First Day of Fall Tomorrow! and Yard Sale Update

As far as I'm concerned summer is officially over.

I ate my last "real" peach last week.

It tasted as good as it looked.

I know it's my last for the season 

because they are no longer available 

at my grocery store.

Yes, I can still get California peaches

but I chose South Carolina peaches.

And they are gone.

It's been a little over a week since the neighborhood yard sale.

Once again, it was a lot of work,

but a tremendous success.

I am a merchandiser at heart...

...and am always organized.

Hopefully, it makes shopping a little more fun.

I KNOW it makes me enjoy looking at all this stuff

a bit more!

I wasn't able to do the "Bistro on the Porch" this year

since I didn't have my sister Nancy here to help.

But, I did have homemade zucchini bread, with samples,

which sold well.

Finally, late Saturday afternoon,

this is what was left from the sale.

It has all been picked up by a local charity.

Done!

As a treat to myself for all my hard work,

I treated myself to TWO ice cream sandwiches

from the ice cream truck,

 which made the rounds

all during the sale.

Summer IS really over.

Happy Fall everyone!

Peach Sangria...Let the Weekend Begin!

Is it just me, or have the peaches been exceptionally good this summer?

All summer long I've enjoyed fresh peaches and cottage cheese for breakfast. That may not be every one's idea of the perfect breakfast, but for me, it doesn't get any better. Isn't it nice when something you like to eat is also healthy?

Enjoy the peaches while they last. They won't be around too much longer.

Last weekend at a neighborhood dinner, Virginia, from down the street, brought Peach Sangria and it was outstanding.

Here's her recipe:

Virginia's Peach Sangria

One bottle white zinfandel

1/2 can frozen lemonade

1/3 cup sugar

3 fresh peaches, peeled and sliced

3/4 cup peach brandy

Mix all together. Pour over ice and serve.

This evening I made a pitcher. I had peach schnapps instead of peach brandy on hand, so I used that instead. It was incredibly good.

Thank you Virginia!

We invited a new friend over to help us drink it, along with a few appetizers and it was an excellent start to the weekend.

Now, what to do with all those marinated peaches at the bottom of the pitcher when the sangria is gone (IF there are any left...)??? I had made some small pound cake muffins earlier and they were great with the peaches and a little whipped cream.

Have yourself a peachy weekend!

Welcome to Summer!

Welcome to Summer!



It's the first day of summer. Before the time runs away from me and I'm anticipating fall, I want to take a minute and really APPRECIATE summer. In that spirit, here are ...

My Twenty Favorite Things about Summer

(in no particular order)

1. Peaches (There are hundreds of wonderful things you can do with a real, perfectly ripe peach, but is there anything better than eating one over the kitchen sink?)

2. Summer flowers

3. Vacations

4. Tomatoes (real, vine ripened, locally grown ones)

5. Not having to wear a winter coat, especially when I'm taking my little dog Daisy out for her calls of nature

6. Grilling out

7. Fourth of July

8. My neighborhood's annual yard sale

9. Watermelon

10. Morning walks when it's still cool and everything is fresh

11. Fireflies

12. Long(er) days

13. Root beer floats

14. Getting to wear flip flops and sandals

15. Cold lemonade and iced tea

16. BLTs

17. The smell of honeysuckle

18. The Farmer's Market

19. Sitting on my front porch swing

20. Air conditioning

Take a few minutes today and think about some of your favorites.

Happy Summer to us all!