This past summer was crazy. We weren’t getting all that much rain and it was so hot on most days. I kept having to put the sprinkler out there to water the lawn, else it would die from lack of water. Most of the neighbors had to do the same. The kids really loved it though because they loved jumping around through the sprinkler on those hot days. I just told them to not run so much on the grass because it was causing damage to the actual grass. So they just ran back and forth on the sidewalk and enjoyed the water from the sprinkler. I would be out there for so long watching them play, but it was hard to stay out there without any sort of air conditioning. It’s times like this when I wish I had some kind of enclosed porch with access to the climate control system. I don’t think I’ll ever be able to afford something extravagant like that though. In the meantime, I’ll just stay close to the door where I can always easily escape to the comfort of my A/C system. Sometimes I just watch the kids from the bay window where it feels great inside the home because I have the air conditioner cranked up. Even though I can’t afford some fancy enclosed porch with access to air conditioning, I think I can at least afford to upgrade my thermostat to a smart one. Having a smart thermostat I hear saves a lot of money on the energy bills, and I love the idea of being able to control the HVAC with my phone. I think I’ll have to call the HVAC company and ask them about their smart thermostats.