Nobody loves summer like me and my husband. Every January 1st, we start in on the "We just have to get through two more months, and then we should be home free!!!" Truly wishful thinking because we can get some horrific snowstorms in March and then ice in April. But hey, we try to keep it positive!
Unfortunately, mid-July always feels like we are on the downward side of summer. I find it's best to focus on the here and now, when it actually IS summer, and just enjoy the small things:
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| The year after we moved to this house, I discovered the joy of calla lilies. That is, the joy of discovering that the deer do not eat them! Despite what the internet might tell you, they do survive Zone 6 without having to dig them up and store them inside. I spent a few years buying up any that I saw on clearance and planting them along the foundation of our house. It was exciting to see these pink ones come up this year that I had forgotten that I bought. I also have one purple calla lily plant, but the rest are white. |
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| I'm not one for floral scents, but I do love candles and I especially love coconut anything. This candle just puts me in a good mood. |
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| This probably looks rather boring to you. However, I am thrilled with it! Our road was paved last week, and what an improvement to my quality of life. Before, there were tar lines every few feet the entire width of the road, so it was similar to driving over small speed bumps the entire way. And then there were the landscaping trucks that have trailers attached that you could hear go up and down the street all day - clunk, clunk, clunk, clunk, clunk, clunk (you get the picture). It was headache inducing. Now, it's just smooth sailing AND peace and quiet. We can open our windows again! |
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Middle Child loves to go berry picking and I found an amazing blueberry farm about 45 minutes away. Five acres and 4400 blueberry plants! We picked about a gallon of blueberries with little effort. They are absolutely delicious and taste like summer. You can just eat them like this, right out of the bowl.Tell me what you love about summer! |
A paved street sure makes a big difference indeed. After I've been on hundreds of them, always soooo nice to come back to pavement. Coconut candles? Easy to put you in a good mood haha We have to stop and look indeed.
ReplyDeleteCoconut smells sooo good to me. Hope you're having a great summer, Pat!
DeleteI REALLY enjoyed the music video you shared. I had never heard of "Foster the People" but will looking out for more of their music.
ReplyDeleteIsn't it something how certain songs remind us of certain times of the year? For me, whenever I hear anything from the "The Beach Boys", I'm instantly transported back to when I was a kid and would go to the Jersey Shore for a week every single summer. My family would always go to Wildwood, N.J. What fun that was!
One of the things I enjoy about summer is the fresh produce - watermelon, strawberries, blueberries, tomatoes, cucumbers, grapes, etc. I've been making a TON of really fabulous salads this summer. Lot's of avocado's too!
Your newly paved road outside your home looks faaaabulous!
Those calla lilies are gorgeous!
Have a terrific summer weekend, my friend! X
Summer vacations and certain songs or bands do go together! And you're right about the great produce available, most of it local, which is nice. Thanks for stopping by, Ron, and enjoy the weekend.
DeleteSuch pretty calla lilies! How neat with the paved road! I'm not much for coconut but any scent or candle that would put me in a good mood would be a good thing :)
ReplyDeleteAs you know, summers in Phoenix can be quite brutal, but one thing I like about it is the snow birds are gone, schools are closed, and hubby's long commute is reduced a bit with the roads less crowded, so that's a good thing!
betty
Coconut seems to be a love it or hate it item, like avocado. You are being very positive saying it's less crowded in Phoenix in the summer!
DeleteNo its not boring, its nice to see a freshly paved road and when its just outside the door step its great.
ReplyDeleteGlad others appreciate a nice road. Hope you are well.
DeleteSince moving back to the South, I’m finding that I am sick of summer by early July... I really feel that we have at least 10 months of summer—thankfully this was a realitively cool winter which means we only have 9 months this year
ReplyDeleteWe feel that way about winter. No spring or fall, just winter with a few months of summer.
DeleteGarlic! And soon, sweet corn! But it's Spring and Fall that are the best, though summer ain't the worst .....
ReplyDeleteSummer is the worst here because of the humidity and the construction. They seem to think a road, bridge, or rail can't be repaired in Spring or Fall so everything is all tore up right now ...... and one lane roads are the rule.
It's humid here, but I'll take that over snow any day. It's a lot of orange barrels here as well. Just survived 12 months of the state route going through town being 'fixed' due to drainage issues. I took the long way home to avoid that mess everyday.
DeleteBut hey, our new street only took 4 days! I wad impressed and sent a nice email to the service dept for that.
Ha, I get ya. We have a state route and federal highway interchange that has been undergoing a massive re-design for years now. It even has its own Facebook page!!
Deletehttps://www.facebook.com/Prospect.Mountain.Project/
Heck, it even has its own critic Facebook page:
https://www.facebook.com/ProspectMountainConstructionNightmare/
Fortunately it's 15 miles down the road but in its early years Queenie had to drive through it to get to her parents daily to help out when they lived out in the boonies.
Sorry, got carried away ... ;-)
Sounds like some bad prospects for getting anywhere fast.
DeleteCalla Lilies are beautiful. I like candles too. I like floral scents especially honeysuckle or rain inspired scents. Having a nicely paved street instead of a bumpy one is nice. Our alley really needs a new paving.
ReplyDeleteThe rain inspired scents are new and interesting, aren't they? I know summer is brutal though, where you live. I always feel so dehydrated in Vegas.
DeleteI am definitely a summer person (even if I'm mostly skipping it this year). I love how lush and flowery everything is, I love opening windows when there is a thunderstorm and letting the breeze in, I love sitting outside in the shade and drinking a beer and having breakfast on the deck. Mostly, I love that it isn't winter.
ReplyDeleteThose are all great reasons to Iove summer! I'm sorry you are missing it this year, but maybe the sunshine is helping somewhat, rather than the cold. XO
DeleteGood news about the road. All that clunk clunking must have been maddening. And you even have proper paving stones. Ours are being gradually replaced with asphalt.
ReplyDeleteWe're having a spectacular summer in Northern Ireland. Weeks and weeks of hot sunny weather instead of the usual wet, dreary days. I gather temperatures are reaching crazy heights all round the world.
It's amazing what the peace and quiet can do for the soul! Glad your days haven't been dreary. We are having a normal summer of fluctuating temps here, so there is always relief in sight when it gets in the 90's.
DeleteI love coconut, too - not so much in candles, but I'm a big fan of the chocolate coconut almonds from Aldi...ha!
ReplyDeleteThe seasons in Florida are: 1. almost summer, 2. summer, 3. still summer, 4. Christmas. I look forward to the (somewhat) cooler temperatures in December and January.
Do you remember the hit song "Don't worry, be happy" by Bobby McFerrin? That always says "summer" to me (I think it was what they considered a "summer hit").
Yes! That was most definitely a summer song! Summer has a different meaning in Florida than the north, for sure!
DeleteI'm sorta re-calibrating summer. . . For years, it meant miles on my bike, but that's mostly done with. As a kid, it meant baseball and beaches. But we live in the part of Michigan that is about the farthest you can get from the Big Water and still be in Michigan. Bad planning on our part. . . ;)
ReplyDeleteYou've still got baseball on the television. And that circle of life thing means you'll probably sit through some Little League again.
DeleteYour calla lilies look great! I love them, but we can't have them because of the cats. I love all of the fresh berries, getting out in the garden, and not having to worry about snow. I think my favorite thing about summer, though, is how late it stays light. I love having several hours of daylight after work.
ReplyDeleteYes! I love the longer days. It's so nice to see the sun till 9 pm, though that's fading already. Aren't berries the best?
DeleteOh, gosh, Bijoux, I am right with you! I love summer with a passion that I cannot describe and I can't believe July is almost over.
ReplyDeleteTwo of my friends in the last week said "summer is flying by!" Did you notice that NO ONE ever says "winter is flying by"?!? That because it doesn't! It's cold and horrible and I hate it. Luckily I have your post to cheer me up!
Love the photos, love the video, love summer! Thanks for sharing this with us!
LOL, yup, nobody has EVER said winter is flying by!!! Cuz it sucks! And thanks for sharing summer here with me!
DeleteIt's funny - I used to dread summer, as I'm not a fan of the heat, and the weather in the PNW is boring throughout that stretch. On the plus side, all the fresh berries and produce! Now that we're in SD, I'm actually enjoying the summer. There is so much to see and do out here, I'm taking advantage now before we are snowbound. And the weather is definitely more interesting! I love the thunderstorms (though the hail is another story).
ReplyDeleteIt's so awesome how much you are enjoying your new home! I have a feeling you will even enjoy winter (at least for a few years)🤓
DeleteYou know me well!!
DeleteCandles... love! I have put coconut in coffee, and used hair products with the scent, but for candle I go for lavender and patchouli and a cinnamon one from Yankee I like around the holidays. Oh we had that road project done... wow! Sewer replacement that went on quite a while. It was real nice when completed, new road/sidewalks, curbs.
ReplyDeleteWhat I love about this summer is being off work. lol
Sewer work does take forever! We were lucky that wasn't necessary here!
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