Summertime

I used to think "summer" here in Florida was kind of a hollow term, after all it's warm and generally beautiful here year round. If you really think about it the months of June- August are actually the worst weather here, at least the most extreme. But now that my children are school age, I find that old feeling I had as a kid in summer has returned. It's less about the weather and more about freedom from schedules, swimming in the pool everyday, staying up past the normally rigorously enforced "bedtime," visiting relatives and just plain having fun. I know that I too need some time out just to unwind, stop the routine and goof off. I read recently that the U.S. population has the least amount of vacation time for any industrialized country. So I plan during this summertime period to make the most of it.