School's Out for SUMMER

OR The Summer Has Begun

***

I actually cooked, last night and tonight! Summer food. OK, pasta. But summer pasta. Last night: farfalle with zuchinni (sp?), spring onions, spring garlic, little tomatoes, and feta. Tonight: the first pesto, made with spring garlic, and about as good as could be; garlic bread made from scapes; salad with new lettuce, sorrel, and cucumber. Yes, the CSA has started up. Yes, everything was delicious. Tomorrow? To the in-laws. Saturday? To the restaurant.

***

Signs that summer has begun:

- Saturday: first trip to the spray park
- Sunday: first swim in Aunt E's pool
- also Sunday: first delivery of pizza to the spray park (OK, that was a first ever, but it was a huge success--happy parents, happy kids, much community spirit--and I have a feeling it will happen again)
--Monday: first swim at Historic Pond (where the water is so high the beach is practically gone--in my whole life of swimming at Historic Pond, I've never seen anything like it)
--Tuesday: first time fishing at Town Pond (OK, I skipped that one for a work dinner, but then I walked across East Coast Big City and it couldn't have been a lovelier summer evening)
--yesterday: first-day-of-summer/E's-half-birthday ice cream
--today: last-day-of-school ice cream

***

E, T (my niece), and I met M after school today. It was like Last Day of School: The Movie. The first kids came running out, screaming, and then the bell rang, and they burst out the door, hundreds of them, screaming and yelling.

On the last day of school, they tell the kids which class they will be in next year. It sounds kind of dramatic: the teacher writes the names on the board, and the kids watch to see which name it is. There's another girl whose name begins with the same three letters as M's, so that generated suspense. Then at lunch you find out from the kids in the other class which class they are going to be in, and there is much happiness, and it sounds like a bit of sadness, but luckily not for us. M was THRILLED. She likes all the girls from her class who will be with her, and all the boys too. Her foursome was split up two and two (which I figured would happen) and she is with G. The boy she hates will be in the other class, as will the boy she dislikes. One girl from the other class whom she dislikes will be in her class, but she will live. And she got the teacher that a friend suggested I request, but I decided not to. And she gave fourth grade, her first year of school in Town, a 9 1/2. So all is good as we leave East Town Public School behind until September.

The rest of the day was much excitement and very summery: ice cream, shopping, spray park (M and T), whining (E), cleaning (me), delicious summer dinner, playing outside with T and her brother and S down the street, more playing outside with G until dark, fighting E down into bed, letting M stay up, serious phone discussions about family matters, and, finally, exhausted peace and quiet. S? Haven't seen him.

Ten more weeks of this? Wait a second, maybe I'm already missing East Town Public School...