Photo Hunt - LAZY DAYS OF SUMMER

*Humble thanks to David at authorblog for honouring me with his Post of the Day for this story.

When I think of the word "lazy," my mind goes back to the days when we'd spend our summer vacations at Shuswap Lake. Those were some of the happiest and laziest of days I've ever spent. Even though I had to cook on an old temperamental gas stove, wash dishes in a tiny sink, sweep the floor several times a day because of all the sand and grit that came in on shoes and bare feet, drive a mile and a half to the local laundromat, and bathe in the lake (we at least had an indoor toilet, but the septic tank often acted up), those were the lazy days of summer. Before children arrived, hubby and I would have dreamy days floating on the water, rowing the boat across to Copper Island, or strolling through the government campsite on our way to get an ice-cream treat.

In the morning and late at night, hubby Brian would stuff the old potbelly with newspaper, kindling, and logs so that the cabin was nice and cosy for me. In turn, I'd make the coffee while he built the evening campfire, and then he'd serenade me on his guitar. We'd make a wish on the first star and pretend to count them as one after another they popped out in the black sky. Sometimes, we'd hear the plop plop plop of a toad as it hopped towards the water that quietly lapped against the shore.
When we had children, my favourite time of day was after lunch when all the chores were done and I could don my bathing suit (I wasn't embarrassed about the bod then!), hat, sunglasses, Walkman, and thongs (which are currently called flip-flops because some other personal garment stole the name) and drag my chaise onto the boat dock. While hubby kept an eye on the kids and the dog, I'd bask in the warmth of the sun as the dock gently swayed me into a coma-like state of relaxation.

As soon as the girls were old enough to wear life jackets, we'd take them out in the big boat, too. Here are my hubby (left) with his best friend Eric and our daughter Jamie and Eric's son Ryan (both kids were about 2 years old then.)

And when the girls were old enough, they had to take over some of the chores, one of which was the dishes. Thank God for children! They took turns washing and drying and they also had to wipe up the counters and sweep the porch. One of their favourite chores was shucking the corn for dinner. They did it sitting outside at our picnic table and it was fun to listen to them chatter away while I was busy in the kitchen. Can you see our poor pooch panting away in the afternoon heat?

Brian was a great Dad. He loved his girls more than anyone could ever know and he spent time with them on aqua bikes, teaching them to fish and water ski, horseback ride, and build the traditional evening campfire - while I relaxed.

Yes, those were the lazy days of summer that I enjoy looking back on. I miss them because it truly was a part of the best time of my life.

After Brian died in 1992, life became a continuous whirlwind of working and bringing up my girls through their tantrum-laden teen years. We made it through, although with some scars.

It really hasn't been until retirement that I've felt as though there have been days when I can be lazy again. Sometimes I don't even make my bed when I get up in the morning. Horrors! I was taught to make the bed, do up the dishes, dust, and vacuum every day! But heck, one solitary soul doesn't stir up much dust these days. I enjoy my lazy mornings of a light breakfast and two mugs of coffee while I watch "The View." (that's a hint at the time I usually get downstairs) Then it's the newspaper and the daily crossword, maybe a phone call or two, and preparing for my students after school. Oh, I do other things, but it's at my own time and pace. And I love it.