Saturday, June 02, 2007

~Welcome June!~

"June is bursting out all over as summer finally arrives. The days are hot, the roses are in bloom and we feast on strawberries and cream."~Sarah Ban Breathnach


Joyful Simplicities for June

~Enjoy a frosty pitcher of lemonade.

~Take a trip down memory lane by catching lightening bugs or fireflies on the lawn at twilight.

~One June weekend, buy a whole watermelon and keep it in the refrigerator for at least a day so that it gets ice-cold. Cut it in large pieces and sit on the porch, back deck or front stoop eating watermelon with family or friends, spitting out the seeds. Have a contest to see who can shoot the farthest.

~Be on the lookout for a strawberry festival or hold your own. The Victorians called these homegrown events "Strawberry Regales," and the menu included every strawberry confection imaginable. Turn this into a potluck dessert party and invite friends to bring their favorite strawberry sensation.

~Celebrate the first day of summer on June 21 by camping out in the backyard. Pitch a ten, bring out the sleeping bags, build a campfire in the grill. Serve hot dogs and s'mores for dessert.

~Hang a hammock. Lie in it.

~Paint your toenails red.


~June~

The robins and blackbirds awoke me at dawn
Out in the wet orchard, beyond the green lawn,

For there they were holding a grand jubilee,
And no one had wakened to hear it but me.

The sweet honeysuckles were sprinkled with dew;
There were hundreds of spider-webs wet with it too,

And pussy-cat, out by the lilacs, I saw
Was stopping and shaking the drops from her paw.

I dressed in the silence as still as a mouse,
And groped down the stairway and out of the house.

There, dim in the dawning, the garden paths lay,
Where yesterday evening we shouted at play.

By the borders of box-wood, and under the trees
There was nothing astir but the birds and the bees.

And if all the world had been made just for me,
I thought, what a wonderful thing it would be.
-K. Pyle.

What are your favorite things about June?

Photos by June Dudley and can be found at art.com
Source: Simple Abundance by Sarah Ban Breathnach

39 comments:

Ruth said...

I love your post and paintings! I must admit that my favorite thing about June is that school is out and the schedule is relaxed. I actually get a few moments to myself and since my husband is a teacher also, we are all home together for 2 months. YEY!!

Anonymous said...

I LOVE your poem. You poetry is always so beautiful and carefully chosen. Thank you so much for sharing it.

Favorite things about June - light until night, my birthday, early mornings which are cooler than the rest of the day, rainy afternoons (when we aren't having a drought), no scool, vacations to somewhere fun, time to read, read and read some more. Those are the things I love. Thanks for asking!

Amber said...

I loved your post. My favorite thing is eating watermelon outside and letting the juice run down your arms. Reminds me of my childhood because it didn't matter how sticky I got. Then I would jump in my little plastic pool and be all "clean"!

Christine said...

What lovely ideas, Kelli. I love sitting on my front porch , reading, and drinking an ice cold drink. There is nothing like basking in the warmth of a summer day!

Heather Anne said...

I like June very much - but best of all when I am near a large body of water - I love the sound of children playing in the lake, waves rolling unto the shore and the zip of a fishing line being cast far out into the water. June is my favorite month for strawberry shortcake and strawberry pie!

Julie said...

I believe that I was born in the most beautiful month of all - June. My favorite thing about June is the wild prairie rose that is always in bloom on my birthday in North Dakota. It is small and not easy to find, but it has a fragrance that is heavenly. If I were to be a flower, I would want to be a wild prairie rose.

Julie said...

Oh, and I forgot. In North Dakota, it is light until 10:00 PM or later in June!

Janice said...

What beautiful pictures and words! I feel so inspired to celebrate the month of June in new ways now! I love the poem, it's so descriptive! Some of my favorite things about June are getting the flower beds filled up with blooming things, the hummingbirds entertaining us at their feeders, fresh strawberries and sitting out on the porch or patio during the nice long evenings.
Blessings,
Janice

TO BECOME said...

Great post and all sounds like wonderful times and the pictures are all very special. connie from Texas

Open Roads Mama said...

I love the weather in June and the month is just good for knowing that the whole summer is still to come!

Anita said...

Hi Kelli,

The drawing with those little girls are sooo sweet!

And I am looking forward to eating the first watermelone of the year, too!

My favourite thing about June? Hopefully lots of sunshine!

Unfortunately, it's raining over here - well, it forces me to finally catch up with some household work (ironing etc).

Hope you have a wonderful week-end!

Jenn4Him said...

My favorite thing about June is that since school is done, we get to stay up later as a family enjoying the outdoors together. It used to really bother me when they were really little. I wanted "my" time to start at 8PM! But now that they are a little older, it is less of a need for me. I also love strawberries with fresh cream whipped up on top! Thank you for the lovely post.

Anonymous said...

My favorite thing about June are the flowers (especially in Washington State) So colorful...
When I was young and when I was a school teacher my favorite thing about June was that, School's Out for Summer!

Rebecca said...

Favorite things about June?

~strawberry picking
~playing in dirt (gardening)
~playing in the sprinkler
~FLOWERS FLOWERS FLOWERS!
~Sweet mint tea on my patio
~hanging in our 'family hammock' from our honeymoon
~Moonlight and outside warmth enough to enjoy it
~Watermelon seed spitting contests
~Walking barefoot outside
~hanging clothes on the line-and occasionally making sheet tents
~fireflies
~Occasional rain storms while the sun is still shining
~bare baby legs and overalls without shirts
~sunhats
~plucking cherry tomatoes from the vine

That was fun. Thanks for helping me think about all the good stuff to come!

Creative Life Studio said...

I have both Simple Abundance and Mrs. Sharp's Traditions. They are both wonderful for the turning of the year and it's nice that you regularly share them with your readers.

SbB has another book too called "Romancing the Ordinary." Very similar to Simple Abundance,but on a month-by-month basis rather than daily. I think you'd like it.

Carole Burant said...

June certainly is a wonderful month! I love being able to barbecue our meals and eat outside:-) xox

Momma Roar said...

lovely...don't forget freezer pops! :D

Autumn said...

My favorite things about June...no school, getting tan, swimming, and eating popsicles!

LBP said...

So many favorite June things:

Beautiful flowers

The sounds of the frogs and crickets singing at night.

Entertaining friends around the pool.

The sounds of kids playing in the pool.

Squash right from the garden.

Reading out on my front porch.

I could go on and on!

dot said...

It's my birth month!

Paula said...

I remember watermelon-seed-spitting contests! How fun. Loved the photos you put with the post.

Myrna said...

Lovely post

Things I love about June
•My anniversary
•Sitting outside as the sun goes down
•Watching grandchildren play in the backyard
•Stawberries and the coming of garden vegetables

Susie said...

What lovely June ideas! They all just speak "summertime"
My very favorite thing about June?
I would have to say that it's my wedding anniversary. A reminder of the most wonderful decision I ever made...
Great post Kelli!
:)

Naturegirl said...

I love everthing about June especially the one night the fireflies dance in the garden!I loved your poem particularly the the ~pussycat out by the lilacs~
Happy summer gardening!
Kelli I have been overwhelmed with the late Spring with so much to do in the garden all at once and travelling so I'm just catching up on visiting blogs.
hugs Ng

theups said...

I LOVE this post, Kelli!!! Thank you for sharing all the wonderful ideas for June! My toenails are already painted red!! :)

Now... I just need to have that first slice of summery watermelon and I'll be all set!! :)

His,
Mrs. U

smilnsigh said...

I had lost the link to your blog toooooo! -sigh- I'm getting upset now. I've come across at least 3 blogs, which I've somehow lost the link to. -sigh- I recently began to use Gloogle Reader. But I don't want to blame it, yet.

It could be just me. In one way or the other.

But I am getting upset. And I think I'll have to make an entry about this issue. In case there are lots of ladies, whose blogs I used to visit often, and I've seemed to disappear. -sigh-

Mari-Nanci

smilnsigh said...

Why Kelli, I ever used one of the same pictures, in my June 1 entry! Same as you did. I'd not have done that, if I'd known that you used it first. -sigh-

Mari-Nanci

Just Mom said...

Simply beautiful, both the paintings and the words. Summer does bring back lots of memories.

Anonymous said...

Beautiful post and beautiful pictures!

My favorite things about June?? Britt's birthday (my hubby), the first day of summer, and my birthday! :0)

~*Marie*~ said...

I just finished reading you whole blog...it is wonderful and I even jotted down a couple of recipes I wanted to try!

Julieann said...

What a fun post!!! I paint my toenails red in the winter and PINK in the summer..LOL.

Julieann:)

Amy O'Quinn said...

Lovely post, lovely art, and lovely poem! My favorite things about June are:
1. Celebrating Erin and Elisabeth's birthday...they'll be 16 tomorrow!
2. Long afternoons for family time and games out in the yard.
3. Grilling out and picnics.
4. Gardenias!
5. The satisfaction of canning and putting up vegetables for my family!
Hope you have a wonderful week and a wonderful June!
Hugs,
Amy

Sharon said...

Love all the ideas and pictures for June......the poem is so true... Enjoy the month and all that it represents.....a wonderful time of the year.

Vicky said...

I love June! In Hokkaido here it is really spring, rather than summer - would you believe I still have a (very!) few daffodils and tulips blooming?

I wish we could say school was out here but this is Japan where the kids get 24 whole days for their summer holiday (and the teachers go on and on and ON about what a LOOOOONG time that is to be away from school so they load them up with homework...)

What I like about June

1) Gardening! It's great to be able to get out and do really big stuff as well as the very satisfying "instant garden" stuff with bedding plants.

2) My younger son's birthday!

3) Sunshine in the early mornings. (Not such long evenings here, though - still gets dark about 7pm. In England it would be about 10pm or later by now...)

4) No socks!

5) The many shades of green all around, all so fresh and hopeful.

Lori said...

Some of my favorite things to do in June are: spend time with my family outdoors weather it be playing on the swing set or playing a game or blowing bubbles or whatever.
I like to go for walks
Sit outside and enjoy the weather and grab a good book
Megans birthday
Vacations
We love to eat watermelon
We love to BBQ
We also like to go swimming...it just hasn't warmed up very much yet. I hope it does soon.

Henny Penny said...

I can turn the ac on without The Man complaining that the house is too cold! LOL

Gena said...

Such a pretty post. All the pictures and poetry were beautiful.

I love that it stays light forever. We have NO school. We cookout a lot. I get to read for pleasure. Also, there is at least one mini-vacation for us in June.

Happy June!

Christie Belle said...

Wonderful summer ideas!! I love the pictures, they fit perfectly with this post. Beautiful poem too. Gosh, just an all around good post, lol.

Anonymous said...

14 June 2007



Of Fly Catchers and hidden lakes.


Of sleeping lizards and morning dew.

It is of birdsong and misty dawns

and fleeced clouds floating in a still pool.


The waters ripple awake in the gathering morn.





The first water birds head out for the far shore.