Monday Mania & Where the Weekend Went... plus Where is the Summer Going??

One month from today, we teachers will be at inservice.

I'm not complainin'...I'm just sayin'...

The summer is going too fast, 

and I'm not even halfway through my summer projects!

The Jazz Group played this weekend.

(great guitar solo, Paul)

There was a nice crowd downtown,

but the air conditioning was down.

As soon as the band was done, the place cleared out.

Saturday, we went to a lovely dinner party with good friends.

We girls took a little tour of Patty's garden,

while the guys stayed close to the grill...

...and on the grill, fresh vegetables,

BBQ Ribs, smoked by their son, Matt,

delicious ribeyes,

and potato wedges brushed with herb olive oil.

Wendy's dinner assignment was salad.

This delightful combination is fresh peaches,

caprese, fresh basil, and balsamic vinegar.

She makes her pasta salad with homemade pesto. 

Yummo!

I wanted to share some of my favorites from our Langs Summer Cooking Series.

This Watermelon, Orange & Feta Salad is so summer-like!

(recipe here)

These Fruit and Cheese Bites have an awesome flavor combination.

(recipe here)

Hubby loves this Chipped Beef Dip.

(recipe here)

So, back to the topic of summer.

I can clearly see the end

and it has not gone exactly as I had envisioned.

Instead,

I spent much of June with doctor's appointments...and re-checks;

dentist appointments...and had to have a tooth pulled;

optometrist appointments...and needed new glasses.

I've also wrestled with my summer habit of cleaning the house,

top to bottom...edge to edge.

For over 30 years, I have ripped every room, every closet, every nook & cranny apart 

to dust, vacume, wash and scrub...

My first thought was to take this year off.

After all, I'll just have to do it all over again next summer.

But the truth is,

I won't be very happy with myself

if I go back to school and it is not done.

Sooo, the project has begun!

I'll try to keep you posted.

Happy Summer!

Take care,

~Natalie