Vacation Pictures and Upcoming Recipes

As promised this morning, I'm back with pictures from the last two weeks. I've been trying to figure out a better way to share pictures on my blog, so I'm trying out a new photo collage program tonight. Let me know what you think of these photo spreads as opposed to scrolling through the post one picture at a time. I think I like it, but I'm still trying to decide.

Either way, putting together all of the pictures from my vacations really makes me miss Myrtle Beach and the lake. Summer isn't quite over yet - I still have one more beach weekend in Virginia Beach, a tubing trip, and my BFF, Kelly, is coming to visit - but August always flies by. It's nice to capture all of these wonderful summer memories in one place.

I spent most of this trip on the beach and the boardwalk with my sister Lisa, her husband Justin, and their kids. Elizabeth is the oldest and she's holding the boogie board in the center picture. Alexis is the next in line and she is in the picture with me in the top right. As for Evan, he's just now 15 months and he's going to be a little heartbreaker - such a sweet boy!

Lake George was a very different pace from the beach, but oh so relaxing! We spent the week in a cabin with Jesse's parents, enjoying the breathtaking lake views and walking around the nearby shops. Jesse and I enjoyed our second wedding anniversary while we were there and spent most of the week celebrating. We went out for a couple of nice meals, one of which was at Friend's Lake Inn where his uncle is the sommelier. On Friday, we took a day trip to Vermont, where we spent the day with one of his mom's college friends. She was such a great hostess and made the best. chocolate. cake. ever. I'm planning to make it later this month, so I'll share the recipe soon!

I have a few other recipes that I want to share before the chocolate cake recipe -- homemade potato salad, squash and goat cheese orzo, tomato-basil-mozzarella salad and eggplant ricotta linguine -- so keep an eye out for them in the coming weeks. 

Just thinking about a few of these dishes makes me sad that we only have another month or so to enjoy such fresh produce and wonderful summer salads. I know, I know ... most of the US is experiencing horrific heat, including DC, but I still can't help but love summer! How about you, what is your favorite season? Are you a seasonal cook like me? I tend to enjoy different foods more (or less) depending on the weather and time of year.

Summer Fun

I know I've been MIA the last few weeks, but like everyone else, I've been busy enjoying the fun of summer! A few weeks ago, I got to enjoy three days at the beach with my sister and her family. I flew down to meet them in Myrtle Beach and had such a good time catching up and playing with my nieces and nephew!

Myrtle Beach

When I got back in town, I played in my first Bocce game. Jesse and I joined a summer Bocce league so we'll be playing Bocce and drinking beer every Tuesday night for the next four weeks. I haven't been on a sports team since I was 12, so regardless of the fact that Bocce is more of a game than a sport, I'm looking forward to the challenge. We're currently 2-0 and our next game is tomorrow night ... here's hoping it goes as well as our first two games went!

As soon as I unpacked from Myrtle Beach, I had to turn around and pack for our week long vacation in Lake George, New York. Jesse and I (and his parents) spent all of last week in a cabin on the lake. It was a relaxing getaway and we enjoyed lots of good food! 

View of Lake George from "The Top of the World"

We just got back in town Saturday night, so I spent most of yesterday unpacking and doing laundry. I promise I'll be back tomorrow (or maybe later tonight) with pictures from the last two weeks, and I also have a few summer recipes to share ... coming soon!

In the meantime, checkout this little word collage I created on Picnik. I had fun coming up with words that make me think of summer. It happens to be my favorite time of year, so I wanted to capture all of the things I love about it!

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If you ask me, summer is all about being outside, spending time with friends and family, and enjoying fresh fruits and veggies.What are your favorite parts of summer? Would you add anything to this word collage? I actually thought of another one while I was at the lake ... stargazing. It's been a few years since I could sit and look at the stars (thank you DC light pollution!), so it was nice to sit outside the cabin and gaze up at the millions of stars above us!

I hope you're enjoying summer as much as I am. I'd love to hear what you've been up to, so feel free to leave me a comment or link back to your blog!