New to Me Recipe

We had a quiet and lovely Fourth of July. Just the two of us. Jim dozing through the movie he picked to watch after dinner as normal. Fireworks in the neighborhood starting around 8 pm and going till around 10 pm. I think today being a work day had something to do with the early quitting time. When the Fourth is part of a weekend some folks around here will be doing fireworks till around midnight.

We grilled of course for dinner. Simple food, burgers and corn on the grill. Watermelon and a cucumber salad to go with the meal. Brownies for desert. I tried a new salad from Love and Lemons. The salad is made with cucumbers of course, red onion, a vinegar and honey dressing, and a just before serving garnish of chopped fresh dill and fresh chives. The addition of the dill was very good and the salad was a hit with both of us. I love no cook recipes this time of year so I will keep this one around to make again and again.

So how was your Fourth?

Back with more again soon. 

Take care and stay cozy! 

Happy Fourth of July to all of you here in the US. I am still trying to create a new way to celebrate holidays here in Arizona. On the 4th when we lived in Jackson I would walk to Town Square in the morning to see the parade. Later we would use the grill for burgers and corn and homemade salads and watermelon. We would go outside to watch the fireworks going off at Snow King Resort. It was a lovely small town America way to spend the 4th.

Now I live in Arizona. It is too hot to be outside to watch a parade. Like 110 hot and that can be dangerous. We will still grill and have all our supplies ready. 

As for fireworks, no big shows are near us. I think there will be some that you have to pay to get close enough to see anything and again the heat here even when the sun goes down. I can count on neighbors to be setting off all kinds of fireworks legal and illegal in the streets from about 9pm to midnight whether I like them or not. It's not good or bad, I am just used to it. The worry of course is about fire. Everything here is so dry.

So to you, dear reader, I wish you a nice fun filled day. Take care of yourself. Leave a comment about your Fourth of July. Comments are treasure to a blogger. I would love to hear from you!

Back with more again soon. 

Take care and stay cozy! 

Summertime

It is definitely summertime here in the Valley of the Sun. The temperatures will be in the triple digits for the next couple months. I have found things to enjoy here despite the blast furnace temperatures that you just have to figure out how to survive. As part of an EtsyBloggers carnival for the month of July I have been asked to name 5 of the most enjoyable things about summer.
Here goes-

1. I like it when the days are longer in the summertime. Not getting dark until 8:00 or 9:oo pm lifts my spirits and I can be busy much longer. I am the type that when the sun goes down I want my pajamas and a book. My day is done.
2. Here in the desert we experience one of the most awesome things that makes the heat bearable if only for a short time. I am talking about the monsoons. You can see the clouds build all through the hot afternoon and wait hoping for the rain. Sometimes the storm kind of falls apart but other times you get to see the lightening, hear the thunder and be amazed by the heavy downpour that can be so heavy at times that I can't see my back fence only about 20 feet away.
3. One of my favorite holidays is in the summer. That is the 4th of July. This day brings to mind barbecues and fireworks. I think everyday should end with fireworks but then again that would mean the display wouldn't seem so special so I take that back.
4. Our wedding anniversay is in July on the 24th, so summer time is a time for celebrating that. This year will be our 33rd and the longest lasting marriage in our families. Dinner, romance, maybe and an overnight trip somewhere, what is not to like about that?
5. The last great thing about summer is the clothes. You can get rid of all the layers of winter and wear simple, beautiful things like sundresses. I have found some lovely ones window shopping on Etsy for this post.

Take a look and tell me what you think. Clicking on the picture will take you to the shop I found then in.


I love the flow and shape of these dresses. They can be found in the shop Chic Complement on Etsy.

It's All About the Fireworks!

With the 4th of July coming soon I thought I would share my favorite thing about this holiday. No matter what else happens on this day I always look forward to fireworks that night. We are rather lucky where we live. The local display is done at the high school just a few blocks away. There is no need for us to go anywhere. All we have to do is wait until dark and look over the back fence and I love it that way.

I have tried many times to get some great fireworks photos and many times have failed. Last year I finally found a fireworks or night time button on my camera. Can you say duh with me? They would have been so much better with a tripod but I like how some of them came out anyway.

So on to my personal fireworks show!

Our Fourth of July

We had a quiet day that ended with a good meal of steaks, beans and potato salad. I fixed apple pie and ice cream for dessert. Of course I had to see the fireworks. Fortunately I just have to look over my back fence.

How Was Your Fourth?

Jim and I had a quiet Fourth of July. He had to work but got home in the afternoon earlier than usual. We grilled some hamburgers and hot dogs for dinner and had them along with fruit and some salads. It was just the two of us to watch fireworks over the back fence. The picture with this post is my first try to photograph fireworks. I am sure there are things I should know to make them turn out better.