Summer Solstice

Happy summer solstice everyone -- well, everyone in this part of the world!

I really wanted to do something special this year to celebrate the changing of the season.  I looked around for some ideas that were simple, rooted in nature and fun.  Dancing ... maybe, but I've got two left feet, not a pretty sight;  a day at the beach ... possible, but that's on the agenda for tomorrow; chants and meditation ... yeah, that would last about 30 seconds with this bunch.  Then, inspiration -- FIRE!  Of course, what could be better?

Well, I thought, if we're going to have a fire, then we've got to have smores!  And after reading this blog post by my friend Erin (smore-goodness), it sealed the deal on the fire idea.  There was some spontaneous dancing and chanting going on when I shared my plan with the boys.  Needless to say, they were excited.

So we got to work clearing a little spot in the dirt pile in our backyard and gathering some sticks.  Aidan got the enviable job of lighting the fire, which was immediately followed by a quick lesson in fire safety and the properties of fire -- I knew that stint in the fire department would come in handy someday!  Once everyone was properly trained and equipped (stick in hand), they each got to add a piece of wood to our little fire.  I kept looking around to see if any of our neighbours were concerned about the smoke coming from our yard, but the fire trucks didn't show up, so I guess that we didn't set off any alarms.

Waiting for the fire to die down, supplies at the ready, was the hardest part.  Especially since they didn't really seem to get the fact that it was the coals that we wanted.

When they could wait no longer, the marshmallows were speared, carefully toasted (or in some cases, burned!), then sandwiched between graham crackers and chocolate.  Mmmmmmmm ...

A very sweet summer solstice celebration!