every year when the air begins to warm, it just so happens that i find myself falling in love with another summertime drink, which almost always contains a good chunk of citrus fruit, usually meaning a lime. as fate would have it, i have indeed found this years midsummer crush, only just finally coming together within the last few weeks limes and all. this one is super simple, a little sweet, and as always ice cold for those hot summer days.

camden has been wanting us to do one hike in particular all summer so it was no surprise to me when he last week started “casually” mentioning the dog lake hike as a must do asap. both days he wanted to go were iffy as far as rain but last tuesday gave in i did as the three of us trekked up the mountain for a six mile round trip hike (p.s. anything over two miles seems like an extremely long hike in my opinion). because of all the rain we had just had for the few days prior and the current overcast sky, it actually got cold as we climbed in elevation and i needed a jacket for the very first time this summer. it took us all about two hours to get to the top and i was once again shocked and in awe of how much beauty surrounds us right outside our door and how lucky i am to live so close to so much comeliness and peace. on the way back down it started to get dark and rainy and we had to pull out our flashlights to see the trail in front of us. however, instead of turning sour about the whole thing, we made it into a little adventure and arrived safe and happy down the mountain a few hours later. i’m grateful for camden dragging me on this hike with him … sometimes i forget how nice it is to get away, put all our silly cares behind us, and have a mini family adventure.