Summertime rocks.
Drinking from the hose.
Poolside cocktails.
Sunset at 9:30pm.
My famous citrus pie.
The smell of multiple BBQs.
Board shorts and flip flops.
Sundresses.
Road trips.
Al fresco dining.
Corn on the cob.
Popsicles.
Farmers markets.
The Ice Cream Man. (Eek.)
Sunflowers.
Bowls of cherries.
Blockbuster movies.
A swimming dog.
New freckles.
And tomato sandwiches.
With our unusually low winter snowpack and an early heat wave this year, tomatoes are already available. A toasted tomato melt is one of my very favorite meals in summertime, and last night, we (greatly) enjoyed the first of the season!
Thinly sliced crusty bread, sharp cheddar cheese, and a good tomato- that’s all you need. We like ours open-faced, broiled to melty deliciousness, and topped with cracked pepper, a little garlic salt, and whatever fresh herbs are in the garden. We call them tomato toastettes.
John is in charge of tomato sammies every summer. Last night, he mixed it up, adding Jarlsberg cheese or a little mayo on a couple of toastettes. (I tested the Pinot Noir.)
First an outdoor movie, then a concert under the stars, and now this!
Yum. Welcome back, Summer.
What says “Summer is here” to YOU?
the usual bliss 
Great Post – Loving your photos – thanks for sharing:)
Thank you! I wish I had a tomato sammie right now…
the thing i love most about (you) and your blog is the way you savor each day and find magic in the regular, ol’ everyday stuff. it’s something i aspire to….so thanks for the inspiration.
Thank you so much! I know it seems like nothing bad ever comes my way but I’m trying to focus on the good stuff. There’s a lot of it. 🙂
That’s a good thing! We can read the bad stuff pretty much anywhere else!
Mmm… lemonade, corn on the cob, and sandwiches, yum! Hopefully all from the farmer’s market, that’s my idea of summer.
And of course a swimming dog is always nice too!
We thought we were going to hit the farmers market today but it was less than impressive. The one on Wednesday is apparently good!
Lovely! I popped over from Angie’s blog. I don’t even bother with the cheese. Just slice up a mater and put it on top of a piece of bread, whatever I got. Two to three times a day during the peak growing season — it’s just what I do when it’s 100 degrees outside (which it is now!).
Nice summertime piece! Puts me in the mood.
I’m glad it put you in the mood! It’s time to BE in the mood. I can’t believe I used to hate tomatoes. Now I dream about the short, fleeting season when I get to enjoy them off of the vine. And on my plate. 🙂 Thanks for stopping by!
If you have a lot of butterflies flitting about, try sitting with your open-faced tomato sammich (no cheese, please) on your lap. You’re sure to get a few free-loaders in on the drink-fest. FUN!
Oh, Shannon. Butterflies dive bombing your tasty tomato sandwich — only someone as wonderful as you wouldn’t see this as a nuisance. I think I need you to mentor me.
This made me laugh! I would probably get protective of my food, too…
I will make you wise to my crazy ways. You wouldn’t have liked the two cockroaches that I picked up and put outside today. You read that right — picked up, NOT killed. They aren’t as pretty as butterflies, but the have a place too (just not in my house).
YUM! Those sandwiches look amazing — and like you commented above, I used to hate tomatoes. Okay, I still sort of do. They have to be really, really good garden-fresh tomatoes and they have to be doctored up with some seasonings like olive oil, salt and fresh basil. Wow, I think the way you made it will be just perfect for me, thankyouverymuch.
When you put it like this, maybe I can learn to like summer a bit more.
I still don’t like the store-bought, out-of-season toms. But this time of year, I get greedy for the good ones!