dudes. life is good. everyone is happy. fights are over. kids are getting along. we love long bike rides at night and riding wiggle cars down the street with kids in laps and dogs chasing us... then trudging back up the hill with arms full and laughter abundant. summer is magic. especially now that some kids are old enough to stay up late enough to enjoy some of the coolness and not all of the dead heat of 5 o'clock. subsequently, the littlest one stays up late too. we are sleeping in, getting really dirty, skipping baths and enjoying moments. we still watch tv. we still play video games. we still have to clean this house once in a while. but really, i have let go of having a perfectly clean house and embraced the realness of something that is full-on lived in. currently there are little blue hand prints on the toilet seat from some coloring that transferred from marker, to balloon, to hands to potty. i haven't even bothered. life is being lived and love is here.