A Summer List

I'm a list-maker by nature.  I think it started as a coping mechanism to deal with my memory issues but now it is a habit.  Grocery lists and menu plans are my favorite after-work lists to make these days.  I'm learning to adapt my grocery list-making to be more in tune with what's available at the farmer's market, but I still fill out two columns of this and that like two kinds of cereal for Tim and cooking essentials for me like olive oil and lemons.  It's a sense of fulfillment at the grocery as you put each item into your cart, synonymously scratching it off your list.

When I pack for a trip I make lists of everything I absolutely need before I walk out the door.  I wouldn't want to be vacationing at a lake without a swimsuit or sunscreen or the necessary lounging clothes to wear while reading a good book on the dock.  In fact, it's important not to forget that book, especially after all the mounting anticipation before you got your hands on it. (I finished that book already, by the way, and I can't wait to get to the market on Saturday to start making some of the recipes). So the swimsuit, sunscreen, dock clothes, and book go on the list, and are satisfyingly crossed off one by one as I pack them up.

This is all probably the reason I like recipes, because each ingredient gets added in a deliberate order to make the dish complete.  Everything has a reason--a purpose.  It creates a little order in my crazy life. 

Inspired by Anna, The Baker's Daughter, I think it's time to make a summer list of things I want to do, try, see, be.  There is still enough summer left, right? Summer in Ohio can last until mid-October

Here is my list:

make lemonade
find uses for my growing-like-a-weed mint
have cocktails on a patio with friends
make my own ricotta and mozzarella
pick flowers
try fennel
pickle things like carrots or cucumbers or anything else
go to a baseball game
take evening walks
go camping with Tim
shop at the farmer's market
wear skirts
make strawberry jam
take more pictures
go to a pool with Abbie
look at the stars
wear less make-up
wake up earlier
eat raspberries
wear my hair in a bun


Now it's your turn.  What's on your list? 



(One last thing--If you want to become a better menu-planner and grocery-list maker, visit Annie's Eats.  She said everything there that I would have told you!)