Time Change and Twinkling Lights

I have found that when living in the Northwest, the time change is so significant that it's a given for parents to buy black out curtains for their children's bedroom windows. That you can mow your lawn at 9pm at night. That just because the sun is shining when waking in the morning, it is wise to check the clock for the actual time as it could still be 4am.

Oh heavens, this time change is brutal! I am not a fan. The girls go to bed around 7:30pm and the sun is still blazing bright. I feel guilty for even putting them to bed. And I have to say that I my annoyance with the early sunrise is progressing into a slow anger. I know that sounds awful but it's true. When Emmersen wakes in the middle of the night (or at least what I would call the middle of the night), I can see that the sun is starting to peak over the horizon at 3:45am! There is something very wrong with that statement. I should be enjoying beautiful, dark, quiet sleep. Not feeling like I need to rush back to bed to hurry and close my eyes and grasp at what little sleep is left. I think before next summer I'll be investing in some much darker window coverings to preserve what little dark we are given for this time of year. On the bright side (no pun intended), after the girls go to bed and are finally asleep (which, let's face it, could take an hour or sometimes more), Aaron and I still have time to enjoy the setting sun on our back patio. 

Speaking of that back patio- one of the things that pulled me in on choosing this particular house was the back patio and pergola. For years I have wanted a pergola but couldn't quite win Aaron over. When we found this house, even he admitted that it was a very nice feature and that he finally understood my fondness of them. As soon as the weather warmed, I added lights. Not tacky Christmas or tube lights, but slightly larger bulbs, more like outdoor cafe string lights. It took me one entire nap time to string them up just how I wanted and then I couldn't wait for it to get dark. And when it did, I plugged them in and had the biggest grin on my face. I guess you could say it doesn't take much to make me happy but this has been something I've wanted to do for a long time. 

The first picture below gives you an idea of light and time of day. Aaron took this with his phone at 9:30pm tonight. While it may seem dark in the yard area, it was not. I probably could have mowed the lawn if I really wanted to. The second picture is from my phone and not the best, but I needed a picture of my lights and pergola. They are dim enough that it doesn't feel like the 4th of July, but still bright enough to walk without tripping. So calming. So fabulous.