I hope these simple things give you as much pleasure as they give me.
· blue hydrangeas and purple irises
· skinny cappuccino from Arabica, in my own Dansk porcelain mug (I'm trying to save the planet one coffee cup at a time.)
· buying bread at Standard Baking Company early on a sunny, Saturday morning
· reading and looking at the beautiful photos in the Barefoot Contessa cookbooks
· strawberries and blueberries, freshly picked
· weekend cooking -- planning our evening meals is a weekend highlight
· Two Lights State Park, in winter
· sunset from the dock on Mooselookmeguntic Lake, Rangeley
· the tip top of a ski mountain, in the dead of winter, crystalline tree branches, North Pole-like
· John Denver's Greatest Hits (Rocky Mountain High is my favorite all time song)
· O, The Oprah Magazine -- I read it cover to cover, last page written by Oprah first
· the Cliff Walk at Prouts Neck, Scarborough
· big orange pumpkins, the shape of Cinderella's coach
· Cooking Light magazine (before their "makeover" in 2009) -- inspires me to exercise, eat healthy and cook
· reading in my bed before going to sleep, candles burning, shades open to a full moon over the field or listening to rain gently hitting our sky lights
· Starbucks Javachip ice cream
· the sparkling ocean on a summer day, talcum powder sand under my toes
· The Food Network -- Barefoot Contessa and Giada deLaurentis
· a blazing fire at a beamed ski lodge or at a rustic camp on the lake
· Maine Home + Design magazine; aesthetically beautiful and lets me dream
· memories of Paris with my Danish college roommate - Baguettes, ham, French cheese, and green apples in a basket have never tasted as good as they did in the gardens of Versailles.
· sunshine
· Evergreen Cemetery early on a Sunday morning in January, no one there but me
· puddle boots
· apple picking at "The Brothers" orchard in Alfred (a.k.a. Giles Family Farm)
· the first snowfall of the season
(photo: Turks & Caicos)
