My Summer Stay-cation

Seeing that I had just returned from a 12 day trip around the world, the Furbers weren't too anxious to go away for the holiday weekend. Instead, we decided to stay home and pretend our house was a resort. The kitchen was the coffee shop, our backyard was the grounds, and our bedroom was our hotel room. We didn't even mind sharing a bathroom with the other guests.

• We slept in late.
• We lounged by the pool and had fresh towels every day.
• We sampled the local cuisine: mostly made with the 20 lbs. of cherries picked at the local cherry orchard.
• The girls and I made a big jar of minty water with fresh mint from our herb garden and gave ourselves facials.
• I explored the local terrain on my beach cruiser.
• We listened to music.
• We read our books.
• We watched movies and ate popcorn.

I must say, this is one great resort. Pencil me in for July 4th.

There's What You Have, and There's What You Do With It

A few years ago, my parents gave us two steamer chairs for our backyard. Until yesterday, those chairs were just chairs.

Then Katie and I settled into them to read, enjoy the sun and relax. After we were there awhile, we started chatting about stuff.

About what Katie wants to be when she grows up -- a veterinarian so when she grows up she can bring Jasper to work with her.
About what kind of animals she wants to take care of -- big dogs and kittens.
About what first grade will be like next year -- she's a little nervous about eating lunch in the cafeteria every day with the big kids.
About Jack leaving their elementary school next year -- she's sad.
About how she likes Andie's friends who were visiting for a study party in the kitchen -- they're nice and they like her skirt.
About what she wants for dinner -- popsicles.

Now those chairs aren't just chairs -- they hold the memory of a fun afternoon when I forgot all about the housekeeping, email and the phone, and lost myself in the world of a five year old. And when I got so lost in Katie's thoughts that I now have a raging sunburn.

Who Needs Walls?

Since it's high summer, I thought I'd dedicate a few posts to the outside of the house. My family is lucky to live in California, where it's summer most of the year, so our backyard has become an extension of our family room. We eat, lounge, sleep, and play outside almost all year round. My favorite feature in our backyard is a doublewide chaise that's situated by the pool. My three children and I can all fit very comfortably in the chaise together, and have spent many sunny afternoons lounging and reading in that spot. In order to make it perfectly perfect, we have a big umbrella to shade us from the sun, big beach towels to cover the cushion and make it nice and soft, and nice, big pillows to make it extra comfy.

So far this summer, my family has logged approx. 1,962 hours in the back yard, most of them on the double chaise by the pool. I'm thinking about treating my backyard like a fine resort and charging my children for the use of the chaise. Perhaps I should charge them for towel service also.

Athens Beach, Where the Water is Cold and the Women are Hot

I just spent ten days with my family at my in-laws' house on the beach. There's nothing like the peaceful sound of waves, and the smell of the salt air to relax a girl. Those of us lucky enough to have a family house on a beach somewhere know that there is a unique decorating challenge that goes along with the sea and salt air: how to make the house comfortable and usable for the whole family along with their sandy feet and wet swimsuits.

My sister-in-law Kristen has a simple, but failproof formula that's worked for years. It's a combination of easy care materials inside the house, and tricks to minimize the traffic in and out of the house.

When the summer starts, and the families start to invade the beach house, Kristen sets up the following:

A big galvanized bucket by the back door that serves as both a place to collect shoes, and a reminder to everyone to remove their shoes before entering the house

A bucket of clean water at the top of the stairs leading from the beach -- from the time they can walk up the stairs by themselves, the kids know to stop and dip their feet to remove the sand before coming up to the house

The outdoor shower is stocked with shampoo, soap and big beach towels

The outdoor refrigerator is stocked with drinks, fruit and popsicles so the three major summer food groups can be accessed without entering the house

A hammock hanging under the deck right on the beach, so afternoon naps can be taken outside instead of inside. My son Jack and I have spent many hours swinging in that hammock and reading. Last summer we both spent a week in that hammock reading Harry Potter 7.

Kristen has made the outside of the house an extension of the inside, with many of the same conveniences. My mother-in-law is happy because the invasion of sand and saltwater in the house is kept to a minimum, the kids are even happier, because they don't have to interrupt their beach time for boring pursuits like food, water, or rest, and Kristen and I are especially happy, because our bikini time far outweighs our housekeeping time.