posts tagged with 'rain'
water everywhere
I had an unusually wet morning yesterday. There was the weather: wind-whipped wild rain going every which way, including into the cellar when a downspout fell off (and all over me when I went out to fix it). With the ground frozen our yard turned into a bit of a pond, but nobody went out to experience it because just opening the door got us pretty wet with the rain blowing in. Then there was the frozen spinach I was thawing on the counter overnight that leaked green water everywhere. But worst of all was when I reached for the clock in the morning and knocked over the glass of water Elijah had left on my bedside table when he came into the bed with us at 4:00, and spilled it all over my pillow and my clothes that I'd put at the head of the bed to be warm. My face too, but that dries easily. Then by mid-afternoon it was sunny and beautiful, so I don't mean to complain... it just all felt so thematic I thought it was worthy of comment!
it never rains but it... rains some more
This morning I took the dogs out in the rain, because Leah had already done it more than enough times this week. After a hot dry June—the hottest on record for Massachusetts, I understand—we've had a very wet July, and that continued today with the passage of Tropical Storm Elsa (which by the way, shouldn't Elsa be bringing snow and ice, not torrential rain?!). I had my raincoat on of course, and boots, but I should have added rain pants, since by the time I got home I couldn't have been any wetter if I'd fallen in a pond.
The rain has certainly been good for the plants, and for the water table, and for our cozy inside reading time, but I think we'd appreciate a little moderation. June was too dry, July is too wet. We're feeling kind of cooped up now, and things might be starting to mildew. At least the rain stopped in time this evening to let friends gather on the back porch (rain has a much greater effect on our social life in these pandemic times!). But there's more in the forecast for next week. I hope we don't all float away!
water week
water water everywhere
Monday's rain may have cancelled the Patriots Day festivities, but it didn't stop us from having fun. As it rained and rained we played with friends inside where it was warm and dry. Then mid afternoon Harvey finally had enough sitting around, and went out to run around. He found a pretty deep puddle.
surprising
Of course, then all the other kids had to join him—and I did too. But unlike Harvey, who went barefoot, everyone else made the mistake of wearing boots. It took them three days to dry. It was pretty fun, though.
All the rain lately has swollen the local waterways impressively. On Tuesday we took a short excursion to the boat launch on the Concord River to play in the water. It was sunny when we left; it had turned cloudy and quite chilly by the time we got there, five minutes later, so we stayed dry this time. But it was still delightful to see how high the river was among the trees. The land is so low on the approach to the boat launch you really could imagine the whole world being flooded.
is our car floating?!
Seeing all that water, we decided we had to buy a canoe. So now we've done that. We're waiting on paddles and life jackets, then we're going to launch our life afloat!
another day, different water
adventure time again
It's been a while since the boys and I took a serious outing—libraries and toy stores of the surrounding towns have been enough for us for a while. But today I felt the call of bigger and better things; specifically, the big train and the big city!
taking in the city life
One of the things that keeps us away from heavy-duty adventure is not wanting to spend money. So rather than parking at Alewife we left the car on a side street a little ways away and walked in. It was all part of the adventure! And as you can see, the boys were dressed for adventuring.
geared up and ready to roll
Even before we left the house Lijah was super excited about the train, and I think it lived up to his expectations.
"dark in the tunnel"
We only went a couple stops, then got out at Harvard Square. We were disappointed by the Curious George store; the University was a bit more engaging.
the temple of knowledge
Harvey especially was interested in what constituted the university—was it a building? Was it the Yard, within the walls? I told him what I knew about Harvard's history and about higher education generally, but there were some things I couldn't explain; like why there was a giant tent set up, empty but for a single ping-pong table (with two rackets and one ball just for us!)
table tennis tent
All in all I think Harvard was a little unsettling for Harvey—the younger boys didn't care one way or another, but he couldn't figure it out and felt nervous about not fitting in. I can identify! He did approve of how Harvard starts its name, though.
To dispel any uneasiness, we walked over to a place that's deeply comforting to all of us: the Kemp playground on Cambridge common. It was tons of fun.
this is the place
On the way back to the train we stopped for italian ice, served up by a gentleman I used to work with who I hadn't seen in years. It was nice to chat for a bit, and the boys appreciated the sugar—so did I, since it kept Lijah awake for the train ride (and none of them noticed or minded that, while we waited on the platform, the man we were sitting next to peed into a cup without bothering to stand up from the bench).
The big city is fun, but on the way back to the car we were all glad to pause for a moment and reacquaint ourselves with the natural world.
pond break
All told we were away from home for six and a half hours; I expect everyone will sleep well tonight!