This evening was just the perfect summer night. Warm with a gentle hint of breeze; clear and sunny and not too buggy. It felt really precious, seeing has how it’s been a really cold and rainy August and it feels like we never really got to have a summer this year.

We had barbecue for dinner and then played outside in the backyard. I blew bubbles for Gal Smiley to chase, Captain Jelly Belly used the patio chairs to build a ramp for his Hot Wheels, and Sir Monkeypants pushed Little Miss Sunshine on the baby swing. It was just perfect.

This afternoon we had been out shopping and I spotted a woman who was helping her daughter buy stuff for residence — the daughter obviously getting ready to head off to university. I suddenly felt really scared and sad for the day when we won’t be together every single evening. Sometimes being a parent can be really challenging and frustrating and I think I can’t wait for the day when the kids are more independent and doing things on their own so I can have some peace and quiet and private time again. But today I really noticed how wonderful it is that we are all, by assumption, together all the time. After dinner we’ll all just go outside or for a walk or for a bike ride and we’ll be together, playing and talking and just being madly in love with each other. No one will have hockey practice to get to, no one will beg to go off to the mall with their friends, no one will slink off to their room to text message their buddies. No one will live somewhere far away, making a new family out of roommates and co-workers.

I think I’ve been taking these young years for granted.

On the plus side, however, this evening I saw the family that lives across the street from us — they have two daughters, ages 12 and 10 — sitting together on their front porch, laughing together and chatting. Later another family who lives on our street — they have a daughter and a son, about 15 and 14 — walked by, a family with teenagers spending their evening much the same as we do most summer nights.

So that was encouraging — we still have a few years of bonding and sharing ahead of us. Next time I’m having a hard day with the kids, though, I’ll come back and read this post and remember that it won’t last forever…sadly.