☀️Summer has officially arrived.☀️

The summer solstice was such a truly magical evening! I loved celebrating the longest day of the year, and I even spotted a firefly or two while I was out front watching the beautiful sunset.

The Tree is Gone!

I got ‘er done. The tree is all gone! Yahoo! It wasn’t quite as easy as I imagined, but it’s finished. I Did It! And now? My reward has been beautiful sunrises streaming through the kitchen window. I’d say that was worth the effort.

***I heard through the grapevine that the evergreen trees might be coming down. If so, I will have a clear view of the sunrise.***

Father’s Day

We celebrated Father’s Day with family. We saw the little guy and had lots of fun! How was your Father’s Day?

When we got home from being with family I made a delicious meal of spaghetti. We enjoyed a bottle of red wine from a winery we went to several years ago in Napa. We reminisced about that beautiful Napa Valley visit. Then we finished everything off with strawberry shortcake dessert. A perfect ending to a perfect day.

Outdoor Concert

We tried something new—a Fleetwood Mac tribute concert at Port Farms. It was our first visit there, and despite the rain, we had a wonderful evening. (A little rain seems to be the theme around here lately! It rained again yesterday. And it’s been chilly!)

Lots of seasonal events take place here such as Flower Festivals, Pick Your Own Bouquet parties, Autumn Fun, and they have their own Christmas Tree Farm. It is also an event place for weddings and parties. A big beautiful area!

Boating

We squeezed in a boat ride this week, too. In between the raindrops.

A great blue heron stood watch along the shoreline, and to my surprise, we spotted a cormorant. They’re usually our fall visitors, so seeing one made me wonder if it simply got an early start because of the chilly weather or maybe it’s taking its sweet time heading north.

Summer Bucket List

The Summer Solstice arrived, bringing my favorite stretch of the year and nearly sixteen hours of daylight. I love the long evenings when it feels like there’s still time for a backyard fire, a boat ride on the lake, one more walk around the yard or more porch sitting. It’s a little bittersweet knowing the days slowly begin getting shorter now, but I’m determined to soak up every extra minute.

Speaking of soaking up summer…

Is anyone else feeling the gentle pressure of a summer bucket list? Every year I tell myself not to overdo it, yet I still have a running list in my head.

Mine looks something like this:

Truth be told, I probably won’t check every thing off my list. And that’s okay.

I don’t want to be so busy making summer plans that I miss the summer day that I am living in.

“Summer doesn’t ask us to do more. It simply invites us to notice more.” ~unknown

Summer isn’t about our to-do list. It’s all about sunrises through the window, boat rides, family laughter, evenings around a fire with friends, and those ordinary little moments we remember long after Summer says goodbye.

Here’s to making this summer a good one.

“Some of the best days aren’t planned. They simply unfold.” ~unknown

Thank You

So here’s to summer—unfolding slowly, one ordinary moment at a time. And trusting that the best parts of summer will be the ones I didn’t plan for.

And a great big thank you to all of you for taking time out of your busy summer schedule to come visit us over here at Two Rails One Road.

Linking up with Terri from Sunday Stills

©Nancy and Two Trails One Road, 2015-2026. Unauthorized use and/or duplication of this material without express and written permission from this site’s author and/or owner is strictly prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to Nancy and Two Trails One Road with appropriate and specific direction to the original content.

Please do not reblog. Thank you!