DIY Day Camps During Pandemic

Anyone with a child at home under the age of 18 is experiencing some level of stress as summer stretches out before us in a world dealing with the COVID-19 epidemic. This is NOT a post to debate the issues of whether or not to venture out for organized activities or camps. If you want that local (Arizona) debate, there is a great post from Raising Arizona Kids.

However, if you have decided to create your own "at-home" experience, here are some resources that might help you. The key point is plan, plan, plan! If your kids are at camp, whether sleep camp or day camp, their schedules are tightly controlled. To create your DIY camp, I would suggest doing the same. My second suggestion is to make these activities feel "different." You've been home with the kids for some time now and to get everyone in the "camp" mood, this needs to feel special or different. Of course, you can always pick and choose fun activities from this list. So, let's create your own DIY summer camp with step-by-step instructions!

1. Create a name for your camp. Many years ago, I entertained my (now adult) niece and nephew at Camp Campbell.  One of our first "arts and crafts" activities was making a camp shirt.  Here's a link for an easy way to make tie-dye shirts with acrylic paint. It would be very easy to create some stencils with your "camp" name and paint them on after your tie-dye shirts are done. You just created 2 days of arts and crafts activities and a memento of their camping experience!

2. Plan your "camp" meals. If you want to keep it easy in a "day camp" setting, you just need to plan fun lunches that you can eat picnic style. I've packed a ton of ideas onto a special Pinterest board, Day Camp so you should have no problem planning ahead. If you really want to be adventurous and include a "sleep-over" camp with a fire, don't forget to include the s'mores and at least one "campfire" meal.  I've also included some links on the Day Camp Pinterest board for that.

3. Keep a strict schedule. Be sure to plan educational activities, physical activities, arts & crafts and quiet time into your camp, keeping in mind the ages of your campers. See the list of links below as well as my Pinterest Day Camp page for specific ideas on each type of activity. Consider creating a schedule board for each day, or a handout for the "campers" so they know exactly what is coming.

4. Consider at least one overnight camp out in the yard. This could include a tent and campfire, or as simple as some blankets and sleeping bags in the living room. 

5. Get some "camp counselors." If you have older kids, get them involved! Younger kids will be thrilled, you give those older kids something to do, and take some of the pressure as "camp director" off of you!

6. Have a specific "start" and "stop" to camp, especially if you are doing a "day camp" format. It's not sustainable to keep "camp" going indefinitely and kids will likely lose interest if you try. Keeping a "start" and "stop" is almost as important as keeping a strict schedule because it gives kids the feeling of something "different".  You also get time off when camp is not in session!

Can't bear to do this alone at home?  Here are some resources to local virtual day camps this summer. 

Ideas for Educational Activities

• Phoenix Water Services has a brand new digital resources pages. The left side is for kids and the right is for adults. Don't miss the fun videos of "Wayne Drop" and "Loo Poo".  There are activity books with coloring pages you can print for the little ones or order free hard copies in advance. Be sure to check out the tons of lesson plans you can use.

• Virtual Water Festival is another page from Arizona Project WET and geared to teaching elementary students (especially 4th grade) about water. Filled with videos, lessons and games, this is a treasure trove.
• STEM Lessons Activities from Nerding teaches how to build or do a bunch of fun things, especially for elementary and middle schoolers.
• Mystery Science has a ton of activities for kids, Kindergarten through Middle School
• Make a Time Capsule What better time than now??
• Make homemade cards and send a letter to relatives (just like at camp!)
• Grow Borax Crystals
• Make Elephant Toothpaste with a few household items. Cool science experiment - outside.
• Make up stories, create your own book and illustrate (this can be done over several days)

Ideas for Physical Activities

• Play at Home - This is a great, interactive and local website that includes mindfulness, songs and a little yoga. It's especially great for preschoolers.
• Children's Museum of Phoenix has a bunch of videos with movement and yoga, as well as other videos with projects and learning.
• Swimming - Don't have a pool? Create a slip & slide with the hose, bubbles and/or shaving cream. Hose them down when you're done. See a bunch of DIY slip & slides on Pinterest
• Biking
• Scavenger Hunt, Obstacle Course or Relay Game - see my Day Camp board on Pinterest for tons of outside games you can put together for a relay
• Paint with Squirt Guns - Arts & crafts and physical activity in one!
• Make bubbles - see Pinterest for a recipe for giant bubbles

Ideas for Arts & Crafts

• As You Wish Pottery has complete kits you can pick up or they can ship to you!
• STG Top 5 Kids Crafts - our very own!
• Cake decorating. This is fun whether you have a lot of supplies for decorating or just a few. Each kid gets to make their own cake and then decorate it.

• Create Birdseed Hearts - for a truly outdoor craft
• Make Painted Kindness Rocks and then take a walk and leave them around your neighborhood!
• Salt Painting
• Q-Tip Painted Art
• Tie-Dye T-shirts
• Make homemade pizzas

Ideas for Quiet Time

• Listen to some stories!  There are lots of resources on the internet now to watch videos of someone reading to kids.  Here are a few of my favorites:
• Hall of Flame Museum
• Phoenix Public Library
• Dolly Parton
• NASA with Story Time from Space

• Virtual Field Trips! offered through Arizona State University are seriously cool for K-8 to explore
• Australian Reptile Park has a number of short, engaging videos on its YouTube channel featuring animals American kids don't get to see much, including koalas!
• San Diego Zoo has a bunch of animal cams for your viewing pleasure
• Kitten Rescue Cam because everyone needs a kitty fix.
• National Geographic Kid Videos - This includes some great projects and games.

Whatever you decide to do this summer, take some time to relax. It's been a hard couple of months for everyone and you deserve it!

cindy

Please - No - Not Yet!

I'm starting to see things - things I just don't want to see yet.  It's just disturbing.  I'm only going to describe it, not show pictures because it's just too disturbing.

Reminder - it is still AUGUST.  Summer is not quite over even if kids have gone to school.  Fall is definitely not here yet.  I'm not ready to see pumpkins and harvest decorations on Pinterest.  Halloween blogs posts are most certainly premature.

I live in Arizona so it is even more shocking to the system to see these images when the daily temperature is still averaging 103 degrees.  On the other hand, I'm not sure there are too many (if any) places where the leaves are turning or spice mulled cider is in order.  Don't push me!

I'm asking for a moratorium on Halloween, harvest decorating, pumpkin recipes and God forbid - Christmas, until at least September 15.  Would it kill you to wait that long?  There will still be time to decorate our front porches in highly flammable dead corn stalks and plant mums. We will still be able to try every conceivable meal course with pumpkin as the primary ingredient. The spooky clever Halloween treats that look like spiders, witches and guts can wait.

Step back from the harvest leaves and take a breath.

Thank you.

cindy

All About Arizona - Monsoon Season

Summer in Arizona - thunderstorms, dust, humidity and hopefully, rain.  Monsoon season adds humidity to already sizzling temperatures, which in turns causes nasty dust and thunderstorms.  It's probably the worst time of year to visit.  105 degrees can be bearable in early June, but in monsoon season it's downright miserable.

Most of Arizona's precipitation comes during monsoon season, which is officially between June 15 and September 30.  Sudden heavy precipitation results in our dry "washes" (think creek bed) running like raging rivers in less than a half hour.  If you are fooling enough to enter one of these in your car, you can violate Arizona's Stupid Motorist Law, which requires a person to pay for the costs of rescue assuming you aren't drowned in the meantime.  This recently became national news when a bus driver near Kingman decided to cross a running wash.

During monsoon season Arizona also experiences haboubs.  What's a haboub?  It's pronounced "ha-boob" and it's a sand storm.  If you want to see lots of video, you can easily find it on YouTube, but these are pictures from my backyard:

To the west - extending nearly 60 miles

A haboub looks like a large, slow moving cloud that rolls in a blanket of dust and turns dusk to pitch black in less than five minutes.  It leaves an annoying layer of dust on everything outside.  

Yes, monsoon season (when the "dry heat" isn't so dry) can be brutal to endure, but for someone who loves the desert, it's just another example of the enigmatic beauty of the southwest.  I love the smell of creosote on the desert floor, the beautiful purple Texas sage that blooms after a storm and of course, the rainbows after the rain.

cindy

Clouds

The approach of Fall in the desert part of Arizona is not much like the rest of the country.  This is approaching our best time of year with clear blue skies and temperatures in the 70-80s.  You won't see a cloud in the sky until the early spring rains in February.  Fall begins when monsoon season ends.  When I first heard the term "monsoon" used to describe a season in Arizona, I pictured torrential rivers carrying away houses.  I guess there are some big rains, but to me monsoon season reminds me of the most beautiful clouds and sunsets.

These are all taken near sunset.  The clouds in the east are reflecting the sun setting in the west.

You just can't take your eyes off of them, which is why some of these pictures were taken from the car. Now that monsoon season is over, we won't see these beautiful towering thunderheads for another year.  Not to rub it in, but we will see clear blue skies all winter :)

And some awesome sunsets.

cindy

Broccoli - Bacon Salad

Letting go of summer in Phoenix produces mixed feelings.  In Arizona, the coming of fall means that the best temperate weather of the fall and winter.  On the other hand, summer is summer.  In an attempt to hold on a little longer, I offer this recipe.  It is a great cold salad that you can make hours in advance. It's crunchy, sweet and sour.

Broccoli Bacon Salad

Ingredients:

5 slices bacon, chopped into 1/2 inch pieces
1 pound broccoli florets (approximately), cut into 1 inch pieces
1/2 cup light mayonnaise
1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
Coarse salt
Fresh black pepper
3/4 cup diced sweet bell pepper (red, orange, yellow, or a combination)
1/2 cup golden raisins
1/3 cup pine nuts, toasted

directions:

1. Cook bacon in a 10-inch skillet over medium heat until crisp, 6 to 8 minutes. Remove with slotted spoon and drain on a paper-towel lined plate.

2. Blanch the broccoli: Bring a large pot of water to boil. In another large bowl, prepare an ice bath with equal parts water and ice cubes. Add broccoli florets to boiling water and cook for 1 minute. Remove broccoli with a slotted spoon and place in the ice bath immediately to cool. Drain the broccoli again and dry the florets by spinning in a salad spinner or by laying them out on several paper towels.

3. Whisk mayonnaise, vinegar, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and 1/4 teaspoon pepper together in a large bowl. Add broccoli, bell pepper, raisins, pine nuts, and shallot to the bowl with the dressing, and toss to combine. Season to taste with additional salt and pepper as needed, then sprinkle with the cooked bacon. Chill until ready to serve.

That's it!  With the blanched broccoli, the brightly colored peppers and the bacon.  It's a great easy salad that is sweet and substantial  Enjoy!

cindy

Verde Canyon Railroad

We were in the Verde Valley area of Arizona during Labor Day Weekend.  The Verde Valley is in Central Arizona, south of Sedona and about 90 miles north of Phoenix.  It's a bit overlooked in the shadow of Sedona, so I wasn't sure what we would do over the weekend.  But we found one of the best gems in Arizona - the Verde Canyon Railroad in Clarkdale.

Watermelon Blues

As the summer ends, there are things that go away. One of those things is watermelon. There are also people who are going away - high school graduates off to college and a dear friend who is off to the seminary. A week ago we had a party to celebrate our new seminarian and I made this recipe.

Watermelon A-Line Dress

This was the first creation in my dress making mania.  As I mentioned there, I bought Wendi Gratz' book Absolutely A-Line which has some easy yet amazing takes on the simple A-line dress.  This was the first "altered" one I tried.

I've had the watermelon fabric for a while, but never got around to making a summer dress.  As you can see, the dress is the basic A-line, but I added a contrast band and ruffle peeking out the bottom.  That ruffle is REALLY ruffled - I don't think I would try to make a ruffle that tight again.  To make it even harder, this was the last sewing project where I made ruffles with the "baste and pull" method.  You use two long stitch baste stitches parallel to each other with long tails on either end.  Then you gently pull to gather the fabric the way you would like it.  This bottom ruffle had so much fabric and had to gather all the way around the hem, that the "old-fashioned way" was the last time for me.  After this project I bought a ruffle foot for my sewing machine.

I love this dress!  I made it in a size 5 to sell in my Etsy store, but now that I see it, I wish I would have made it in my daughter's size.  (If you have a daughter in a size 5, feel free to drop by tomorrow during the grand opening of "Pretty Pretty Cindy.") One of the things I love about these A-line dresses is that you can wear it in the summer sleeveless and then in the fall and winter will a shirt underneath like a jumper.  

Doesn't it just make you want to go to a picnic?
cindy

Who Will Be Little Miss Coppertone?

If you are of a "certain" age, you remember the iconic "Coppertone Girl"

I'm not really that old, but I do remember a slightly updated version of this image when I was a kid.  The Coppertone Girl represented a "healthy tan."  Now we know Coppertone has always protected us from the harmful effects of the sun.  Actually, Coppertone has been a staple in my beach bag since I was a kid, once to get a suntan and now as a sunscreen for my children.  

Now Coppertone is looking for a new little girl (ages 2-7) to be Little Miss Coppertone.  Don't worry - there will be no dog pulling off swimsuits or revealing pictures of your child.  In fact, they are not replicating the iconic image, so your child doesn't need to look like the little girl or even wear a swimsuit in the picture.

Here's how it works:  You submit a picture of your little girl, ages 2-7 on Coppertone's Facebook page.  No purchase is necessary.  Contest ends June 22, 2012 (6/22/12).  Click HERE for official rules and FAQs about the contest.  Allison Sweeney will be one of the guest judges who will determine the finalists.  On or about July 13, 2012, voting for the finalists will begin on Coppertone's Facebook page.  Be sure to see the FAQs and official rules so you can send in a picture that meets the requirements of the contest.

I'm sorry to say my Little Miss Coppertone is too old to enter, but Coppertone is the only way I can leave her in the Arizona sun in the pool.

If you do enter and your little girl becomes a finalist, please let me know so I can vote for her on Facebook!  I can't wait to see the next Little Miss Coppertone!

Disclosure:  I was entered for a chance to win a gift card in exchange for this post.  No monetary exchange took place.

cindy

Constant Computer?

I have this little problem in my house.  It looks a little like this:

No, Brodie doesn't really use the computer, but everyone else in the house does.  There are two kids and two adults living here.  There are 3 laptops, 1 tablet, 1 I-Touch and 2 smart phones.  Yep, we're pretty wired.  While it's a great convenience, it's become a real problem.  The kids spend too much time on the computer and we parents aren't much better.  I do feel pretty comfortable about what we're *not* looking at - we have Covenant Eyes installed on our computers and it's a pretty good filter.  However, I'm still pretty concerned about things like YouTube, even with the filters.

About now you are thinking - just turn it off, and you're right.  However, computers are to my kids what TV was to me.  It's going to be a bit of a challenge now that school is out.  We're trying to keep them busy, but I definitely think we will have to set specific time limits on computer time.

If anyone has any similar experiences, suggestions or alternatives, I'd love to hear from you!

cindy

DIY Girl's Summer Camp

Last week I posted about getting together with other moms to "share the joy" of having the kids at home all summer.  I suggested taking turns hosting a day camp.  Last week it was the boys and now it's time for the girls.  Even if you don't want to have other girls, here are some ideas of things to do with girls when "I'm bored!" inevitably comes.  A lot of these will look like my suggestions for boys, but they're equally applicable to girls.

1.  Swimming. This is a staple stand-by, but try to spice it up.  Go to a different public pool or a water park or get out the "slip and slide" with bubbles or shaving cream.  Hose them down when you're done.

2.  Biking. Again, take the bikes somewhere new and explore.  Many areas now have designated bike paths so you don't have to worry about traffic.

3.  Visit a Museum. This can be a great way to beat the heat and can occupy the entire day. Every area has their own "best" museums.  Here in the Phoenix area we have the Musical Instrument Museum which is just what it says, and more.  You can listen to a number of instruments you've never heard before, or try some out. You may have a great science, children's or natural history museum close to you.

4.  DIY Spa Day.  Break out the cucumber slices, lotions, nail polish and foot bath.  You can take turns with manicures and pedicures, or, if doing it yourself doesn't appeal to you, head out to the local nail salon.

5.  Crafts.  This is, of course, my favorite.  It's probably a good idea to have a plan for a specific craft ahead of time so you can have everything ready.  As an alternative, you can get out a bunch of random supplies and scraps and let them create a masterpiece!

6.  Shopping Spree.  This isn't what it sounds like.  There is no money involved.  Take the girls to the local mall and give them $1,000 in pretend money.  Keep a tally for each and let them go wild.  This is great fun and teaches them the value of money.  (You won't believe how easy it is to spend $1,000!)

7.  Fashion Show.  Have each girl bring some clothes and shoes (especially ones they would like to swap). Have the girls take turns putting together outfits with all the assorted clothes.  Perhaps they can even swap clothes!

8.  Nature walk.  Time to get outside again!  Go to a local park or nature area and give the girls a list of things to find (like an ecological scavenger hunt).  The first girl to get every item wins a prize.

9.  Cake decorating.  This is fun whether you have a lot of supplies for decorating or just a few.  Each girl gets to make her own cake (preferably from scratch) and then decorate it.  This is a great way to teach girls about following recipes and cooking.

10,  Pop Popcorn and Watch a Good Movie.  This is a no-brainer and makes for a quiet afternoon (as long as you pick out the right movie).  Don't be afraid to pick out a movie the girls have never heard of, especially if it is an older movie.  You'd be shocked to find out that little girls love Shirley Temple movies!

Hope that's enough to get you started.  I'm jealous now because I work full time outside of the home and I would love to do all of these things.  Please live vicariously for me this summer!

cindy

DIY Day Camp - Boys

I was recently tweeting with another mom who was dreading the summer break (hi Jenny!) and it made me remember something I did with my niece and nephew one summer.  I did a weeklong "day camp" (called it Camp Campbell).  This is a great idea to get together with other moms who can also take another week to host their own "day camp."  It's a bit fun to be a camp/activity director for 5 days, but you have to be prepared.  When I did it with my niece and nephew, I had to plan the days out ahead of time (there's nothing worse than a bunch of kids with nothing to do).  Here are some ideas of "camp" activities for boys (I'll do girls tomorrow):

1.  Swimming.  This is especially great if you have them all bring a water weapon and let the water wars begin.  Marco Polo anyone?
2. Bike rides. 'Nuf said
3. Hikes. Take the boys to your favorite wooded areas or trail and set them loose.  Maybe you could do a scavenger hunt?
4. Make homemade pizza - fun and gets them through lunch!
5. Make paper airplanes.  Have contests for whose flies the best or looks the best.
6. Wiffleball game.  This is great for a backyard or park where you don't have to worry about losing a ball.
7. Video game tournament.  This can go over several days.
8. Movie afternoon in your home (or better yet, outside if you can).  Break out the popcorn and movie candy.
9. Make a movie!  If you have one or more video cameras, this will entertain them for more than a day. They come up with their own plots, dialogue, costumes etc.  At the end of the week, have a film festival!
10. Play poker.  Now I know some may object to this, but boys will be fascinated for hours.  You can play for cookies, small change or just a prize in a "tournament".

Those are just a few ideas and you could probably think of more. You can also purchase "The Dangerous Book for Boys" which may give you even more ideas.  You can also get "The Pocket Dangerous Book for Boys - Things to Do".  Don't forget - plan, plan, plan.  The best camps are ones with activities planned in advance.  You can always schedule time everyday for free play with TOYS (you remember those, right?)  The important thing is that the boys understand it's "camp" not a democracy.  They need to know they are coming to do whatever the "activity director" has planned.
Best of all, you get to have some organized fun AND if you get other moms to play along, you get a couple of weeks to yourself!

Tomorrow I'll get into the day camp for girls!

cindy

Black Slip Dress

I'm trying to make some dresses for Mackenzie and here was my first for the spring/summer:

It was very easy - just two pieces with a facing.  A-line dresses are very flattering for most figures.

We were working on a little modeling of the dress until her foot was scratched.  The photo shoot abruptly ended.

I did have one problem with this dress, but I'm proud of the save.  I made a mistake on the shoulders and ended up sewing each of the four straps closed.  I decided to sew them closed and put decorative buttons on them.

I originally intended to use this fabric for myself, but I like it better in this little slip dress.

cindy

Scrapbook Sunday - Summer Splash

Here's a summer page to get you feeling warm.  I'm not sure why I didn't get a picture of the entire page when I photographed this a couple of weeks ago, but you can get an idea of the layout.  I'm not thrilled with the pictures with Christian and Kent because of the shade.  However, I wanted that interaction in the layout.

The background paper is a blue and green dot vellum over a green patterned paper.  I like the pictures to have some progression in a layout because it seems to tell a better story.  Here, Christian was giggling about getting into the water, but eventually did and even trusted his dad to float on his back.  I loved using the "tape" on the pictures - great product!  The letters are stenciled and cut (when I had time to do that type of thing!).  They are outlined and layered over blue gingham ribbon so they pop a little more.  My favorite part of this layout is Christian's expression.  I miss that baby - he is 11 tomorrow (Monday).

Happy birthday baby boy.

cindy

Southern Cooking

The last couple of months I have been longing for comfort food I remember from my southern family.  My dad used to make a couple, and my mom made a few too.  Some things I definitely don't miss - brussel sprouts, liver & onions and "greens".  (However on a recent trip to Louisville, we had some great "greens" with spinach sauted in pork fat - yum!)  The two I've been particularly interested in making were chicken & dumplings and peach cobbler.   One of the interesting things about these dishes is that my husband and I both remember very similar recipes from our childhoods.

For those of you with "northern" families, I'm not talking about chicken & dumplings that are big round globs of flour dropped into boiling water.  I'm talking about the thinly rolled and cut dumplings that are gently placed in a pot with lots of chicken and broth.  My mom and grandmother never gave me a recipe for this fine dish, but I recently found a promising one on allrecipes.com.  I'm not listing it here as a recipe, because I'm not quite sure I perfected it - a little too soupy for me.  I also didn't roll the dumplings quite thin enough or have the water boiling enough.  Have to try it again.

In the meantime, it's peach time and I'm ready to try some peach cobbler.  I was wimpy (and not true southern) by using pre-made sugar cookie dough as the bottom crust, but hey, I did try grandma's pastry crust for the top.  My results were OK, but not quite good enough.  Here's the peach filling before I put the crust on:

I used white peaches, which I don't think were as sweet.  Being wimpy on the bottom crust wasn't very satisfying, but the top pastry part was promising.  I'm going to have to give this one another try too.

I'd love to hear about your favorite childhood comfort food.  In the meantime, I'll keep working on mine.

cindy

Recipe - Chinese Chicken Salad

This is a great summer salad that is a complete meal with chicken.  It's also easy to make in advance, especially the night before or in the morning.  The entire salad can be mixed in advance, but make sure NOT to add the dressing until you are ready to eat.

Chinese Chicken Salad

               1 Napa cabbage          

1 bunch green onions

1-2 packages of ramen noodles (soup)

2 Tablespoons sesame seeds

1 cup sliced almonds

1/4 cup olive oil
1-2 pounds boneless skinless chicken breasts

1/2 cup sugar

1/4 cup rice wine vinegar

3/4 cup canola oil

2 Tablespoons soy sauce

Boil chicken breasts until cooked through and set aside to cool.  Combine sugar, vinegar, canola oil and soy sauce in small saucepan over medium heat.  Heat to boil and allow liquid to boil for 1 minute.  Remove from heat and allow liquid to cool thoroughly.  Brown ramen noodles in olive oil in frying pan.  (Discard ramen noodle flavor packet.)  Add sesame seeds and almonds and brown.  Let the mixture cool.  Chop cabbage and onions and combine with noodle mixture.  Cut the chicken into chunks and add to salad.  Mix or shake liquid dressing and mix with salad immediately before serving.

Enjoy!

cindy

Arizona in July

Summer in Arizona is harsh, yet starkly beautiful.  Not too many people visit in the summer, but during the last month most of the world has seen some of our summer phenomena.  Forest fires of epic proportions, triple digits every day during July and this week, a haboub.  What's a haboub?  It's pronounced "ha-boob" and it's a sand storm.  If you want to see lots of video, you can easily find it on YouTube, but these are pictures from my backyard:

To the east - the bank of rolling sand

To the south - see the lighter swirling sand

To the west - extending nearly 60 miles

The haboub looked like a large, slow moving cloud that rolled over us in a blanket of dust and turned dusk to pitch black in less than five minutes.  I've seen these sand storms before, but never like this.  We now have a layer of dust on everything outside.  This is "monsoon season," when Arizona experiences weather just by the addition of a little more humidity.  Little changes make for big events in Arizona.

Even though the world now thinks it has seen summer in Arizona, there's still so much they are missing:  monsoon storms that suddenly spring up from the east in towering thunderheads at dusk;  the smell of rain in the form of creosote on the desert floor; or a shade of green you can't find in places where it rains more than 8 inches a year.  My kids were born in Arizona and will stop whatever they are doing to run out and watch the rain.  We sat outside tonight in the hot blowing wind, waiting for the rain and marveling at the fireworks display in the lightning.  Tomorrow after the rain we'll awake to purple Texas sage and the most alluring flowers on inhospitable plants with needles and thorns.  

Yes, monsoon season (when the "dry heat" isn't so dry) can be brutal to endure, but for someone who is deeply in love with the desert, it's just another example of the enigmatic beauty of the southwest.

cindy