Since it is almost always true that pictures say it better than words, here’s a recap of the holiday weekend highlights in photo form. As you’ll see, it was a fantastic trip, with some of the best weather in recent memory. I think it’s safe to say that I’m in love with summer. Enjoy!
the Hudson river flowing peacefully underneath the George Washington Bridge - it's hard to take an uncrooked picture while moving! this was the weather for 5 days straight. seriously. party time!!the hydrangeas around my parents' house were overflowing with big, gorgeous bloomseven the flowers lining the pool deck were soaking up the nonstop sun...this was my seated view for much of the weekend, with my linen knitting in my lap - well, it was my view when i wasn't asleep.the basics of any sunny holiday weekend - a Dark and Stormy (thanks, Alex!) and plenty of sunblock.meat, anyone? my Dad's birthday always means one thing: a MEGA-BBQ. and these are just the leftovers!luckily, there was a bit of fruit to balance out the chicken wings, ribs, beef tenderloin, and chicken halves.did i forget to mention the two potato salads, the baked beans, the pizza, and the SIX barbecue sauces?all that food requires serious exercise to work it off. to that end, andrew somehow found himself inside an inflatable raspberry.for her part, coco exercised herself by trampling all over the toys of my parents' shih tzu, Kime.on the off chance that anyone was still hungry after that birthday BBQ, there were fresh lobster rolls (with homemade rolls!) to celebrate the 4th in New England style.a parting gift from the weekend - a gallon of maple syrup for me and my sister to share, straight from the Adirondack Mountains of NYS. yummmm...all good things must come to an end, and we headed back to the city at dawn today - another gorgeous day for driving.the view of the Hudson River from the other side of the George Washington Bridge, with the skyscrapers of Manhattan in the sunny distance!
And the best way to wrap up a wonderful mini-vacation? A simple Italian dinner, complete with a glass of Rioja and a no-cook “salsa crudo” for pasta, inspired by this Summer Garden Pasta recipe from the Barefoot Contessa, Ina Garten.
the red pepper flakes in the sauce really give it some zing, and i added lemon zest and juice to brighten the flavor.
Since today was another sunny, hot, cloudless day in NY, keeping the oven off was definitely a plus. Welcome to July!
feta cheese and whole grain linguine make everything better.
PS: Yep, I know – almost no knitting pictures from this weekend. But there was knitting, honest! I’ll be good and show more next time 🙂
Obviously no one went away hungry! LOL
Glad you all, including “Beans,” had such a good time, and the great weather to go with it. Our 4th BBQ plans were drenched, but we managed to get our dinner in between the storms.
daniellechalson.com 
I’m pretty sure that this gathering was “one for the books”…thanks so much for making the trip and for all the fun. fun, F…U…N….!!!!! XXOO
Obviously no one went away hungry! LOL
Glad you all, including “Beans,” had such a good time, and the great weather to go with it. Our 4th BBQ plans were drenched, but we managed to get our dinner in between the storms.
🙂