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