Texas weather is horrible. By June it feels like it's 110 degrees out. August only gets worse. The humidity isn't much better. I thought Massachusetts summers could be bad, but these are pretty brutal, but they have nothing on Texas. I'd heard a lot about how Texas has a dry heat, but the people who always preached that must have been from West Texas because it's certainly not that way in Central Texas!
Summers in this area just aren't for kids. The peak burning hours are brutal. You can almost feel the sun burning your skin. Unfortunately, shade isn't easy to come by. Rainy days rarely happen, but it's so hot that no one wants to play when they're outside. You can easily burn yourself on the pavement or any of the playscapes at the playground. It's just not a fun time. Yes, you can wear sunscreen and bring lots of water, but it's still pretty miserable. This leads to kids being trapped in the house all day long, bored, and unable to blow off any steam. Let me tell you, this leads to LOTS of running and craziness in the house. I feel a little bad for our downstairs neighbors.
I would love to take the kids for evening walks, but this neighborhood isn't really the place for it. Let's just say we don't live in the best of neighborhoods, and it seems like things are just steadily getting worse. It's not easy to manage three kids on a walk at the best of times, never mind when you're wondering about the strange cars that have been driving by. Yes, it's about time we upgrade our neighborhood.
The kids really need more freedom to get out, you know? They need more space to run and play like kids. It's days like these that I miss Massachusetts the most. Yes, it's freezing in the winter, and driving in the snow isn't exactly the most fun when you're worried about your kids in the car, but I'd rather take that to these brutal Texas summers. I'm not a fan of hot and cooped up kids. It's much easier to bundle them up and toss them out in the snow than it is to explain to them why they can't go out and why playing in the water won't help terribly much.
For the next couple months we may focus on doing a lot of interesting homeschooling stuff, just to give the kids something to do. I know it's not going to help their need to run around and enjoy the summer weather, but it's about all we can do. Maybe if I can find enough things to keep them interested they'll be okay with not being out and doing nearly as much until it's a little more tolerable.
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