Summer Solstice

View out my kitchen window - minus the bird who
was at the feeder two seconds before I took the picture

Finn and I went for our first evening walk tonight.  We set out a little later than planned - about 8:20, and he happily sipped on his milk and chattered to the passing trees before falling asleep.

Summer solstice.

It was a perfect summer night.  The sun was setting on a hot day, with the smell of gardenias drifting on the breeze and fireflies dancing alongside us.  All that was missing was the summer sounds of cicadas and kids playing.

Do kids really not play outside anymore?  I could understand them all being inside when I was getting home, around 9:15, but at 8:20 there was still plenty of light.  It's the time of day that seems perfect to be outside with friends, hoping Mom will let you stay out just 5 more minutes.

Finn is now sound asleep in his crib and I feel great after my walk.  Only 7700 steps today, but I feel so good now that even if I don't get my 10,000 steps every day I think I'll be happy doing this walk most nights.  It was so much better than a screaming baby for 20 minutes.  It's possible I might even sleep really well tonight.  Though I do love the idea of putting the pedometer on Finn!  I did do our usual bedtime routine before putting him in the stroller, and will take Tiara's suggestion and still have several evenings a week that he goes to sleep in his crib, not on a walk.

A few random things:

Blissful Mama asked a few posts ago about why I wasn't going to TTC while still nursing.  I'm pretty sure the title of my last post answered that question for the most part - it looks like I'm one of the ones who won't have a period until the baby is weaned.  Also, my RE said he was concerned the meds I will be taking wouldn't be as effective if I was still breastfeeding while taking them.

Speaking of breastfeeding - still managing to avoid it.  Yay Finn!

Ann recommended the book Donuts for Nan - about a little girl is told that she can't participate in Donuts for Dad at school because she doesn't have a dad.  I'd never heard of it before, but I'm going to order it.  There aren't many good books out there for kids of single parents, so I wanted to be sure everyone saw that recommendation!  I'm definitely ordering it tonight.

Finally, thank you for all the thoughtful comments on my post about AnonymousUs.org and the "study" about how how donor conceived children are unhappy.  While those of us who have children via ADI are certainly biased as well, your comments made it clear that our bias comes from our own careful research and personal experience, not from a nebulous idea that something is inherently bad or good.