Summer Fun

It has finally stopped raining in northern New Jersey, and not a minute too soon. I felt as if we had been living in Seattle, Washington instead of the Garden State. But after a pleasant Friday evening spent on the deck and having our first grilled pizza of the season, we decided we would leave early Saturday morning for our first day at the beach--or go down the shore as we say in New Jersey.

Grilled pizza with mozzarella, campari tomatoes and arugula

And what a glorious day it was.  Not a rain cloud to be seen.  Nothing but pure blue sky dotted with an occasional para-sailor or white streaks of condensation from unseen jets or those ubiquitous prop planes pulling their advertisements behind them. The early morning chilly breeze soon gave way to a pleasant heat and a lovely day at the beach.  

I pray every day that I live fully and joyfully, and this weekend I accomplished just that.

Packing for our first picnic of the season which is always better on the beach

My summer reading nook

We were lucky enough to spend Saturday evening in J & L's garden

As our son lives in California, I treated John to his favorite hot dog dive for Father's Day

Long Weekend

Memorial Day Weekend  has long been the unofficial beginning of summer, and our weekend was the perfect juxtaposition of activity and relaxation.  The true sign of summer for me is the first time I brew a pitcher of iced tea.  Perfect.

Friday night ushered in the weekend like many before it. T and J were coming for dinner. But this time it took some convincing as it was T's birthday, and she was determined not to acknowledge it.  I had to promise not to. Right before they arrived the sky cleared so we sat outside to enjoy some bruschetta.  I cut some slices from a baguette on the diagonal, brushed them will olive oil and placed them on the grill. Hot off the grill I rubbed them with a clove of garlic and piled them high with some ripe grape tomatoes, shreds of basil and salt then anointed them with a bit of extra virgin olive oil. Perfect.

So it was pizza and politics as usual.

The only nod toward the occasion was dessert -- affogato.  A scoop of ice cream, in our case caramel macchiato flavor, doused with a bit of liqueur, here Patron XO Cafe, and drowned in a shot of espresso. T approved.  

Saturday was lovely and we spent it relaxing, reading and enjoying the symphony of birds that visit our birdbath. Between the visits to the bird bath each day by our pair of mourning doves, Fred and Ethel, the rabbits chomping on the lawn, and the deer, well eating our plants, sometimes it's hard to remember that we live only ten miles outside of New York City.

When I checked my small garden, I was thrilled to see that the arugula I had planted just a few days before had germinated.

And as usual, the mint is on its way to taking over.  I guess there are Mojitos in our immediate future.

Last weekend was spent mostly doing work in the yard. We weeded and mulched and spruced up as we planned to enjoy it all this weekend. Saturday morning was our first al fresco breakfast overlooking John's newly mulched garden path to nowhere. 

Sunday's weather was beautiful, and we continued to putter around at a very leisurely pace.  J and L called on their way home from the wine shop. Can they come over and bring some wine? Sure--you've got to love them.  So it was bruschetta again, this time with slices of ciabatta grilled, topped with some fresh ricotta, chopped tomatoes and basil. I made a salad and grilled some hot sausages as we drank a lovely zinfandel.

The very best thing about Sunday was knowing  that we had one more day of the weekend ahead of us.
Ahh.