Men Who Know How to Dress

I follow Scott Schuman's blog The Sartorialist and last night he posted this video of a dinner he hosted for men whom he believes encapsulate the essence of style (my words, not his, I'm not sure why he actually has the dinner, but this is my guess).

I've got to say, there are few things (fashion-wise) that could make me as happy as seeing so many handsome, well-dressed men together in one place.

Enjoy.

Friends in High Places...

...And by high places, I mean trees, more specifically, fruit trees. I don't know if they are necessarily in these trees, but they are definitely picking fruit from them (Although I could see David Seay up in a tree!)

What is all of this mumbling about you may be asking yourself. Well, I just spent the last 8 1/2 hours canning some glorious fruit (8 pints of apples and 3 pints of peaches), so I'm a little loopy.

Anyway, the apples are beautiful green apples from the Seay Tree (also known as the apple tree in David and Karen Seay's yard) and the peaches are lovely white peaches from the Arbre de St. Louis (also known as the peach tree in Summer and Spencer St. Louis's yard). I am ever so grateful for this 'forbidden' fruit (it is only forbidden to eat until at least December or January, so I can enjoy apple pie and peach cobbler featuring fruit from Kansas in the dead of our frigid winter).

I was also able to save a ton of the peach juice that I used to fill the jars, which I will be taking with me to make Bellini's this weekend at the party at Glinn Gardens. OOOOHHHH! I can't wait to share some of my sweet, peachy concoction with my dear friends and their friends (along with a Minted Peach Salsa...I know, I am crazy for peaches right now, but I just can't help it!!!)

Hope you are enjoying your summer! xoxo

When People Go Above and Beyond

So I might have mentioned I recently got married.

Well on the wedding day I had the honor of having Sarah Reeves from Beautiful Isolations Photography photograph our wedding. Her work truly is amazing and beautiful and any other words that are synonyms for fantastic.

Part of the deal (besides taking the pictures, posting them to an online gallery and posting them in two separate blog posts on her blog here) is that she send us a disc of all of our photos (over 400!!!)

So, I was expecting just that, a disc, nothing more, nothing less. Well, this is what she sent:

A sweet-as-pie thank you card, printing discounts, our disc in a gorgeous case and a pretty-as-a-picture apron! Now that is what I call customer service!

Sarah is fabulous and you should book her now for your wedding photos, your engagement photos, baby photos, dog photos, nude photos (just kidding!!!)....you get the picture.

I just love when people go above and beyond for the simple reason of making someone else smile.

Well, this lady has a huge smile on her face! Thank you, Sarah! XOXO

Enthusiasm for The Object Enthusiast

If you aren't familiar with The Object Enthusiast (aka Emily Reinhardt) prepare yourself.

Emily is a local ceramic artist and blogger (check out her Etsy store here and her blog here). I would literally buy everything in her Etsy store if I had the money....but I don't. So, I settled for buying a set of these cute tumblers and a set of these cute little cups.

Buy something from her now before she becomes wildly famous and her prices skyrocket!

(Also take a look at her blog! She has great recommendations of cool stuff to check out.)

What Day is Today?

Today is canning day!

I canned for the first time today, and I have to say it was pretty successful. 4 pints of pickles, 3 pints of peaches and 3 pints of tomatoes (all from the farmer's market).

I really wish I could can every day! I'm hooked. My goal for the next five years is to really grow our pantry in the summer with an abundance of locally grown foods that we can enjoy all year (if I never have to buy canned tomatoes again I will be thrilled!). I also really love doing anything that makes me feel connected with a past way of doing things.

I used this book, The Fresh Girl's Guide to Canning and Preserving as a guide. It was easy to follow and gave great tips and recipes.

I can't wait to make peach cobbler in January with peaches from a tree right here in Kansas!

Sights (and smells) of Summer

I'm about to inundate you with many blogs. I simply have a lot to be happy about this weekend.

This first post is an ode to my local farmer's market (where I have a booth again this summer).

The produce is really starting to flourish: the reds, yellows and purples of tomatoes; gorgeous, juicy peaches; bright orange carrots; golden sweet corn; all accompanied by the sweet smell of summer flowers (starring the Zennia)! Take a look....

The above is produce from Jake's Farm

The Weiche's always have great produce

All of the flowers are from Carnhan Farms (The owner, Erin, is my stall mate)

The market has grown so much this year. There is so much more than produce and baked goods now. Come support local merchants!

Summer Lover

My official sponsor for the Summer of 2012.....Absolut Pears.