Every summer is my favorite summer but looking back, Summer 2015 really was one of the best and I think it’s because I embraced the busyness.  I was thinking less about how many alcoholic beverages I was consuming or if it was okay to eat another meal out and more about checking another restaurant off my list or prioritizing a trip to the museum on a Sunday.

This summer, I am trying to find a bit of balance between fun indulgences and responsibilities that might feel OBLIGATORY but are really just me being stubborn.  Nobody will die if I buy Larabars instead of making Dorsey Bars, in the same way that it will all be okay if I don’t attend every single week of the Farmers’ Market.  Less black and white thinking, more focus on enjoyment, being okay with not doing something and trusting that things will work out anyway.  These are the things I’m working on this summer.  Here are some things that are helping with that enjoyment part.

No Pressure Gardening

Look, this garden is great and being able to walk into the backyard to grab some fresh basil is truly life-changing, but I’m still hitting the grocery store every week so I’m not entirely reliant upon homegrown stuff and that takes ALL the pressure off.  Anything that comes up and ends up being edible is just a bonus.  It also helps when your backyard gets a lot of sun and growing things is relatively easy.

Waterloo Sparkling Water

LaCroix who?  We bought these at Whole Foods for our Memorial Day BBQ and had a ton leftover but I’m not complaining because coming home from work and cracking a refreshing beverage is pretty great.  I don’t even claim to like watermelon-flavored things but this one is really good.

Andi Dog

Not to act like I’m the first person to ever own a dog but this is the first dog I’ve owned as a grownup person and even though he’s smelly and barks at every dog and refuses to eat until we feed him from our hand and insists on sleeping between Joey and I and is cranky in the morning, I JUST LOVE HIM SO MUCH.  He sits on my lap every morning when I eat breakfast and he has this little orange and blue ball that he tries to hide/protect by putting one paw over it and he howls to imitate sirens when an ambulance drives by and it’s all just the cutest.  Thank you, Andi Dog, for making my life 100x happier!

Grilled Salmon

Can you even believe we had never grilled salmon until a month ago?!  Turns out it’s super easy, super fast and a super way to not turn the oven on.  Also gets the skin so perfectly crispy!  And when your main is a no-brainer, you have more time to tackle all the side dish recipes you’ve let pile up for the past five years.

Prepping for Binge Mode: Harry Potter

If you haven’t been frantically re-reading the HP series in extreme anticipation of Binge Mode’s deep dive, then you and I (and Joey) are leading insanely different lives.  I’m mid-Order of the Phoenix and HOLY SHIT, I had forgotten about so many book details since I originally read it back in 2003!  It basically feels like I’m reading it for the first time and it’s been a PURE DELIGHT.

Dorsey Sister Supper Club

We were like two glasses of Steigl Radler and several slices of pizza in at Cart-Driver, when my sister announced we should have weekly dinner dates this summer and I could just take her anywhere I wanted in Denver.  IN!  We had our inaugural Supper Club at Comida with watermelon-jalapeño margaritas, griddled tacos, fried shrimp and flan and I think I like this new ritual very very much ♥

Summer Week Nights

Without any effort, Joey and I have fallen into a post-work groove.  It goes something like come home, spend half an hour in the back yard (reading, watering our garden, trying to keep our dog from egging on the neighbors’ dogs on the other side of the fence), cook dinner, eat in the back yard, clean up, walk our pup, hop into bed and read.  It makes my heart so happy!

In other news, we just got back from a weekend trip to the Quad Cities to see our friends Nick and Tracy get married and while I’d like to share a bunch of pictures I took, all I have is two breakfast sandwiches, a rehearsal dinner selfie and the ceremony kiss, so I guess I’ll just say Milltown Coffee makes a mean lavendar honey latte, “All I Want for Christmas is You” is a surprising crowd favorite on the jukebox (even in June), ice cream makes for the best nightcap, BREW in the Village is a hidden gem and a good wedding is a true honor to witness ♥

Happy Monday!