Awake awake, for summer is flying...

August 9th? Who gave summer permission to nearly be mid-August already. Sure, this summer had its slow bits, but for the most part I've been bouncing from on thing to the next: VBS, our 5th anniversary, LiT, Julie and Brett's Wedding, seeing family in WI, vacation, swimming in the ocean, and now going solo while my colleague is on vacation and also picking up a vice pastor gig. And next week Beau's mom is coming to visit  for a week and Beau's sister and family are coming up from VA for a day.... and before we know it, September and Rally Day will be here!!!

It's good to be busy, thought, because if we weren't I think we'd go crazy right about now. For the last 8 or so years of our lives, we've had to move or think about moving right around this time of year: whether it was wrapping up camp and moving back to college for three years, moving to seminary, moving to internship, moving back to seminary, and moving out here. All pretty much done around mid to late August. Right about now I am used to seeing a box mountain grow in our living room, much to our cats' delight. Well, kitties, no such luck this year. We're staying put.

It's not really surprising then that Beau has gotten the "re-arranging bug." Just this week we completely rearranged the "cat closet," and when I got home form council last night, I found that our study was in the throws of transformation. Our living and bed rooms have already gone through three or four permutations, so they are (fairly) safe. But I too have been in a rearranging mood, and have finally cleaned of the last of the Squirrel Onslaught of '12. We were gone for two days - TWO DAYS! - to come back to utter decimation. My ittly bitty growing green peppers - gone. My nearly ripe cherry tomatoes - gone. My second tomato plant - destroyed. And the African violet (not the original one Beau got me in college, the cats got that one) which we had brought from MN - utterly obliterated, gone without a trace. Well, not quite, as while I was cleaning up the dirt I found one small green leafling which I am trying to get to root. We'll just have to see if I too to raise the dead. :)  Here are some pictures of what I have left.

Well, one of the good things about summer almost being over is that the end of this ridiculous weather is in sight. Never in my life would I ever have imagined that I would ever find 88 degrees to be a "nice day." I think that is is why my peas died and my green beans are limping along. It's just too hot for some of them, at least on our balcony. Next year I might concentrate on tomatoes and cherry tomatoes and green peppers, since they seem to be doing the best overall. And we learned our lesson - no birdfeeder during the summer. That's what attracted the little buggers in the first place. Sorry kitties, you'll have to figure out another way to entertain yourselves until fall. :)