What do you like to do during summer? I like the many great activities, events, and holidays that take place in this marvelous season. Some of my favorite events in the summer are going to Pickwick Lake with some of my cousins, no school, playing with my neighborhood friends, and my time-honored Rosemary Beach trip with my other cousins. I also have plenty of family jollification too, considering the fact that I have 31 cousins.

               One of my favorite places to go during then summer is Pickwick Lake. Although it is a four-hour drive, it's always worth the trip. Some favorite activities at the grand dwelling are cookouts. At the commodious patio, my Italian uncle, a cook by trade, whips up some hamburgers, hot dogs, watermelon, strawberries, and melt-in-your-mouth marshmallows. Sometimes the kids only ride down to a secret spot on the lake on our four-wheelers, chuck wagons, and dirt bikes and assembles bonfires. Back at the lake house we have some leisure inside by playing video games and watching movies. Movies are big at the offshore adobe, for we watch several each night. We stay up till all hours watching DVDs on their huge TV. We also play cards or scamper around outside when our cousins’ friends come over for a lip-smacking dinner. Outside the lakeside wonderland is the best part of the reservoir. We ride on our many vehicles, and don’t only ride on the roads. We have four-wheeler races and explorations of places we haven't been before. We all get on four-wheelers, dirt bikes, chuck wagons, or go-karts, and race to the finish, sometimes using our air soft guns as secret weapons. We also use some water toys. My cousins' boat goes at a breakneck speed, and tubing is dangerous with my crazy uncle driving. They have a 4-person tube, which makes for an entertaining last-one-standing battle. The waterhole is great, but that's not the only reason I love summer.

Another summer perk is no school, which gives us much more freedom and time for hobbies and general relaxation.

          Technology is a major part of the break, for I love going on the computer. Video games, TV, and mp3 players are used during a majority of my summer. Also, sleep is changed during the summertime. I go to bed late and wake at daybreak, sometimes spending the night at a friends. During summer, there is no bedtime! Also, the summer freedom allows me to take my annual beach trip. I go with my other cousins. The beach I attend is Rosemary Beach. One of my favorite times at the beach is the time I can pull out my collection of crazy hats. I have over fifty odd hats from all over the world. At the beach, swimming is not only proceeded with in the ocean, but also in the local pools, hot tubs, and Jacuzzis. Thursday nights are great at Rosemary because each night, in one courtyard they show a family film on an inflatable jumbo screen. The beach is pure leisure, but there are still some more summer advantages.

             Another great opportunity for summer is spending more time with some friends around my neighborhood. The kids on my block are all twelve to sixteen years old, and love to play at my house! One of our favorite things to do is sports. We love to go biking, most often racing down a huge hill on my street. Or we bike on up the long and exciting 3 miles to the neighborhood park. While at the park, we play ultimate Frisbee, kick ball, tennis, and basketball on the full sized court. Another activity we love to engage in is air soft wars. We run up and down the block, the whole street wide. The guns are good, and they hurt! Sometimes we have go-kart drive-bys, raids, and spies. The players are usually from 10-20 age wise, and are pretty good. Sometimes we do ten on ten, or five on five, or the deadly, free-for-all! We also earn money, by lemonade stands or mini yard sales. My neighborhood friends are great!

          Overall, summer is fantastic. Whether it is family entertainment, Pickwick, the Beach, or just hanging out, summer is by far the best season.