This is the time of year when I say things like, “Husband, why won’t you build me an outdoor fire pit surrounded by swings?” And he says, “Dammit Woman, I’m a computer geek, not a carpenter!” And then I point out all the carpenter-type husbands in our neighborhood who would build gigantic swing sets for their wives, because nothing says “I’m an excellent wife” quite like pointing out the skills of other husbands. And then he says, “Yeah, but they can’t fix a computer, can they? It’s all part of the battle of life.”
(I’m just kidding, he doesn’t say that battle of life sentence. That’s a line from Howard’s End, and if Husband actually said it I would faint dead away. If he said it in a British accent I would forgive him for not building me a gigantic fire pit/swing set.)
What really happens when I bitch about not having a fire pit/swing set is that Husband mutters something that I can’t quite hear about how awesome it is to be married to me, and then we go about our merry way in life. Meaning, I scroll Pinterest for a few hours and send him passive aggressive links to gigantic backyard renovations that he ignores. It’s a funny little game we play.
All silliness aside, it’s been a while since we changed anything in the backyard, and that means I’m itchy for a revamp. I’ll start with plants. Most of my plants are productive (except for the fried egg flowers in the front yard) but this year I’d really like to add some colorful, tumbling flowers in goofy pots and unique planters that serve no purpose other than to make us smile when we are outside. Why not?
Am also thinking about a few of those giant sized games – like lawn Yahtzee or Jenga or backyard Scrabble tiles for the lawn. Have you tried them? In my ‘hood, we’d have too much wine and that Scrabble game would get R-rated pretty quickly. But the others might be fun and relatively kid friendly.
Another super fun outdoor activity is reading under the porch lights. (What? Don’t judge me because I athlete differently than you do.) I spotted this porch swing bed on the internet and honestly I might have done a little yelp-scream when I saw it. This is some upper-level lazy, and I am here for it.
There is nothing I love quite as much as a bright, funky backyard, and I’ve spray painted nearly everything we own in an attempt to create a funky, jungle-y vibe. This one, from Justina Blakeney has always been my inspiration. It is the backyard my backyard aspires to be one day.
You did not think I would talk about summer activities all day and not leave you with an excellent recipe? Of course not. I’m just starting to see some peaches at the farmers’ markets, and since it’s not too hot to bake yet, I’m thinking these Peach Tarts with Goat Cheese and Honey are the perfect fit.
Now that I’ve been scrolling Pinterest all morning, it’s time to get out there and make some magic. I hope your weather this weekend is just pleasantly warm enough to get you thinking about fun summer activities, but not warm enough to make you sweat.
OXO
Julie
PS – Your weekend spit-take: