Monthly Musings: July 2019
Hello dear friends!
July already! How was your month? Ours was sunny & humid. Lemme tell you, as an Irish person, I do not handle the heat well. I’ve basically been living in my birks, my yoga pants, and a flowy top all month long. On the other hand, more heat = lots of ice cream. Summer perks!
We took some time over the course of the month to gut our little garden patch. We fought a long hard battle with some very resilient ivy, but with the help of an axe and my extra determined father, we somehow managed to come out on top – thanks, Dad! Now we’re left with a lovely little patch of soil that was hiding underneath the ivy the whole time & we don’t know what to plant. I was originally thinking of planting some rhubarb, but now I’m thinking of planting pretty flowers instead, like hydrangeas or peace lilies. What do you think?
The offering for the month ahead is below, it’s relatively light & easy this time ‘round. I hope you find something that inspires you – to get in touch with a friend you haven’t seen in a while, to get into the kitchen baking, or to forward an informative coffee article to your friends who hate on your daily five cups. You do you.
Enjoy!
monthly musings: july 2019
Boyfriend & I are heading to Kilkenny later this month to see Bob Dylan in concert! Neil Young & Glen Hansard will also be playing, but we’re really just going to see Bob. Other reasons to be excited about visiting Kilkenny: food, food, and more food. I’ve been working on a post about the medieval city for a while now and hope to get all I need to finish it off after this visit. Stay tuned!
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One of the things that originally attracted me to Boyfriend was our shared love of coffee. In fact, he probably loves coffee more than I do. There’s nearly always a hot pot floating around our kitchen, but we will 100% fight you for the last cup. This is for all you coffee naysayers: Mythbusters, Coffee Edition.
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In case you missed it, a new travel post hit the blog: 24 Hours in Galway. Basically, I got together with my mom & sister, we went eating & drinking in some of the best places Galway has to offer, and I blogged about our whereabouts. I’d love to hear your thoughts on the post!
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In last month’s post, I mentioned that I was itching to add another cookbook to my collection. Originally I was thinking about a bread book (still am!), but we recently watched Christina Tosi’s episode on Chef’s Table and I went online & bought her book Momofuko Milk Bar basically as soon as the show ended. Obsessed is not the word.
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I finally secured a trusty baker’s lame for myself! It’s bright yellow, totally adorable, & has been making my sourdough loaves look that bit “extra”. I dare say that owning it makes me want to bake even more sourdough than I already do.. which is a lot. Between the banneton & this, we’re winning!
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Let’s just leave this here for future birthday present ideas: The Best Books to Read at Every Age, From 1 to 100.
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I’ve started to push myself a little out of my comfort zone recently. I went out with some new work pals, I texted some friends that I’m not yet ready to consider ‘old friends’, and I got in touch with some over-seas friends I haven’t seen in years. The results varied considerably: one raging hangover, two upcoming coffee dates, and the offer of a spare room in Glasgow, respectively. Generally, I’m feeling pretty good about the whole dang thing!
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For those of you who follow me on Instagram, you may have noticed that you’ve started seeing a little more of my regular everyday life on my stories. This was kind of weird for me in the beginning, but it’s in keeping with the above mentioned pushing of my comfort zone. Ideally, I’d like to start posting the odd photo of myself in my actual feed, but I just don’t think I’m there yet. Baby steps.
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Boyfriend is so over hearing about this, but anyways. July marks five years since my friend & I finished our pilgrimage across Spain. On May 28th 2014, we started our Camino in Saint Jean Pied du Port on the French side of the Pyrenees, we hiked along the trail for 34 days – taking 2 rest days en route – and walked into the cathedral at Santiago de Compostela on July 2nd. It was truly a life changing experience and one that I will never not talk about. Following the French Way, we basically hobbled our way across the entire country, laughing hysterically & making new friends as we went. It was the best.
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I guess I qualify as a real adult now, because we’ve been invited to another wedding! There was that one I was the flower girl for way back when I was like 6, then nothing for years, and now suddenly I’m attending three within the last eight months. Definitely an adult now. (My amazing mother already stepped in & bought me a dress for this upcoming one, so there’s no new stresses this time ‘round. Thanks, Mom!)
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Mine & Boyfriend’s 4 year anniversary is later this month! That time fleeeew! We’re going to keep things super low-key & maybe hit up a movie or something. I’m also working on convincing Boyfriend to make his unreal version of Ragu alla Bolognese for us. Cross your fingers for me!
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Coming this day next week: Sourdough Maple Blueberry Brown Butter Crumble Muffins. The recipe took me two months and five different batches of muffins to develop to perfection. Be sure to check back!
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I’m adding this No-Fuss Lemon Tart to my to-bake list because it looks insane. Also, a salty pretzel crust? Yes please!
I hope you have the most wonderful month! Let’s catch up in August, okay?
Hugs,
Vicki xo