Slip 'N Slide, Popsicles, and Cousins.

Ah, summer.

The very word fills me with memories of months spent playing outside till my shoulders were tanned and freckled, fingers sticky from popsicles bought from the ice cream truck, and ponytail still wet from running through the sprinkler.

As a kid, summer is absolute freedom. Bedtime is later, days seem to stretch on forever, and there is absolutely nothing to do except enjoy the laziness of summer.

So when narrowing down my summer memories, choosing only one to relive is difficult…

As many of you know, I lived overseas for five years growing up – in Thailand and Malaysia, to be exact. When I was in middle school and my last two years of high school, my family and I lived over 15,000 miles away from my extended family.
Coming from a large, close-knit family, it was difficult to go months without seeing those we loved most.

But every summer, without fail, we’d go back to States for eight g l o r i o u s weeks. Since we had no house of our own in Ohio, we’d stay with my grandparents in their adorable home in the country.

It was a little cramped, but that just added to the thrill. With dozens of relatives visiting in the summer, the house was always busy. I rarely had my own room, let alone my own bed! Some high schoolers complain if they have to share a room with a sibling or two, but there was one entire summer when I shared the bottom bunk bed with my 8-year-old sister. And I loved it. The hustle and bustle of the house might have been stressful for the adults, but for us kids, it was ideal.

The ubiquitous summer words, “I’m bored,” never escaped my lips those summers spent at Grandma’s.

I’d venture to say we were more excited for that summer trip than for Christmas. The 40 hours of traveling melted away as my sisters and I daydreamed together about playing with our cousins and aunts, cook outs, visiting Cedar Point, bonfires, late nights playing games around the kitchen table, and eating American food. (Pop-Tarts, Dr. Pepper, and hot dogs were at the top of our list. I’d stockpile pounds of Almond Joy candy bars, York Peppermint Patties, chewing gum, and every other kind of candy you can imagine to take back to Asia with us.)

Raised in the suburbs and cities, we loved getting to step out the back door and explore the acres of woods and the nearby creek. Eating juicy watermelon, our chin red with dribbled juice, picking wild blackberries to make pie, and buying sweet corn from a farmer down the food was all a part of the summertime experience. There’s nothing quite like a peach fresh from the farm stand.

As a high schooler, my friends would come and spend time with my family as well, which just added to the enchantment of summer. My family is integral to who I am, and having my friends and family spend time together delighted me. They’d join in board games, dinners, and ever-present late nights around the kitchen table.

Combine family, sunshine, friends, outdoors, summer food, and mix together and you have the perfect equation for idyllic summers.

There was no doubt, Grandma and Grandpa lived in a magical place, and made my childhood summers more special that I could have ever hoped for.