A Salute to Summer

In honour of Labour Day and the unofficial end if summer I thought I'd reflect a little on some of what I've been up to and why I love enjoying the summer as a Southern Ontarian.

 

I love living in Southern Ontario in the summer! Sure, sometimes I can't stand the heat (the hot weather and I reconciled once we go A/C in our apartment) or the construction, but I think that the perks outweigh the downsides of summer.

 

Port Stanley - A sunset walk

First, there's the beach. I love being by the water and having grown up less than a 10 minute drive from Lake Erie, I honestly can't get enough of it! Living in land locked London has been a difficult transition for me. I have been used to an evening drive out to the water to clear my head or to enjoy the sunset. Luckily there are several beaches within an hour's drive of here. This year Andrew and I made it to the beach twice. We should have went more.... I resolve to do better next year.

I love spending time in my lawn chair at one of our many parks.

There is just something about disconnecting from the TV and the noise at home and finding some solace in nature. There is much to be said about being outdoors and listening to the silence it really helps me to sort through thoughts and get a better perspective on life.

 

You know what Summer means? Baseball! Andrew and I got official Jays jerseys this year and went to a game on possibly the hottest day of the year. It was so much fun and cheering for Bautista is definitely more fun live. We even were on TV (Sportsnet) when the Jays came back from behind.

The hubs and I love to eat and prepare food outside. Since we don't currently have a balcony or any outdoor space in our apartment, we can't barbeque or eat out on the patio. This has led us to have to improvise... meaning spending too much time (and cash) eating at restaurants so we can sit on the patio. We've also tried grilling indoors with our cast iron grill pan that is impossible to clean (I might hate cleaning it because it doesn't fit in the dishwasher).

Our many attempts to savour the taste of BBQ has unfortunately led to many evenings with the windows wide open and fans running trying to get rid of the smoke. We are very excited about our new condo (1 month til we move!) which has not just 1 but TWO balconies! We look forward to many nights of BBQ and dinner on the patio. I just hope the weather stays nice into October like it has in the past few years. A post on our new condo to come.

 

Finally and definitely not least, I love living in Southern Ontario because of all the fresh produce you can get. There is nothing like having fresh corn on the cob or finishing your meal with amazing watermelon or seeing pints and pints of blueberries for sale at the farmers market. I love that summer is an excuse to eat healthy local ingredients.

Loot from a trip to the Farmers Market

 

 

Lately I have been in love with peaches. I have made a blueberry peach cobbler, Chicken with Goat Cheese and BBQed peaches (I took over my parent's kitchen and bbq for that one), Grilled Chicken Kabobs with Peaches and Chipotle BBQ Sauce (see the above pic) as well as Peach, Cheese and Bacon Paninis (which have to be one of the best flavor combinations I have ever had)

and Peach and Capicolla Pizza .

Who knew that peaches were so versatile and so yummy!

 

All in all, I have to say that I love summer, and this one in particular has been a pretty great one. As I celebrate the unofficial end to summer, I think of all of the memories created and am thankful for great friends and family who made it so wonderful.

 

Here's a salute to all that summer is and all that I will miss in those cold winter months.

 

Happy Labour Day all!

C