Ice Cream and Rain Showers

Papa Bear yelled "This seems familiar" over the pounding rain as we dashed down the street.  We seem to be running through a lot of rain showers as a family lately.  I think this is partially due to the strange August weather but more so to do with the fact that we are eking every possible minute out of fun these days.  Either that, or we have stopped checking the weather.  (Gasp! Never, Papa Bear is our proud weather man as always preferring to check the internet than step outside)

Yesterday we had Sidewalk Sundaes with some friends down the street.  It has been a sort of tradition the last few years to mark the end of the summer with neighbors.  We eat ice cream loaded with whip cream and toppings (we brought our own for Peanut who was thrilled to have all the toppings he wanted from our bag).  The kids ate their treats and then loaded with sugar raced around with friends and neighbors playing tag and hide and go seek.  Peanut found a hiding spot behind a bush and declared it his bush, banishing everyone else from the area for the rest of the night.  They climbed trees and spotted bats flying overhead as the sun set and it got dark.  We talked to our friends of the coming school year and changes to work schedules and recounted the more memorable moments of the summer.

This is what I wrote on the blog two years ago at this same event (this was before Sweet Pea was born):
We recently went to an ice cream party in the neighborhood. Peanut wasn't feeling well so he stayed home with Papa Bear and Little Man and I went to eat and play. He had so much fun. He ate/drank his melted ice cream and candy and then ran around and played for the next 2 hours with 11 other neighborhood kids ranging in age from 3 to 10. They played Red Light Green Light, Tag, Freeze Tag and climbed trees. It was eye opening to me how much easier these events are with Little Man. I got to sit and talk to adults, eat my own ice cream and relax. I am looking forward to the next 3 years with all of my children and I will never take for granted or wish away the days I get to have with them. But there is a light at the end of the "can't converse with other adults, chasing early walkers from danger, can't eat my own food" tunnel. In about 3 years, all of my children will be running around playing tag and other fun games and Papa Bear and I will be enjoying our own ice cream before it melts!! 

It didn't take three years as I had predicted.  Only two!  Sweet Pea was able to go off and play although she prefers to spend quite a bit of time near me or Papa Bear.  She would go from our arms to hanging on our legs content to run in circles around us rather than with the other kids.  We stayed well into the evening, well past bedtime and as we started to gather the troops, the sky opened up and we dashed home in the rain.  The boys were holding my hands and laughing and Papa Bear was bouncing Sweet Pea in his arms.  Perfection.  Sweeter than Ice Cream are the memories and friendships that we are making.