summer in the midwest

We finally, finally got a break in the weather from all the rain and thunderstorms where the sun has been shining every day and the temps have been perfect. It's been glorious to have the windows and doors open and the fans going instead of everything closed up with the air-conditioner running. Of course, this isn't going to last - we'e back up into the 90's tomorrow - but I'm living in the moment. We've been spending lots of time outside doing yard work, forever cleaning up mulberries (poor Brian had to clean them out of the gutters), taking walks down to the lake in the evenings, and visiting with our neighbor-friends down the street. That's their gorgeous bee balm in the fourth photo.

This is the time of year where the Midwest shines. It is so green and lush...the trees look like big stalks of broccoli dotting the landscape, gardens are bursting with color, and wildflowers line the highways. Nothing says summer like driving down a country road past fields of corn, windows down (sometimes with the AC blasting at the same time), radio on, puffy clouds floating above. And then there's sitting out on the porch at night...the heavy, musky humidity hanging like a blanket, glimpses of light still visible, and fireflies flashing their little lights on and off like SOS signals.

We took another day trip this past weekend - this time to Lake Geneva, Wisconsin. We're right near the border of Wisconsin, so Lake Geneva is only a 40 minute drive for us. We don't go up there often - it's been over two years. The town is touristy and crowded, especially at this time of year. The shops mainly cater to the tourists and wealthy locals, but it's a charming town to walk around (we put on almost five miles of walking!), dip your feet in the water, and have a bite to eat at a fantastic restaurant.

How's your summer going so far?

please don't rush summer

I've already seen posts all over social media about fall and even - *gasp* - preparing for Christmas!

I just don't understand the rush. It is only the beginning of August. We have over six weeks of summer left. I am not thinking about pumpkins, leaves changing colors, cool days, Halloween, or anything even remotely associated with Christmas.

Maybe it's because I live in an area that has long, dark, cold - even sometimes brutal - winters. It makes us appreciate summer even more.

Our lives are always so rush-rush as it is; why do we find it so hard to slow down and be mindful of what is going on around us now? It's so easy to get in that mindset of what is coming next instead of being present in the moment - whether it's rushing the seasons or even the activity of our everyday lives.

To me, August is the epitome of summer. Everything here in the Midwest is so lush and green and brilliant flowers abound. The roadsides are filled with Queen Anne's Lace, Purple Loosestrife, and some kind of small yellow wildflower that appears in late summer. If the humidity is low, the sky is a brilliant blue and if the humidity is high (which it often is), the sky is dotted with fluffy, cotton candy-like clouds.

I also crave a lot of light and sun, and this is the season to revel in that.

I love when I'm in the kitchen making a meal and decide I need fresh herbs, and being able to slip outside and snip herbs from my containers or little backyard herb garden. Even better when I do it with bare feet. 

And then the fresh produce...another reason I wish summer lasted a lot longer. We are surrounded by corn fields here in northern Illinois. Of course, most of it is GMO and used for animal feed (one reason to buy grass-fed beef, if you can), but two of the local farm stands here carry non-GMO corn that is picked fresh every day.

My own tomato plants are doing terrible this year and I've heard the same comments echoing from others in the area. We think it's from the erratic weather. At the start of summer, we had a deluge of rain to the point of local flooding. Lately, it's been a dry spell. Can't seem to get that nice mix of dry and wet weather. So I've been getting my tomatoes (and peppers) from the local farm stand, too. This is the only time of year I eat raw tomatoes. I can't stand the waxy, tasteless supermarket ones.

I have a friend who gardens on her farmer friend's huge plot of land. My friend is out of town right now, so she had posted on Facebook that she needed people to come every few days and pick veggies. There were about seven of us who volunteered, so my friend set up a schedule for picking.

Brian and I went yesterday morning and came home with onions, swiss chard, jalapeno peppers, tomatoes, beets, carrots, zucchini, one little cucumber, and a ton of green beans. And a couple of sunflowers for the kitchen table. (Yes, she said we could help ourselves to those, too.) Last night we feasted on corn-on-the-cob, sliced tomatoes and steamed green beans. It was a perfect summer meal. Nothing tastes better than vegetables that were just picked that day. I remember when I was little, my grandma grew yellow tomatoes in her garden. I had never tasted one before. She told me how they were a bit sweeter than red tomatoes. She picked a yellow tomato and brought it inside, sliced it up and sprinkled with a little bit of salt. We feasted on the juicy slices, still warm from the sun. To this day, I still prefer sliced yellow tomatoes over red, and I always think of my grandma when I eat them.

On the evenings where Brian's home from work, we walk down to the lake and watch the sunset. Such a beautiful way to end the day.

Oh, the summer night, 

Has a smile of light,

And she sits on a sapphire throne.
(Bryan Procter)

Happy Wednesday, happy summer.

xoxo