Today in devos, someone shared about how often we are so caught up in the end goal–the final check on that to-do list (and, yes, I’m the type who creates lists with actual boxes to check next to each item)–that we realize we completely are unaware of the journey to get to that goal. And most likely, we will always have another project, another goal, to reach, meaning we will never be able to get to a destination of complete rest…so why bother trying? When we wash dishes, really wash dishes and enjoy each moment. When we cook (and this is hard for me), really enjoy it and be thankful for the food. When I grumble about how difficult the hose is to wrap up after I water my plants, I should be thankful that I finally have a yard that I always wanted when I lived in apartments.

With that in mind, it sort of scares me that this whole summer has slipped by without my realizing it. Sure, we had tons of visitors and I enjoyed time with all of them, but I know I didn’t appreciate those moments as much as I should have. While I had fun showing people around, another part of my brain was thinking, “As soon as they leave, I have to work on my freelance article.” Or “The night after they leave, we’ll do laundry so that we can set up the beds for the next guests coming this weekend.” And now that our visitors are tapering off, the leaves will soon start turning colors, and the sky is definitely growing darker earlier, I wish I had mentally slowed down to enjoy the present days even more.

So as a tribute to the days I lost, here’s a recap of our most recent summer days:

We took a 24-hour trip back to LA to say farewell to Grandpa Kujawa at his funeral. Deaths are never easy, but he had been struggling so much in the hospital over the past months that there was some closure in knowing he no longer was in pain. We did enjoy reuniting with everyone, though, including Matt’s uncles from Michigan who we seldom see.

Ed and Dennis packed in several days of activities: kayaking, visiting Red Hook Brewery, hiking on Rattlesnake Ridge, the underground tour, and lots of eating. On one of their bike rides, Dennis picked some berries and put them in a worn-out brown bag that previously contained an empty beverage bottle. Gross! I think he tossed them and just picked a bunch of berries from our yard. Smart man.

A week after the guys left, Dorc arrived for a whole week. While we went to work, she worked at home on school and church stuff. In addition to stuff I mentioned in the entry about Macy’s, she taught me to make pai-gwut (Chinese spare ribs), helped me plant my magnolia tree, met Keba, went to the locks (got rained on!), and watched an outdoor movie. What I enjoy the most about time with Dorc is that it’s always really laidback and that we can just sit and not talk (and feel totally comfortable) or talk about random stuff.

The Kimballs were in the Northwest, so we got less than a day with them. When they arrived, I gave Kris a tour of the house, starting with the backyard. I said, “There’s our gardener,” and knocked on the glass door. Dorc lifted her head up from under a bright green hat and waved. Kris said, “What are you doing here?!” I love surprises. I also loved meeting adorable little Ben, the smily, mellow baby. Babies in one-piece pajamas are soooo cute, but it still doesn’t make me want to have a baby yet.

We also had dinner and dessert with Cynthia and Derek, who are getting married in a year! They live in Pasadena but were visiting Seattle and Vancouver. Cyn is a friend from my home church in Sac. She’s a few years younger than I am, so we were never in the same peer group, but we went through a phase of writing letters to each other, and we started exchanging e-mails recently. I can’t even remember when we had last seen each other, but it was great to catch up in person and get to know each other as adults. Dynamics really are different when we’re all grown up.

Last weekend, we camped at Larrabee State Park with Keba and Aaron. I was afraid that I’d come off as a high-strung camping snob to the Greenes, but fortunately they were totally easy-going and did not shake their heads (at least not openly) at our excessive camping gear and menu. We went on a beautiful hike, sought refuge in a quaint town called Fairhaven Bellingham during a brief downpour, and ate (and attempted to make) yummy campfire desserts. We also spent awhile during sunset on the coast, shooting frame after frame of starfish, water, clouds, and rocks. I loved how the Greenes were just as into taking pictures as we were. I found myself getting whiny that Matt was hogging the camera, where usually, I have control over it. It was a really relaxing weekend, which makes me wish we had planned more camping trips this summer. (Pics in my gallery, plus on Keba’s gallery…)

Maybe this recap was not as short and sweet as intended, but it was a nice jog back to the last few weeks. Now, September awaits…