Today I had the joy of quickly rushing out to retrieve my indoor/outdoor couch cushions from my outdoor living room – it was raining when I woke up! The weather was warm enough still – too warm for an indoor fireplace and my hot tea I drank made me slightly uncomfortable. Luckily this afternoon the sun came out and I was able to take my dogs on a longer-than-normal walk this evening, enjoying the long shadows and a slight smell of cedar in the air. All this is hinting that summer will soon be over.
QUICK THINGS TO DO TODAY:
- Look back over your Summer 2014 – Did you get to do everything you anticipated? Did you go berry picking, make fresh lemonade, sit in the sun reading a book, go to a lake or beach, have a picnic in the park, take your dogs to an off-leash park, attend an outdoor concert, attend an outdoor film, go to the farmer’s market?
- Any summery events you can plan to enjoy this next week or so, weather permitting?
- Most of our cooking and eating styles will soon change as autumn begins. We’ll cook soups, use our slow cookers, bake more now that we can stand to turn on our ovens. Yet, there’s still time to eat heirloom tomatoes, slice up watermelon, prepare some fabulous summer corn, make a fresh berry pie, cut open a summer melon, and drink an ice cold martini on the porch in the evening.
TODAY’S PROJECT: Total Relaxation
All I’m doing for chores today is a load of laundry (so I have fresh sheets to sleep on tonight), a wipe down of my kitchen counters so they don’t get grody, and a quick cleanout of a refrigerator shelf with expiring food on it. I intend to spend tonight reading, chatting with friends on the Internet, and watching a few episodes of Orange is the New Black on Netflix. Tomorrow I might possibly play around in the kitchen, baking a cake and trying a couple recipes I’ve wanted to experiment with. Tuesday (a busy workday) will come soon enough. Tonight, it’s time to relax.
LOVELY BEVERAGES: Three Olives’ Jacked Apple
I’m not rushing yet to swap out summer flavors for those of fall. There’s no pumpkin spice anything in my house right now. But I probably can’t resist trying the new vodka from Three Olives – it sounds tasty and refreshing! Liquor store, here I come!
LOVELY BLOGS: Manger
Mimi Thorisson’s blog, where she cooks and let you peek into her busy life in Paris. She and her husband have somewhere around seven kids, if I’m counting right, and four terriers. She’s written a cookbook, “A Kitchen in France,” and has neatly organized her recipes for you on her blog. I think you’ll enjoy her food photography as well!
LOVELY FASHION: My New Purple Dress for Fall
I really do not enjoy shopping at White House Black Market, which seems to specialize in overly pushy, obnoxiously overhelpful sales ladies. I get treated much better at Macy’s, where I find I buy many more dresses since I’m left alone to browse and not pressured into joining an email list. The other day, however, when walking by the store windows in the mall, I spotted this purple dress and could tell it had a good chance of looking good on me. I tried it on hurriedly, trying to get to my hair appointment on time. It fit and looked great! After a two minute argument with the pushy salesclerk (wanting me to try something else on, wanting me to apply for a store credit card, asking four times why she couldn’t have my email or phone number) I purchased the dress and ran it out to my car. I was a couple minutes late for my hair appointment, which felt rude, but now I have a lovely dress to wear to early fall dinner parties and restaurant outings!
Purple Dress at White House Black Market
LOVELY LINKS FOR TODAY:
Baked Apple Pie Fries (Averie Cooks)
At Work, Every Friday Should be a Summer Friday (Slate)
Farmstand Blackberry Cornbread Buckle (The Wimpy Vegetarian)
Fermented Turmeric Tonic (Sarah Wilson)
Gluten Free is the New Normal – Get Over It (CHOW)
Homemade DIY Ranch Seasoning Mix (Brown Eyed Baker)
