As it always does, summer is leaving me dizzy in its haste. It seems only last week that I was working to check off my spring bucket list, and now the season of thunderstorms, lightning bugs, and humidity is almost halfway through.

A Summer Bucket List Check-In
What I’ve checked off thus far:
-Visit and relish the dickens out of England.
-Frequent local farmers markets.
-Enjoy lots of walks.
-Spend my birthday in Marblehead.
-Take a sailing tour of Boston Harbor (we actually did this on my birthday as well).

What’s left:
-Go swimming.
-Celebrate Lammas with our friends Margaret & Raghib.
-Visit Ender’s Falls in Granby, CT.
-Check out more of Rhode Island’s Farm Coast (towns like Tiverton & Little Compton).
-Fly back to my hometown in WV for the first time in four years and spend time with some folks I love.
-Take a ferry to Sag Harbor and explore.
-Celebrate my beloved A’s birthday.

I’d love to hear what you’ve been doing this summer, and what else you have planned!

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What I’ve Been Reading
–My Own Magic by Anna Kloots (Part travel memoir, part coming-of-age memoir that I found to be incredibly inspiring and uplifting)
–Educating Alice: Adventures of a Curious Woman by Alice Steinbach (Travel memoir, about a woman finding ways to learn around the world)
–The Perfectionist’s Guide to Losing Control by Katherine Morgan Schafler (A seriously brilliant self help book about helping folks find power, instead of shame or stress, in their perfectionism)
–Midnight at the Blackbird Cafe by Heather Webber (A sweet novel of magical realism set in Alabama)

What I’ve Been Listening To
–Women Who Travel Podcast
–The Classical Garden Spotify Playlist

What I’ve Been Watching
-Season two of The Bear (Even better than the first, am I right?!)
–Beyond Paradise (A super loveable cozy mystery set in Devon and filmed in Cornwall)
–Book Club 2: The Next Chapter (Not the best, but y’all know I had to watch another film set in Italy)

Where I’ve Found Awe Lately
-In a sunset casting a pink glow upon the houses, boats, and water in my beloved Marblehead.
-In chatting with a lovely Scottish couple about their hometown of Edinburgh while we sat on the deck of a tallship.
-In trying my hand at spoon carving in a friend’s driveway.
-In a vibrantly red gladiolus blooming in our garden out of nowhere.

With hands covered in garden soil and wood shavings,
Lara