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Savoring life in the Berkshires

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Twosday XXVI: Summer Love (+ a coupon code)

Published on July 21, 2015 By Emily. Updated on October 16, 2016

My favorite things about summer break
1. Waking up without an alarm clock. 
2. The frequency of days when I don’t have to leave the house and can wear whatever I want, regardless of how much of a mess I appear to be.

Things that are helping me feel much more relaxed this summer
1. I’m done with grad school! I submitted my final paper at the end of June and it has been very weird to know that I don’t have any coursework to do this summer.  Weird, but wonderful.
2. Owning two cars.  A few weeks ago, after getting a DNR on our 2005 car that we’ve been driving exclusively since 2011, we purchased a second vehicle.  As well as being a single car family worked for 4 years, it was beginning to be tricky as Brian and I added things to our schedules and it’s really nice to be done jockeying around cars and schedules.

 

block island organics sunscreen and sunburn alert sticker

Ways I’m attempting to keep from getting sunburned this summer
1. I was recently given the opportunity to try this sunscreen from Block Island Organics.  I love that it’s free of parabens, sulfates, petrochemicals and phthalates, as I’m attempting to choose better products for my body and the planet.  Block Island Suncare was rated highly in this year’s Environmental Working Group ratings, which I frequently check before purchasing cosmetic products.  The sunscreen goes on smoothly and isn’t greasy or scented, which means it solves my top sunscreen complaints.  I did find that it didn’t hold up great to sweat or water for me, but I will definitely continue to wear it when I’m out in the sun.  Want to try it?  Visit the Block Island Organics website and save 15% with the code emilyp at checkout through July 27th.
2. I also got to try out some awesome Sunburn Alert stickers (apparently the word is out that I’m prone to burning).  I received these as part of my role as Healthy Living Blogs staffer and they are really cool.  You apply the stickers and put sunscreen on top of them.  As your sunscreen loses effectiveness and the sticker is exposed to UV radiation, the sticker changes color, alerting you to apply more sunblock or get out of the sun.  Initially, I was skeptical because Brian tested one and found that his sticker didn’t stay attached for long and the stickers seemed sort of big for children.  However, we tried them again with myself and my 4 year old nephew with great success.  He played for over an hour at a local splash pad and the sticker didn’t budge.  It also fit fine on his little hand and he was too fascinated by the gradual color change to want the sticker to come off.  Similarly, I had no issues with my sticker.  These stickers (or bracelets, which I haven’t tried, but also sound great) would be awesome for a long day at the beach or other outdoor activity.
Full disclosure:  Block Island Organics sunscreen and Sunburn Alert stickers were both provided to me for free in exchange for review by their respective companies.  As always, my opinions are my own.

Home improvement projects I’ve slated for the coming weeks
1. Covering the lampshade in the guest room with fabric. Wish me luck! (Sometimes, I think I am a crafty person, then I realize not so much.)
2. Finally painting our first floor bathroom. This is a project that I intended to have completed before my in-laws visited in June, but clearly, that didn’t happen. We have the paint; I just need to do it.

pickles 2015

Food projects I’ve enjoyed so far this week
1. Pickles!  Brian picked up 10 pounds of cucumbers for me at Mighty Food Farm during a recent CSA pick up and we turned them into 16 jars of pickles on Sunday.  The more canning I do, the more comfortable I feel about the whole process. It used to seem like such an ordeal and so time consuming, but now it doesn’t seem much more difficult than anything else I make.  I’m hoping to get to blueberries this week as well.
2. Revisiting these Chocolate Covered Banana Bites.  I haven’t made them again since last summer and, with all the heat this week, it seemed like the perfect time.  They’re in the freezer solidifying as we speak.

Summer events I’m looking forward to
1. The tag sale we’ll be participating in next month. I love going to tag sales and getting great deals on things, but I’m also really, really looking forward to making a couple dollars on things we’re not using anymore and cleaning out our house a bit. 
2. Seeing Kristin Chenoweth at Tanglewood.  I think my excitement is self-explanatory.

Brian and Emily at the Van Gogh exhibit

Berkshire institutions I had the pleasure of exploring recently
1. Edith Wharton’s house, The Mount.  This has been on my to do list for years, but it took a visit from the in-laws to make it happen.  The tour was excellent and very interesting.  Now I’ve added “read more Edith Wharton” to my to do list.
2. The Clark’s Van Gogh exhibit, also with my in-laws.  Well worth the visit, if you can make it. 

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Filed Under: life Tagged With: lists, review, sponsor, summer, twosday

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Scenes From Blueberry Picking 2015 »

Comments

  1. Lisa Valinsky says

    July 22, 2015 at 2:22 pm

    Congrats on finishing grad school! So glad you finished in time to have the rest of the summer off. What did you study?

Welcome!

photo of EmilyWelcome to Relishments! Follow along with my adventures in cooking and eating in the Berkshires of Western Massachusetts.

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relishments

Emily
Last week Brian and I finally got around to hiring Last week Brian and I finally got around to hiring a sitter for a rare night out. We went to dinner at @publicna and took advantage of the opportunity with drinks, appetizers and dessert.

Pictured:
- Citrus Braised Beef Tacos
- "Chicken and Waffles"
- House Fries with Garlic Aioli
- Fried Chickpeas
- Blood Orange Cheesecake
It was no surprise that Public was close to full on a Wednesday night - everything was so good. 

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#igers413_food #igers413 #BerkshireFoodies #InTheBerkshires #EatLocal #WesternMA #WesternMass #Berkshires  #VisitTheBerkshires #NorthAdams #NAmazing #PublicEatAndDrink
New year, new theme word! This year's word is "enr New year, new theme word!
This year's word is "enrich" and I'm really excited about it.

I've written more about this year's theme on the blog. Click in the link in my profile or follow the link below to read the post.
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https://www.relishments.com/blog/my-2023-theme-word-enrich/
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#YearlyTheme #MyOneWord #2023 #enrich2023 #NewYearsResolution
It's not New Year's Eve without a Top 9 post. It's It's not New Year's Eve without a Top 9 post.
It's almost all #Berkshires content this year, which is great.
1. A pasta salad reel that took longer to create than the recipe took to make.
2. A reel from North Carolina where I could have watched birds all day.
3. The @thelazygenius book giveaway.
4.@plantconnector 
5. @berkshiremuseum 
6.@sculpture.now at @themountlenox 
7. @massmoca 
8. @mountainviewfarm413 
9. The #AshuwillticookRailTrail
New on the blog: My 2022 reflections on last year' New on the blog: My 2022 reflections on last year's theme word - resume. 

I was able to get back to many activities that were meaningful to me this year and I'm calling this theme a success. Follow the link below or click the link in my profile to read more.
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https://www.relishments.com/blog/reflections-on-resuming-in-2022/
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#resume2022 #newyearsresolution #myoneword #yearlytheme
New on the blog: My Favorite Recipes of 2022. For New on the blog: My Favorite Recipes of 2022.

For the fourth year, I've recapped the best new (to me) recipes I made this year in the hope that they'll give you some new dishes to try. This year's list is short, but delicious. It includes @budgetbytes My Favorite Recipes of 2022
Published on December 30, 2022 By Emily. Updated on December 30, 2022

It’s hard to believe that 2022 is basically behind us. Though overall this year found me getting back to the person I want to be (post-babies and “post”-pandemic), I did not try nearly as many new recipes this year as I used to. In fact, I was pleasantly surprised to see that I’d made note of any new-to-me recipes I wanted to share in this post. This year’s list is short, but delicious. It includes recipes from @budgetbytes, @smittenkitchen and @howsweeteats.
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Read the post by visiting the link in my profile or 
https://www.relishments.com/blog/my-favorite-recipes-of-2022/
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#RecipeRoundUp #BestRecipes2022 #FavoriteRecipes
@coastalmainebotanicalgardens continues to be one @coastalmainebotanicalgardens continues to be one of the highlights of all my return trips to Boothbay and their annual Gardens Aglow event continues to impress. It was great to be back to walking the gardens instead of the pandemic drive through and there seemed to be more lights than ever.  I'm already looking forward to next year.
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#Boothbay #BoothbayMaine #CoastalMaineBotanicalGardens #GardensAglow #BotanicalGarden #MidcoastMaine
It has been a while, but there is finally a new CS It has been a while, but there is finally a new CSA menu plan on the blog! Visit the link below or in my profile to see how I plan to make use of some of the @mightyfoodfarm produce seen here.
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https://www.relishments.com/blog/welcome-to-winter-farm-share-csa-menu-plan-148/
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#MightyFoodFarm #EatLocal #EatSeasonal #VermontGrown #CSApickup #CSAshare #KnowYourFarmerKnowYourFood #MenuPlanning #MealPlanning #igers413 #igers413_food #BerkshireFoodies
Fall in the Berkshires is always incredible, but t Fall in the Berkshires is always incredible, but this year we've had weather that has also been outstanding. The past 2 weekends have included time at Jaeschke Orchards, the Greylock Glen, and the Ashuwillticook Rail Trail as well as stopping to photograph any random foliage I see. 
Check out the last slide for video of some feathered friends we saw on a walk.
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#igers413 #InTheBerkshires #EatLocal #WesternMA #WesternMass #Berkshires  #VisitTheBerkshires #FallFoliage #FallColors #autumn #AshuwillticookRailTrail #JaeschkeOrchards #GreylockGlen
@freshgrassfestival continues to be one of my favo @freshgrassfestival continues to be one of my favorite events each year, and it doesn't hurt that it's just minutes away from home. Enjoying the festival with my kids is definitely a different experience than without, but it's still a good time. The weather was especially cooperative today which was great for all the laps I did around the @massmoca campus pushing a stroller. I'm already looking forward to next year.
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#igers413 #InTheBerkshires #WesternMA #WesternMass #Berkshires  #VisitTheBerkshires #NorthAdams #NAmazing #FreshGrass #FreshGrassFestival #MassMoCA #MusicFestival
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