the first half of this week back at Lake Martin, and I think this was my favorite visit so far. It was the best blend of relaxation and happiness, and not just for Jen and me. The kids played beautifully together from the moment we arrived...and they weren't even all that loud!

While our visits to the lake are always filled, by request, with rides on the boat, swimming among various islands, and plenty of time on the dock, we also managed to do something new this time around. Jen boated us to a newly finished complex that features stunning horse stables, a high-end restaurant, and the gourmet Catherine's Market. There are also lovely bike paths, and they are slowly restoring small storefronts such as the blacksmith's shop, which the kids definitely enjoyed. The market was my favorite (the bakery! the butcher!), but I think it's safe the say the horses were the big winners with the kids. In fact, Danny and Clare are still talking about Dan, the positively enormous Percheron horse. It was the icing on the cake when Danny learned that this is the type of horse that was used for jousting.


One evening we also enjoyed a sunset cruise, which culminated in finding the "green monster," which is a light that some of the homes put in the water near their docks. It tends to either draw or simply illuminate an interesting array of fish, turtles and the like, not to mention the ethereal glow it casts for a fair distance. Clare also observed the beautiful "periwinkle" color that the lake assumed as the sun was setting, and the rosy sky was a fitting end to what had been a very happy day.

We have a lot of traveling to look forward to later this summer, but we may have to squeeze in one more trip to the lake, too...