I'm Mad About ...

Happy Friday!

Last week I went I went a little overboard at the farmers market. It was so hot (108!) hardly anyone was there, so the stands were offering fill a bag for $5. How could I resist?

Since Erik doesn't care for fresh fruit and I couldn't eat it all myself before it went it bad, I used some to make a fruit crumble (using this recipe, more or less) for my book group:

It was quite a hit, so I'm making another one to take up to my friend's cabin for a girls' weekend. Can't wait!

To get you in the mood for a fun weekend, here are some things that caught my eye this week:

• Today is Take Your Dog Work Day (although around here, every day is!). Don't have a dog? I have a few I could lend out ;-)
• Love the crisp new look at Sacramento Street and the fresh colors at Danielle Oakey Interiors.
• Corgis + Call Me Baby = Awesome!
• It's certainly not scarf weather in these parts, but when it is I want one of these.

A Relaxing Weekend

I have trouble relaxing. I can rarely relax at home—there's always something that needs to be done, and because I work from home, I'm here most of the time, so I like to get away when I can.

Last weekend was spent doing things around the house. We got a lot accomplished, but it was exhausting. This weekend I promised Erik we could take it easy, and that we did.

The weekend started with a fishing trip. Friday after work we took the boat to the lake and spent several hours out on the water, Erik fishing, me reading a magazine. The weather was wonderful, and the atmosphere was so peaceful. Even the traffic on the bridge overhead was kind of zen.

And this was our view heading back to the dock:

It doesn't get more relaxing than that!

On Saturday I went back to the farmers market where I picked up some fruit and honey. Then I spent a good part of the afternoon in the yard with dogs, enjoying the perfect weather we've been lucky enough to have lately. Later we went out to dinner, capped off by piece of fresh peach pie. Nothing says summer like fresh peach pie! We also took a bike ride after dark, over to the university, to look for kit foxes. We saw quite a few (they are so cute!), as well as several cats and one skunk.

Sunday was spent paying bills, pinning on Pinterest and catching up on some work. I can't help it. But it was nice to have a couple of days to unwind and recharge after a busy and stressful week. How do you relax?

Farm Fresh

One of the best things about living in California's Central Valley is the abundance of locally grown produce. And with that comes an abundance of farmers markets.

Despite the heat, I ventured out to a nearby farmers market this past weekend, and it was well worth the trip. Because I got there about a half hour before closing and the sellers were anxious to get rid of what they had left, I got good deals on peaches, squash and honey candy.

Surprisingly, there was still a good selection of produce at that late hour. The honey candy is delicious, but I'm sorry I didn't buy some of the orange honey—they're about out for the season. Maybe I'll get lucky next week and there will be some left.

Of course, the dogs got a little something, too:

Who doesn't like bacon? Plus, they're all natural and homemade. There are other flavors that I'll have to pick up next time. And maybe when the weather cools down I'll bring Bitsy along so she can try some samples and report back to the rest of the pack!