Summertime
Isn’t it a nice day to play…CROQUET!? When I look at these pictures, I feel like I’m writing a parody post for stuff white people like. I’m sure you can play this game in the inner city too (if you can find some grass to stick your little hoopty-hoop thingys in) but whenever I think of croquet, I always think of stuffy white people wearing summer sweaters and sipping lemonade on the lawn.
Which is why we were playing it at Whoorl’s house!
Just kidding! Whoorl is a hoot, as I’m sure you know. There is nothing stuffy about her. I want to move to her street. There are three or four houses that have lush green lawns butting up to each other and when the sun starts going down, everybody comes out of their houses and just hangs out outside. They talk and joke and their kids play together on the lawn. People bring you cocktails just because you are sitting there. It’s like the American dream come true over there. Sometimes music even comes out of the sky and the credits of your life start rolling down from the horizon.
Meanwhile, back at my house, we have no yard and cement to play on. Maybe that gives us street cred or something but between you and me it is boring in the summertime. Patios are great and all but there is nothing like running around outside in bare feet and not having to worry about stepping on bottle caps and broken pieces of glass. So we like to go to Whoorl’s. Especially when she has new toys to play with.
The kids had so much fun with this snake sprinkler thing. I think Whoorl is going to write about it on Parent Dish soon. She’ll give you the full scoop. I will just add my two cents and say that it was super fun and very toddler-friendly. If I had a lawn, I would buy one of these things. I would have the greenest lawn ever. I might even have a swamp.
After the sprinkler session, and a good nap for two tuckered-out kids, we dressed them up like little JCrew models and let them have at it with wooden mallets. Then we sipped some cocktails and took photos—which may or may not have a lot to do with how much fun the whole evening was.
Cheers to long summer days and friends who live close by and serve refreshments!
30 Comments
carrien
It looks and sounds like the perfect weekend.
I love Baby Bug’s dress.
Happy Birthday.
Camels & Chocolate
Baby Bug and Wito would make excellent models for J. Crew Kids.
Kaili
Fun! Can I come over too! That sounds and looks like like SO MUCH fun!
I think I might want to move to Whoorls neighborhood too! Sounds fun!
jenB
This whole adventure, photos and all should fin some sort of award. Pure summertime.
Jennifer
That first picture truly is a J. Crew ad come to life. They are so dang cute together. The “Stuff White People Like” link just sent me over the edge. Jeremy is getting mad at me for laughing so loud while he’s trying to enjoy the chase scene in Bullitt.
Gingermog
It sounds wonderful SAJ. I am impressed with the smashing kid friendly croquet hoops, as with the orginal metal ones there’s always one left out in the long grass which takes you by surprise months later and trips you over. Each and every time. Not that I spent my entire childhood play stuffy croquet or anything like that, we were more of badminton/tennis family. Pims anyone? :)
DeeJay
Life Is Good.
TheAngelForever
Looks like everyone had a fun time. My almost 5 year old son asked my parents for a croquet set for his birthday. I asked him what he was talking about since I did not believe my ears. Sure enough he had seen it being played on Maggie and the Beast on Noggin. Silly me, I thought he was saying crochet incorrectly ;)
Britt
They look like pictures from a magazine about the American Dream. So cute!
OMSH
Okay, that looked like a magazine ad for those toys.
Too cute.
whoorl
Cheers to a blog post that I can link to instead of writing myself! WOO!
*pixie*
I love all of these shots! The one of Baby Bug looking through the hoopty-hoop is fantastic. The grass in that one looks like astro turf.
Angella
OK. The whole “music coming out of the sky” part got me giggling. I cannot wait to meet you this week, my friend.
The kids? TOTALLY look like models in an ad.
Heather
Those pictures are SO cute!
Susan
Such a refreshing post. I love it!
Loralee
The “Stuff white people like” reference slayed me.
And? Could those little ones be any cuter?
I think not.
bethany actually
Laughing my butt off at Gingermog’s “Pims anyone?”
Victoria
Yahoo and amen!
bluejaye
They are so cute.
On another front….I just got my ABC and the Rainbow bakery recipe books you recommended a while back. Kids cooking, yea.
Meg
Mmm…what’s in the glass? That looks like the perfect play date.
pinky
I love the classic outfits while playing croquet! Yesterday we saw a family with four kids, three boys and a little girl. The boys were all wearing oxford shirts and chino shorts, and the little girl had a bow at the temple and was wearing a loose short-sleeved dress with smocking at the collar. The whole family looked so classic – no logos or screenprints or anything. I loved it!
Kara
The popped collar on the polo shirt makes me giggle.
I love croquet. I grew up playing it with my parents and grandparents. I hope someday to have a lawn just big enough for a croquet course… though right now I’d settle for an end to subflooring and construction debris.
Lovely pictures, I especially like the one of BB peaking through the wicket.
C
awww!
180/360
Your photos are so great! Baby Bug is such a doll and the croquet set is just way too cute. It has been way too long since I’ve been by here…
Allison
The kids look great in these pictures! You should send some of these pictures into Ralph Lauren for their ads!
BeachMama
I love this post, it represents a lot of what Summertime means to me. Great fun in the grass with your kids and drinks with your friends. Lovely.
katrin
Sometimes summer is so magical that I get morose. Perverse isn’t it? I start thinking about how damn lucky we all are, and how many kids are suffering, and I worry about whether I am really grateful enough for how incredible my life is. Then I get worried that around the next corner, some tragedy awaits.
I think the lesson for me is to enjoy every moment. Really pay attention, really appreciate, really work and play hard, and give something back.
Katrin
co-author, Mothers Need Time Outs, Too
http://www.momstimeouts.com
Kerri Anne
Every day should be so vibrantly colorful! With water snakes! The plastic kind, of course!
Red Sonja
I want to know who Whoorl’s gardner is, and I’d love to know what the white flowering plants are in the background. Peonies? Phlox? Some west coast plant I’m not familiar with… If I find out that she potted and planted all those plants herself, I’m through. I don’t deserve the luxury of looking in on the two of you and your beautiful children and your lives that somehow you find the time to create, photograph AND write about!! You’re like the cool, hip blogger version of Martha Stewart and I’m Jabba the Hut!
sarahecosta
Love the croquet set! I just found a cool monkey one at target (and it was 75% off!) and I am now inspired to take some fun pictures of my little girls having fun in the sun. Wonderful color looks like a blast