Simply Gratifying

 Last night, as I was recovering from strep throat (yes, in the middle of the summer I somehow caught strep throat.  Antibiotics are a gift from God) the girls were begging for dessert and because I'm a terrific mom, I threw some chocolate chips in a skillet, dumped some marshmallows on top and stuck it in the oven until the chips were melted and the marshmallows golden crisp.  Then I pulled out graham crackers and voila!  S'mores dip.  I saw the idea on some food blog earlier this week and tucked it away in my memory, amazed at the simplicity.  Saying it was a hit is an understatement.  Little hands were flying between the skillet and the mouth and, as you can see, I couldn't even catch a picture of the actual dipping process.  Definitely an idea to tuck away for another night.  Not as fun as a real bonfire but not a bad substitute either!

The corn is a sea of greeny gold across the street.  I love the layers as I look out my bedroom window:  our yard and hedge; the corn field rippling in the breeze; beyond that the sturdy hops frames; then come the furry brown hills and farthest still, the sky, alternating blue or cloudy gray or fluffy white.  

Is there anything more simply gratifying than neatly folded towels?  

The grapevine that creeps along the fenceline is heavy with little green orbs.  One day soon I will discover that they have deepened to purple.  I had no idea that yucca would bloom so beautifully.  

We have a deep longing for shady trees and a limited budget.  In an old and admittedly a bit ramshackle home, there are many "emergency" repairs which deplete our emergency fund regularly and leave little extra for fun home improvements.  We got a little "tree" from an online company for really cheap, figuring we weren't out that much if nothing came of it.  It came as a stick with a couple roots.  Ha!  Several of the other trees have come to naught but this willow in the last picture above!  It is thriving and I am so hopeful that in a few years it will provide some shady cover to the part of our grassy yard near the swingset.  I want a place to set a chair in the shade and sip sweet tea, or to spread a blanket and have a picnic out of the blazing sun.  We have a little cherry start from my parents that lasted through the winter and will hopefully grow well here too.   We will be looking at some of the hardware store sales at the end of the season in hopes of finding a few more reasonably priced but stable trees to plant. 

What are some of the simple pleasures in your day today?  I need to find mine; I am cranky today!