Ten Things I Loved in July

During a run one late May morning, I thought about how many things I had really enjoyed that month and that ended up inspiring a round up blog post for the end of the month on Ten Things I Loved.  I loved the concept so much that I redid it for June.  And, now, here is July’s edition (s0 far).

Things I/ We Did

1.  My 20 year high school reunion.  Loved traveling ‘home’ to see friends from 20 years ago who are just as fun, funny, kind, lovely, and beautiful now as they were then.

2.  Started to earn my certification in mental health first aid.  One in four adults suffers with a mental health issue and, yet, there is such a stigma attached to them.  Mental Health first aid trains everyday people in how to be a first responder for mental health issues.  See someone having a panic attack at the grocery store?  Mental Health first aid trains you in what to do to help that person.  It is a course that provides great education, and will, hopefully, allow me to be a great support to those I love and those in my community.

3.  Wrapped up our 2nd 100 book challenge.  Happy loved the summer challenge to read 100 different books so much that it too about 2.5 weeks.  Hence, we did it a 2nd time and finished our 2nd round of 100 books in time to check out Ice Age: Continental Drift on opening day (that’s the reward he chose).  The movie, as it turns out, was a perfect mix of Happy’s favorite animals.  There were whales– including his personal favorites of narwhals and humpbacks- and mammoths and tigers.  We met friends at the theatre, and it was just a fun way to spend a rainy (poury, really) Friday afternoon.  

On the Plate

4.  Low Country Boil.  So one of my very favorite meals is this southern fare that stews together shrimp, sausage, potatoes, corn, and onions in a great spicy seasoning.  BF is a brilliant low country boiler and we host an annual low country boil dinner for our neighbors every July 4th.  Great company and great eats.

5.  Avocado, Orange and Peach Salad.  Our neighbor brought the salad to our Fourth of July celebration, and it was incredible– red leaf lettuce, slice avocado, segmented oranges, and peach slices with feta cheese and ginger dressing.  I know the combination sounds odd but it was delicious, I promise.

Products I Loved

6.  Deva Curl.  So, when we went to Disney World at the beginning of June, we were met not with just Florida’s notorious humidity but a week of rain.  My hair was a HOT mess– making me all the more aware that I still just hadn’t found the right product for my curls. I posted an SOS on Facebook and Twitter and one of the most recommended products was Deva Curl.  They had an affordable trial pack and so I decided to order it and give it a try.  Boy, am I glad that I did.  I totally should have taken before and after pictures but I didn’t.  So you’ll just have to trust me.  Least frizzy hair of my life during one of the most humid summers of my life.  Hooray.