absolutely no diving

This weekend, we had a pool day.  Now I know that lots of people have neighborhood pools or pool memberships and going to the pool is rather ho-hum.  A nice diversion for a few hours when it's too hot to do anything else. 

So I feel the need to clarify a bit exactly what a pool day looks like for us.  For starters, it is a day, not a few hours.  We start in the morning and try to finish up before dinner, but it's really only worth doing if you have a long stretch of time to enjoy it. 

It all begins with the blue tarp.  The tarp goes in the middle of the back yard to protect the bottom of the pool and provide a bit of cushioning. 

Then the pool comes out and gets blown up, level by level.  There are three separate air chambers and, praise the Lord, we have an electric air pump. 

While we wait for it to fill, we make some snacks and drinks to enjoy on our fancy outdoor dishes.  I also gather up books and magazines, because I like to read in the pool.  Or make phone calls and say, "I'm at the pool right now..."

 We spread out towels for sunbathing and drying off. 



And our beach chairs do not have to wait for a week at the beach to be called into action. 

When we've had as much fun as we can handle for one day, we drain the pool, dry it off, and fold it back up. 

At this point, I'm sure you probably have a few questions, so I'll answer those real quick:

     No, no children.

     This is our fourth summer with the pool.

     The neighbors are pretty used to it by now.  They don't even stare anymore. 

My favorite part are the directions printed on the side of the pool that say helpful things like "do not use this pool in a large body of water" and "absolutely no diving". 

I guess I'll have to find somewhere else to practice my forward pike.