The First Sunday of Summer

It was a beauty!  Not too hot, just right.

A little hazy at the ocean...

But then it cleared up.  The first ice cream pop of summer, before it hits the sand!

My gkids love to wait for 5 pm when the lifeguards leave, so they can jump off the lifeguard chair.

A beautiful way to spend the first Sunday of summer!

I am joining The Tablescaper for Seasonal Sunday.

Thanks for visiting, hope you wore your sunscreen!  :)

Happy Summer!

It's official, Summer has arrived.

I know you Southern gals start early , but here in NY, we are just getting started!

The lilies are blooming...

The roses smell heavenly...

The dappled willow is ready for its summer haircut!

The St. John's Wort is blooming profusely!

The hydrangeas are just starting, and the rhodies are done and waiting to be pruned.

Pretty in pink!

Speaking of pink, these watermelon placemats were the inspiration for tonight's table.

They are vinyl backed, but feel like cloth.

I know you are turning your monitor sideways to read the price!  Yes, one dollar, for 4!  CTS.  I grabbed 12 for The Tablescaper too!  I knew they would be gone in a flash.

I used a striped curtain panel that was marked down , also from CTS, so it was 1.60.

Dishes and green bee glasses from CTS.

Fresh limes hold the name, see?  A place for YOU!

It's hot today, so I stuck a Watermelon umbrella in the watermelon. CTS

Little watermelon bowls and spreaders, CTS.

Napkins 50 cents at Savers.  Some pretty pink bird stirrers from my friend Pam. 

Flatware from Cost Plus.

A nice summery watermelon salad, feta and thinly sliced red onion with a splash of Balsamic.

Served in the watermelon cap.  This was a small watermelon.

I took the watermelon inside to use for the salad, so I replaced it with a watermelon candle I have had for years from my friend Diane.  I mean years!  I was just waiting for the right time!

So happy summer!  You can sit up here  on the side porch and rock...

Or grab your towel and walk to the beach.

And don't forget...

Always wear sunscreen!

Always Wear Sunscreen by Mary Schmich...NOT me!

Wear sunscreen.
If I could offer you only one tip for the future,sunscreen would be it.
The long-term benefits of sunscreen have been proved by scientists, whereas the rest of my advice has no basis more reliable than my own meandering experience.
I will dispense this advice now.

Enjoy the power and beauty of your youth. Oh, never mind.
You will not understand the power and beauty of your youth until they've faded. But trust me, in 20 years, you'll look back at photos of yourself and recall in a way you can't grasp now how you really looked.
You are not as fat as you imagine.

Don't worry about the future. Or worry, but know that worrying is as effective as trying to solve an algebra equation by chewing bubble gum.
The real troubles in your life are apt to be things that never crossed your worried mind, the kind that blindside you at 4pm on some idle Tuesday.
Do one thing every day that scares you.

Sing.

Don't be reckless with other people's hearts.
Don't put up with people who are reckless with yours.

Floss.

Don't waste your time on jealously.
Sometimes you're ahead, sometimes you're behind.
The race is long and, in the end, it's only with yourself.

Remember compliments you receive.  Forget the insults.
If you succeed in doing this, tell me how.

Keep your old love letters.
Throw away your old bank statements.

Stretch.

Don't feel guilty if you don't know what you want to do with your life.
The most interesting people I know didn't know at 22 what they wanted to do with their lives.  Some of the most interesting 40-year-olds still don't.

Get plenty of calcium.

Be kind to your knees.  You'll miss them when they're gone.

Maybe you'll marry, maybe you won't. Maybe you'll have children, maybe you won't.  Maybe you'll divorce at 40, maybe you'll dance the funky chicken on your 75th wedding anniversary.

Whatever you do, don't congratulate yourself too much, or berate yourself either.  Your choices are half chance.  So are everybody else's.

Enjoy your body.  Use it every way you can. Don't be afraid of it or of what other people think of it.  It's the greatest instrument you'll ever own.

Dance, even if you have nowhere to do it but your living room.

Read the directions, even if you don't follow them.

Do not read beauty magazines.  They will only make you feel ugly.

Get to know your parents.  You never know when they'll be gone for good.  Be nice to your siblings. They're your best link to your past and the people most likely to stick with you in the future.

Understand that friends come and go, but with a precious few you should hold on. Work hard to bridge the gaps in geography and lifestyle, because the older you get, the more you need the people who knew you when you were young.

Live in New York City once, but leave before it makes you hard.  Live in Northern California once, but leave before it makes you soft.  Travel.

Accept certain inalienable truths.  Prices will rise.  Politicians will philander.  You, too, will get old. And when you do, you'll fantasize that when you were young, prices were reasonable, politicians were noble, and children respected their elders.

Respect your elders.

Don't expect anyone else to support you. Maybe you have a trust fund. Maybe you'll have a wealthy spouse.  but you never know when either one might run out.

Don't mess too much with your hair or by the time you're 40 it will look 85.

Be careful whose advice you buy, but be patient with those who supply it.  Advice is a form of nostalgia. Dispensing it is a way of fishing the past from the disposal, wiping it off, painting over the ugly parts and recycling it for more than it's worth.

But trust me on the sunscreen.

I'm sure almost all of you have seen this by now...it was a speech given by Kurt Vonnegut at an MIT graduation.

Written by Mary Schmich

Happy Summer!

Linking with

Susan for Outdoor Wednesday

Susan for Tablescape Thursday

Gollum for Foodie Friday

Diann for Thrifty Friday

Beverly for Pink Saturday
Sheri at No Minimalist Here for the Block Party
and
Yvonne at Stone Gable for On the Menu Monday

When Life Gives You Lemons...

Have lunch!

Some sunny yellow St. John's Wort in a square vase with lemon slices  serve as the centerpiece.

The square vase originally held a candle. After it was used up, I cleaned it to use as a vase.  I put a small glass in to hold the flowers.

Faux mini lemon scatters.

Yellow and white flatware from WSonoma Outlet or PB, I forget.  Under 4 dollars on sale for the 12 piece set.

Yellow placemat. Topper is a pillow sham.

I set a place for Rett , from The Gazebo House , who has been missing in action due to some health issues.  I wanted to let her know I was thinking of her, and hope she feels better soon.

Lemon glasses from $ Tree, and 35 year old dishes .  We had them for our summer cottage, and they have served us well!  Corelle, nice and thin so you can stack them high in those cottage cabinets!

Napkins from Pottery Barn, on sale of course.

This is definitely a Thrifty Table.  The yellow pitcher was my mom's.  Her whole kitchen was yellow. 

Hope you'll sit down and have a cool glass of lemonade!

Some lemon tarts would be good!  Shortbread dough filled with lemon curd.

Here I pressed it into a ceramic Chinese spoon and baked it, then filled it with lemon curd.

Thanks so much for visiting.  I am joining BNOTP for Tablescape Thursday, Gollum for Foodie Friday and Diann for Thrifty Things Friday.  Thanks, Ladies!

Mini Calzone by the Dough Boy

The Doughboy is the celebrity chef this month at Happier than a Pig in Mud. Lazy on Loblolly Jo is joining in with a give away of a Pillsbury cookbook,

and your own Doughboy!

This is a very simple appetizer using Pillsbury biscuits.  With the heel of your hand press into a flat round.

Put a spoon of a mixture of ricotta, mozzarella, grated cheese, and some chopped ham on one side, don't overfill.

Pull the other side over and press to seal.

Brush with egg wash and sprinkle with sesame seed.

Bake till puffed and golden brown.

You can serve a little marinara on the side for dipping.

  Hope you will visit our hostess to see the other entries!

Lynn asked about the plate. It was given to me about 35 years ago by a wonderful woman I taught with.

I have used it so many times over the years, and always think of the great lady who gave it to me!

Cherries and a Nosegay

Yesterday was my dear granddaughter  Lily's dance recital.  She is sweet 10 year old , a joy to her Nana and Grandpa.  I always make her a little nosegay as my mom made us for our recitals.

Everything is late this year, so just a few roses and some barely opened hydrangeas.  Last year the lilies and hydrangea were in bloom.

  Not splashy like all the store bought bouquets they all get,  her parents gave that, but made with love and I hope it will be a fond memory for her. 

My friend The Tablescaper's 2 sweet daughters were in the recital too.  It was LONG!

3 hours and 15 minutes.  Lily's 3 little brothers, 7, 5 and 3 made it through thanks to the magic of DSi's.

Grandpa was near comatose by the end.  He is tall and his knees were pressed up against the seat in front!  Dear son revived him with a lovely dinner out to celebrate his birthday.

His 4 grandkids singing Happy Birthday to him brought the color back to his cheeks.  A pint of Smithwick's helped too!

As the cherries were 1.99 on sale, I bought a slew of them.  Seemed like a good idea at the time, but pitting them all was ,well, the pits!

I used my handy pitter, which collects the pits neatly in the bottom.

 

I made a Cherry, Cheese Crumb Cake in these cute little red ramekins.  I can think of a lot of uses  and holidays for them.  I have white ones that are very similar, so with some blue I am all set for July 4th.

 

It was good!

And that's it for this Seasonal Sunday!  Have a great week!

Thank you to The Tablescaper for hosting Seasonal Sundays!

Everybody Into the Pool, A Winner, And Food

Yikes, what happened to Spring?  We didn't have much of one here in NY, it was cold in May, and today, HOT!

I didn't intend to do this table, in fact I was going to go shopping.  I have been cleaning the deck and washing and painting wicker for days, but I thought I would take a break.  I decided it was too hot for shopping, now you know I must be sick!

I washed and painted some more, then put this little table together.

The little floating frogs light up when they hit the water.  I don't know if you can see it, but it is cute!  See on the left her tummy is blue, and on the right, his is orange?  They blink on and off.

I got them in CVS at the end of summer for maybe 50 cents? 

I wanted to use my orange flatware, but I have no idea where it is!  I don't like orange so I may have packed it away with the Fall things.  So pink it was, from Bealls on line.

The napkins are from Savers. 50 each, I liked the colors.

BEE glasses from CTS.

Pink ruffled charger and green round mat, CTS.

Salad plates, Home Goods clearance , and pink bowls CTS.

Paper umbrellas ? and the beach umbrella votive, or in this case, Pool umbrellas, were from the Dansk Outlet years ago.  I also have sling beach chair votive holders, but I will save that for a Beach table.  :)

Orange plates from the Dollar Tree.  The Tablescaper picked 4 up for me, and then I got 4 more.  Good for Halloween!

I floated the frogs in a bowl surrounded by a swim ring.

I thought I was going to pop my eyeballs out blowing it up!

Don't forget your sunscreen, and your beach hat!  I stuck a name tag in the beach hat.

Hope that scape cooled you off, or at least made you smile!

This is a dish that came about to use up some things.  I had an opened bag of small shells.

I cooked them tossed them with some olive oil, s and p and feta cheese.  A few ounces of cream cheese too.

  I also had some  fresh spinach that had to be used.

I sauteed some red onion in a bit of  olive oil, then tossed in the fresh spinach, s and p, and that pinch of sugar.  Sugar conscious  use sweet and low.

Turn off the heat, then cover the pan and let the spinach wilt. 

Oil a baking dish , I use PAM, then put the spinach and shells in. 

Add some half and half, ( fat free is ok if you are going to eat it all, but it breaks down when you reheat it)

Slice some tomatoes and put on top of the mixture, then sprinkle with some more feta, some oregano and real bacon crumbled.

Bake till the tomatoes are hot, everything else is cooked, so don't over bake it or it will dry out.

Very easy!  You can add as much or as little cheese and  spinach as you like.  You really can't mess it up!

Next week, Chicken Cordon Bleu.

I am joining Susan , BNOTP for Tablescape Thursday, Gollum for Foodie Friday, and Diann for Thrifty Things Friday.  Thanks for hosting, Ladies!

I'll be back Sunday for my friend ,The Tablescaper's , Seasonal Sunday.   I hope to have the porch finished so I can show you.  I have gone through 8 cans of Krylon on the wicker.  I don't like the new "all weather" plastic wicker, but this is getting crazy!  It takes days to get it all done.

Kate, at A Spoonful of Thyme is the winner of the star shaped pancake molds.  Kate email me your addy please!

Another little give away coming up, stay tuned!  :)