The Next Morning

Partying is nice and pretty, but you’ve got to own up the next morning with some cleaning up. For Mom it involves cleaning the ash off her clothes. Cleo has noticed there are still some traces of it on the floor, so she brings out the mop. In the meantime, Dad and I are cleaning the kitchen.

Inspired by yesterday’s holiday — or her close encounter with fire —, Mom goes ahead and flambés our breakfast — and she doesn’t even come close to burning the house down this time.

And she stills makes it out of the house on time for her day of work at the lab.

Dad’s in love with our new swings. He doesn’t have work today, so his plans for the day only involve chilling.

And recuperating from yesterday’s events by napping on the terrace. Not for very long though. Cool summer breezes are always welcome, but when it plays with the carillions on the wall, you have to be able to sleep through the adorable but relentless sound it makes.

Dad can’t, so from the poolhouse I see him get up with tousled hair and hunched back, then go inside the house to finish his nap.

Fireworks

Mom and Dad had fireworks in the attic — they had been sitting there from back when they lived in the Spice Market. As Mom handed them to me, she smiled softly.

“We bought these at the Humor and Hijinks festival over twenty years ago.”

“Wow, these are some oooold fireworks!”

She laughed.

“You have no idea! You were there, too, actually. You didn’t know it but you were there, kicking around in my belly.”

I don’t just kick around is someone else’s belly now, so I’m the one to light up the first fireworks.

It’s the last of our Pride Day activities!

Now we can enjoy the pretty lights. Maybe my love for fireworks did stem from hearing them back before I was born.

We’re the only ones in the neighborhood to have gone as far as actually breaking out the fireworks, but the whole neighborhood can see them.

Mom almost burnt down the house trying to turn on the second set of fireworks, but she only got singed a tiny bit. Cyril stepped up to clean up the ashes and burn marks.

And then we’re off to bed. This was our first time celebrating Pride Day, and it was a pretty freaking fun day.

Colorful Dinner

Dinner is ready! The family gathers around, still in our celebratory outfits. We do try not to put too much glitter into our food.

Well done, Mom and Dad! Congrats on making a meal that tastes good!

Well, Cyril doesn’t think it’s all that good, but what does he know.

It doesn’t matter, either. They’re still pretty proud of themselves.

It’s a nice, fun moment between the five of us.

Pride Day’s a happy day.

The heatwave is still going on, so I prepare a round of mint syrup drinks for the twins.

Mom’s still all about the Cosmos, though.

She might have had a bit too many already, but again, today is about happiness. And partying.

I have to admit she makes a mean drink. The simple smell of it overpowers my senses. She did tell me she had a past as the life of every party in Windenburg AND Willow Creek, but that was still a hidden skill to me.

Cleo insists on us switching drinks long enough for her to Instagram it up, but we’re not letting her take a single sip

Pretty awesome day. It’s already almost over, but I’m already looking forward to what we have planned to end it.

While I go take a nap, Mom goes to cool off in the swimming pool. Mom is physically incapable of resisting a diving board, so she actually backflips into the pool.

Dancing Sisters

The days last long in the summer. We don’t have much planned after we come back from the march. Mom and Dad are cooking dinner for tonight, and I just go outside by the pool to revel in the sun, dancing to summer tunes. It’s going to be autumn soon, and though I don’t mind the rain at all, I’ll miss the warmth too much to not make the most of it now.

Cleo ends up joining me, that little copycat. She’s not quite confident in her dancing skills yet, but that’s alright. Who needs to take it so seriously.

Around the Neighborhood.

Dad, no, not you too!

“Don’t look back, don’t look back, don’t look back…”

Cleo has decided she doesn’t like this streaking tradition at all. Come on, Mom and Dad, you knew what time we were coming back.

Cyril and I chose the long way back home. We took this opportunity to chat, about this and that.

Mainly, I take this time just between the two of us to try to have a bit of a heart to heart, to tell him how much I enjoyed spending the day with him, and how happy I am we’ve had such a great time together.

Keyword is “try”. The kid is still a teenager, and he goes into “gosh-Hannah-you’re-so-embarrassing” mode pretty quickly.

Cheers for the awesome day out! It really was perfect. I enjoy nothing more than sunny weather, and today was the hottest and brightest day of the whole summer.

Once mom is dressed again, I go find her at the park behind our house. She produces a horn out of nowhere — because she does that — and I cheer along.

I also wonder how many Cosmos she’s had. Either that or she’s trying to distract me from the handsome neighbor walking around in the outfit he was born in.

“And there was a band, and the singer winked at Cyril, and you should have seen him blush! But the best part was the confetti run…”

“That does sound really fun! Around here everybody has just been walking around naked.”

Pride

Cleo is the first to head to the Pride march, in her adorable little rainbow top and hat. She’s meeting school friends there, because one of the three of us had to be a social butterfly, and it sure as heck wasn’t Cyril or me.

Mom and Dad are staying home. They said “we’re too old to do this now, honey”. So their plan is staying home drinking cosmos.

I have to admit, their plans don’t look too bad either.

They might even be happy to be rid of us for the day. I feel like this is going to be quite the flirtatious day for them.

All ready for Pride! I went all out. I don’t go all out for any occasion. But this a special day for the twins, and I’ll be spending it with them, so it’s a special day for me.

So all the colors of the rainbow go on my clothes.

Cyril is living the rainbow in spirit, too. He even agreed to go outside without his usual fifteen layers of sunscreen. He ain’t living without the cap and the sunglasses though.

I did manage to get a hold of his cap and put it on backward.

Cleo’s the first to get back in the late afternoon. We all had a great time at the March, with the music and the dancing, and the friendly crowd. Cleo’s elated.

She isn’t elated for long, though. Or is she?

People have an interesting way of celebrating Pride Day around this neighborhood.

Pride Day Morning

Sun dawns on Newcrest, and Pride Day. We’re all up and active by 6AM, ready to celebrate all day.

By “all”, I mean, of course, all but Loladorada. She’s sleeping upstairs in my parents’ bedroom, probably grateful that dad’s snoring has stopped when he woke up.

For the occasion, mom makes pancakes soaked in syrup for us to attack. I’m still busy getting ready for the day, and by the time I finally reach the table, my siblings have already destroyed them, but you know. I still love them.

Mom also makes fresh smoothies.

Cleo is the first to get to the dining room, so she sets the table.

Look at them, not waiting for me.

I’m pretty sure it’s ultimately the smell of freshly baked food that wakes Loladorada up.

Rainy Afternoon

We’re halfway through summer already. The weather forecast says we can still expect the last remnants of a heatwave — but today the sky is gray, overcast, and going outside doesn’t really feel all that inviting. We’re looking forward for end-of-summer activities. We’re celebrating Pride Day soon, and we’ve decorated the house accordingly. It’s a whole plan!

Mom has exhumed some very old decorations from boxes upstairs. She says it’s almost as if she was seeing them for the first time; but now that she knows she’s there, she’s got a head full of ideas to give our home the seasonal makeovers she deserves.

Great-Grandma (who I usually call Gram for short), drops by in the early afternoon. She and Mom spend some time talking.

The twins make the most of the lazy day by watching an adventure movie together.

It’s Cleo’s turn to do the laundry chores. They’re a bit overdue, so she braces the humid heat to go and put it out to dry. Nounou is quite happy to drink from the puddles, for some reason only a cat could understand I guess.

Just as she’s headed outside for her daily run, a storm breaks out!

She’s a trooper though, and she still goes running.

Dad’s less of a trooper. He comes home from work to the thunderstorm and rushes inside.

RIP the laundry trying to dry on the clothesline.

I’m ready for Pride Day tomorrow.

Cyril’s First Date

Cyril’s made friend with one of his classmates. More than friends, really. With my advice, he gathered up the courage to ask her out — and also thanks to my advice, if I do say so myself, she said yes.

He doesn’t want to tell Mom or Dad about it, though. Only me and his twin.

But his twin doesn’t have a driver’s permit, so I’m the one to drive him to the Brindleton Bay lounge. Incidentally, I’m also the one to help with the entry price, as his allowance may be generous but it’s not quite enough.

Unfortunately, something goes wrong rather early on.

They’ve barely touched their (non-alcoholic) drinks when Cyril says something wrong.

The embarrassment is too much to take.

Thankfully, I’m not very far.

It’s okay, little bro, I’ll take you back home.

But not before thanking the bartender for making sure the drinks had no alcohol in them, and generally looking over the kids when I couldn’t show myself.

He’s a rather nice character. I don’t want to stay too long, but Cyril’s not-girlfriend has already gone anyway. A few more minutes don’t hurt, and he’s listening to the pianist play inside anyway.

Family

Life as a big family is always full of little acts of love and familiarity. It starts at breakfast — though I mostly do my own thing in the poolhouse, I always walk to the family dining room for meals. We banter, and complain about Loladorada and Nounou jumping around on the counters and tables, though really we think they’re adorable.

At breakfast, Mom usually does the cooking. She’s getting better at it, and she also needs less sleep than the rest of us. Sometimes she also packs the twins’ lunch for school. At noon, no one is at home but Dad and me, so it’s either a quick meal for the both of us, or leftovers, whenever we’re hungry. Then in the evening, it’s either up to Dad or me to maked dinner.

Today was Caprese salad for dinner. Not meaty enough to warrant Lola’s interest.

Mom’s a cheerful one.

And she’s always ready to help the twins with homework, whatever time of the day it is.

Laundry with the cats.

Over twenty years after their wedding, mom and dad are still very much in love.

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