Summer in the city

..is hot. And I mean, HOT. Yes, I know all you readers are laughing at the idea that I consider 87 degrees to be hot, but remember that we don't have air conditioning, and so, being in our hot little house has caused our tempers to fray. And yes, I know it's absurd that I am writing this while baking chocolate chip banana bread AND running the dishwasher AND the dryer. As for the bread...what can one say when Rachel comes into the bathroom the other day and opens with: "chocolate sprinkles and whipped cream and a cherry on top, PLEEASE Mommy can you make chocolate chip banana bread?" How could I possibly say no?

To deal with the heat I was determined to take Rachel to Grant Park pool tonight, and believe it or not, I managed it and even got her to bed by 9:30. AND stopped at Macy's right after school to pay a bill and pick up some popourri. When we got home at 6:30, I heated up some baked chicken, boiled some shells, threw together carrots for Rachel and salad for me, and we ate a fast dinner. By 7:40 we were done, the kitchen was clean and we were walking to the pool. (It would have saved us a lot of time and gotten us home earlier if I had driven, but the park is so close and I couldn't bear to waste all that energy and effort by driving). I think it was a good decision: On the way we ran into some neighbors who were all gathered around a playset; the kids ranged in age from slightly older than Rachel to two babies. They invited (actually, Rachel invited herself) to play on the playset and when we left she said, "that was so NICE!" just like a grownup would have said it, and it took my breath away).

We ran into a former colleague of mine from the Oregonian, out riding bikes with his 6-year-old son (see "Portland is a small town, Part 432") and then we raced into the pool. It was extremely crowded, which limited out mobility somewhat but we still had a good time. Rachel pulled me around with a Styrofoam noodle she found, and I dunked her underwater, which she asked me to do but didn't like so much because water got up her nose. She's convinced she'd feel more comfortable doing that if she had goggles but I keep telling her she can swim without them. But who am I to say?

On the way home we shared a strawberry ice cream bar -- "this is my FAVORITE FLAVOR!" Rachel announced -- but it got very dark and Rachel was scared -- she kept asking what I'd do if ghosts or monsters broke into the house -- and I was hurrying her along so fast that she almost fell a couple of times. "This is WAY past my bedtime," she observed, which was kind of true -- at least, it was way past the time that we should put her to bed. "I wish I was in my bed," she said at one point, and when we finally got home in the dark she said, "I want to put on my pajamas first," before brushing her teeth, which she usually doesn't do. I told her we didn't have time to read a story but we cuddled in bed while she sang me "Roll on Columbia." And now I am waiting for the banana bread to finish up before I can head to bed. I've been sleeping very badly the last few nights, I'm hoping for a more restful sleep tonight.

***

Sweet Rachel sayings tonight:

"My name is Sunbeam the Unicorn and you're Twilight Cookie!" she announced at dinner. Followed a few minutes later with, "I LOVE eating dinner with you!" That made my night.

The phone rang as we were getting ready to leave -- it's usually a telemarker around that time of night, a constant irritation -- and so Rachel said:

"One time the phone rang and Daddy thought it was you, and I thought it was a telemarketer, and Daddy was wrong and I was right. I do NOT like telemarketers!'

Neither do I, kid. Push polls are even worse, and I'm bracing myself for the onslaught after Labor Day.