It's the 15th of September, and the heat was turned on. The heat. Summer has been clipped short, like a chicken's wing, and I am going to squawk about it.

I believe I kept my vow- that I would try not to complain about the heat this summer, but soak up every morsel of vitamin D at my disposal to carry with me into the coming winter. I was banking on at least another month of storage.

 Apparently the birds knew this was coming, and starting migrating in August. Apparently we are in for some strange polar vortex during September, a chinook during October, and a brutally long hard winter after that. Apparently, it's time to put the kiddie pool away for good, and accept the fact that my big plans to be a 'sunhat' girl this summer never materialized, even though I bought two sunhats so I could rise to the occasion.

Of course, if it were just me, I could deal with the clouds of gloom, the crisp air, and maybe even embrace the early festive feelings of fall. But Jesse and Anneliese have colds, and want to go outside in their undies, and don't like feeling cold, and so will last 5 minutes, come back in, and then turn the house upside down in their attempts to burn the endless energy God has blessed them with.

And it's September. Winter hasn't even really started to think about coming yet. This is all fall's fault.
Anyways, complaining is silly.
To cheer up with chin up, it has been nice seeing families emerge on the street again, walking their littles off to school every morning. I love seeing the small kids with their huge backpacks, always trying so hard to keep up with their bigger sib. I can picture Anneliese and Jesse in that scenario, and it's a warm thought.

That thought gets me thinking that there will be another little sibling to add to the picture in about a month! It's always strange to try and imagine the family with a new little stranger that's been added. I know I had a hard time picturing it when I was pregnant with Jesse, but Anneliese sort of slid seamlessly into the picture. I hope with this one, it's a smooth slide, cushioning the harsh reality of winter that will inevitably come. (I shouldn't let the seasons get to me, but deep down, I just know I belong in the Caribbean :))

James and I are leading a small group this year- we've officially been recruited, and start it up next week. We also begin our TELL program (Teaching English Language Learners). A new ministry being headed up by Danielle and myself to reach out to those in our city who find themselves isolated by language. I'm excited at the prospects of interacting with people from around the globe on a weekly basis, but I do feel like I'll need a serious boost in stamina over the course of the program. Either way, I'm very happy that James and I have become so plugged in at our church. It's a great family.

Speaking of family- mine is getting squirrely, and Clifford just isn't performing today ;) Time for them to get out and start running laps or something.