This Memorial Day weekend could not have been more picture perfect kick off to a North Carolina summer. It was a scorcher, the pools were maxed out, kids were screaming, dogs were barking, you could smell the grills working off their winter slumber driving through the neighborhood and the fireflies were out in waves of summer glory.
Nothing makes summer feel more like summer than playing fetch with my sweet Sadie and watching the fireflies light up the night. Even though the temperatures didn’t dip below 90 degrees all weekend, and I think I lost 5 pounds in sweat alone walking around car dealerships, summer feels good. I just feel so happy in the summer. I may burn layers of skin on leather car seats that have sat in the Hanes Mall parking lot one hour too long {{it actually takes about 5 minutes for the inside of your car to get Hell hot}}, I may get some ridiculous tan lines and some days it might get too hot to even go outside, but man I just love summer.
Top 5 Reasons I love a NC Summer
1. As I have said before… the fireflies. It’s not just about the fireflies alone, even though they are wonderful, but everything they encompass. They tell the time of summer. They greet summer with excitement and wonder of what this new season will bring, but they also let us know when it is time for summer’s end. I like to think they hate going just as much as I hate to see them leave.
2. Water. I am a water baby. I feel alive in the water, and I just love being in the water. I was a total pool rat as a kid and if I had the time to be at the pool from open to close… I still would be. I love swimming laps, laying on a raft, playing TAPS or “the color game,” reading on the side of the pool or letting your little brothers know “you still got it” when you show off your back flip on the diving board. {{They beg and beg and beg all summer… gotta give in at some point, right?}} This is part of the reason I am so excited to be a lifeguard this summer. I know that there is the stress and responsibility of keeping every one safe, but I am so looking forward to spending time near water. I just love it. The lake, beach, pool, river… wherever there is water, I am a happy girl.
3. The Summer Attitude: I don’t know about y’all, but I am just so much happier in the summer time. I love the sunshine, the dogwoods, having a nice sun kissed look about me and the lazy care free attitude that comes with it all. Who cares? It’s summer!
4. The Food: Oh my goodness… the food. Home grilled burgers, corn on the cob, watermelon, strawberries, cold chicken salad on a hot summer day, lemonade, jug after jug of Kool Aid, sea food, and the list can go on and on and on. Also, I just love sitting on the back porch and making home made ice cream. Home made ice cream in the summer time has got to be the best thing on earth. You work your arms while making a sweet treat and watching the fireflies. Best night ever. Yes, I am fully aware that some of these foods you can eat year round, but they taste better in the summer time. Just like water tastes better out of my Mason Jar.
Yes, I have been drinking out Mason Jars all weekend, and I will continue to all summer. I just love drinking out of jars.
5. It’s country music season y’all!! Summer screams outdoor country concerts. I just loved living in Raleigh for the past three summers because there were so many country concerts just 15 minutes away, my heart could not have been happier. I saw everybody that I love so much, and some I saw all three summers while I was there. Brad Paisley, Kenny Chesney, Dierks Bentley, Miranda Lambert, Rascal Flatts, and the list goes on and on. I just love concerts. They are one of my most favorite things in the world, and having them outside in the summer time makes them that much better. I have no doubt that my sun dresses and cowboy boots will be making multiple appearances this summer. Jason Aldean anyone?
