the sweetness of summer

We were treated to a great dinner at our friends house the other night and I was asked to bring dessert. I had a hankerin' for chocolate chip cookies and thought I'd dress them up a bit for the occasion and stuffed them with vanilla ice cream. Yum and yum. I highly recommend making sure the summer doesn't slip by before you have a chance to make your own ice cream sandwiches.

And you better do it fast, because this summer is flying by. I hate that feeling. I was trying to figure out why this summer feels so different than other summers. I feel like I'm really taking in each day and appreciating all that this season brings. I realized that this is the first summer in a while that I haven't worked at a camp, and it's also our first summer back in our neighborhood, soaking up Lake Harriet and taking lots of walks with a baby in the stroller. There is lots to appreciate.

But I think the biggest difference in this summer is the fact that I am sharing it with my sister. She's home. And she brought her lovely family with her. :) I love this new normal more than I can say. Recently Annika and I left our kiddos with two former flbc camp counselors who were both St. Olaf grads, nurses and around 25 years old. Could you imagine any greater peace of mind as a new mom leaving her baby with a babysitter?!! Annika and I took off for Target, childless and giddy. We got starbucks when we walked through the doors, and I proceeded to impulse purchase all sorts of stuff I never knew I needed before. Pretty folders, a new journal, invites for Ivar's first birthday party that is still three months away. We stayed for a long, long time, roaming the aisles, laughing hard belly laughs. And the whole time I had this amazing awareness that this time I don't have to brace for goodbye. She's here to stay. It's a dream come true.

Now, if you don't have your sister home with you this summer let me recommend the next best thing: go make yourself a homemade icecream sandwich.