What Have We All Been Doing This Summer?

Can you believe it? It's August already, and the summer is slipping away quickly. I got a shock yesterday when I my two youngest granddaughters told me that they were starting school in about 15 or 16 days. Where did the summer go?

Of course, those of us who live in more temperate climates have more extended warm seasons than those in the Northern portions of the United States. Even so, there are still the confines of school dates, vacation allowances at work, $$$$ to buy the plane tickets, rent the hotel, pay for the gas, reserve the camping space, etc. For our family that was far more the issue than time.

Our summer has been a bit different--we took a train trip in March which combined some time with one of our daughters who lives in Missouri with a week I took connected with my job. Since hubby and I usually travel by train is was a good time to travel as the trains weren't quite so crowded. With the economy as it is, and with gas prices what they are, train travel is looking much more attractive, especially to families and for those who buy the train pass for a specific period of time rather than for a specific destination. We are planning a trip, hopefully, in September, but we are still working on that.

So far we have been just hanging out at home, participating in a few backyard barbecue gatherings with friends, celebrating July 4th with a big church activity during the community parade, and just trying to stay cool. Thankfully, we haven't had to battle the high heat we usually have with HIGH HUMIDITY which used to almost make me physically ill it was so oppressive--I was raised in Indiana, Illinois, and Iowa. So I appreciate the low humidity of the So. Calif. High Desert, although I don't like the dry winters and the occasional drought. Can't have it all, I guess.

So what are you planning or what have you done? Trying to get in some quick weekends or camping outings before school starts? Why not "chime in" and share some of your summer activities.