impatient

Weird confession: I have been thinking 

about going camping all week...

I can't wait for summer weather,

time outside in the beauty of creation,

and little escapes with the hubs!

What are you daydreaming 

about these days?  

 

PS - camping adventures from 

last year here and here

*image

camping!

Since we had so much fun

together on our last camping trip,

we decided to do it again!

 

We snatched up the last 

available site next to the lake, 

set up our giant tent (thanks, 

parentals!), and settled in 

for a couple of nights.

It was nice to relax by the fire

 and enjoy just being together.

 

We listened to baseball on 

the radio, ate plenty of yummy

food, and chatted about life.

 

Oh, and nearly got to know a

skunk - which was quite exciting.

We even got crazy and went hiking.

 

It was a bit muggy for a hike,

and I was wearing flip flops (totally

not appropriate for climbing rocks), 

but it was a fun adventure with 

gorgeous views at the top. 

Totally worth it!

 The hubs gets all the credit 

for getting me to go camping and

making it all so much fun. 

 

Thanks, sweetie.  You're such

 a good sport, and I'm already 

looking forward to our next trip!

 

 

joys of summer living

{ Pool time }

The giant city pool behind 

our casa is open, so we're 

constantly hopping in & out.

 

 (I've pretty much given up on

putting our suits away...they just

 hang out on the porch ready

for the next little dip!)

{ Grilling }

Nearly every meal revolves

around the grill these days.

 The other night we even

grilled fish - amazing!

 

 

{Day Trips}

Since the hubs is on summer

vacation, we've been taking 

advantage of his flexible

 schedule to sneak extra 

time together.

 

Last week he came with 

me on two work trips, 

which gave us plenty of 

time for adventures!

 

{ Naps }

I'm usually a terrible napper,

but have recently enjoyed some 

quiet afternoon snoozes with 

my sweetie.  Bliss!

{ Ice cream }

We can walk to a local ice

cream shop, so have been using

that as an excuse to take long

meandering walks around

the neighborhood.

Added bonus: we met a sweet 

couple (and their pup) who 

live a couple streets away!

*image

lake dreaming

On hot, sticky days like today,

all I can think about is the lake...

 And since I'm stuck in the office, 

these lovely shots will have to do!  :)

*images here, here, here & here

adventures

On Thursday night, we celebrated 

the end of another school year 

with a little camping adventure. 

 

We booked a beautiful site at 

a nearby state park, and had a 

great time camping together

 for the first time!

 

With the exception of a thieving

raccoon, it was peaceful,

quiet, and relaxing.

As someone who has never been super 

big on tent camping, I have a silly 

confession...the food won me over.

The best was waking up and making

breakfast outside - greasy bacon and 

pancakes on a camp stove, and 

steaming french press coffee!  

It was nice to escape our normal

routine and just be outside together.

 

We spent most of our brief stay

beside the fire - sometimes 

chatting but mostly just sitting

 in comfortable silence. 

It was a perfect way to officially

welcome summer vacation.  :)

*image editing

freckles

This might sound weird, but freckles are

one of my favorite parts of summer.

I think of them as sun kisses, and love

coming inside after an afternoon in the 

sunshine to examine my nose & cheeks 

for evidence of time well spent outside.  

It's like proof on my face that

summer is here, the sun is warm, 

and life is good.  :)

*image

summer pie

Doesn't this raspberry ice cream pie

look perfectly summery & delicious??

*via

take me out to the ballgame

 

Yesterday afternoon we enjoyed a fun, 

sunshiney graduation party with the

 hubs' family...at a baseball game!

 

I'd never been to see our local team

(shame on me), so it was neat to

check out one of the attractions

right in our backyard.

 

This little lady totally stole the show.  

She had us completely amused for the 

afternoon with her antics, funny 

faces, and love for ice cream.

And as proof that it was a 

good summer afternoon, I came

home with a nice toasty sunburn!

*image

more summer, please

 Mornings and evenings are rapidly

adopting that undeniably crisp feeling of

fall, but I'm still not quite ready to let

go of summer.  I still want to grill a few

more fabulous meals, have a couple more

lazy naps in the sunshine, and I still want

to make this easy ice cream cake!

How about you?  Are you clinging to 

summertime like me, or are you ready

to embrace fall in all it's glory?  :)

*recipe here

sister love

 My lovely sister just posted this picture from our 

bbq this past weekend, and it makes me smile 

every time I look at it.  What a blessing to 

have family that I both love & enjoy!

Hope you find things to smile about today!

floating away

I'm loving this summery, vintage photo.

Doesn't it make you want to go 

jump in a lake somewhere?

*via

happy weekend

 I'm eagerly anticipating a glorious summer weekend.

(and by eagerly, I mean counting down the hours 

until I leave the office & rush home to play!)

 

It'll be full of family & friends, sunshine, and yummy 

bbq food...but we're choosing to leave some 

space for rest too.  Sounds pretty perfect to me.

Hope your holiday weekend is lovely!

*image

thank goodness.

If I could, I would sit on our back

porch all day long...  

*image

welcome, summer.

This is exactly how I feel on these
gorgeous summer days.  I want to dash
home, pack up the car & escape with
the handsome man off to the lake
with our canoe.  Bliss!

*image

summertime

 We spent a perfectly lazy afternoon

at the coast this past weekend, and spent 

the better part of an hour sitting in front of the

most gorgeous sailboat, just chatting.  (We're talking 

the stuff that dreams are made of, kiddies.)  

 

Maybe it's because there's a mysterious 

romance to the idea of life on a boat - 

or perhaps it's my undying love of the ocean - 

but either way, there's nothing that says

summer quite like the idea of quiet,

sunny days out on a boat... 

*image

dear summertime

 Dear Summertime,

It would be awesome if you

come back soon, because I miss

swimming after work with the

handsome man.  And ice cream.

And flip flops.  And lazy naps by 

the water.  Can't wait to see 

you soon.  xoxo,

A.

seasons change...

 

 

I love this picture.  

It somehow captures the

change from summer to fall - 

the really early part where nearly

everything is still green, but 

you can't help but notice all the 

subtle little signs of impending autumn.

Plus - let's be real -  I'm just

a sucker for any photo with 

lots of pretty bokah action.

back to school...

 So being a grown up and all, I figured 

that my going back to school days were up...

no more summer vacation and therefore

no more going back to school blues.

Apparently choosing to love

a teacher completely voids this.

Today is his first day back,

and we're both kind of pathetically

mourning the end of our best summer ever.

Happy first day of school, babe...

I'm sure fall will be pretty darn

fabulous too!

vacation

As of this afternoon,
we're officially on vacation!

We've got lots of good plans...

Resting,
wedding planning,
traveling,
swimming & playing,
family time...

Hope your week is great!

bikes

This picture makes me smile.

I remember riding bikes
with my cousins as kids and
how much fun we always had.

Three cheers for summer!


*via here