I’ve been inspired by all the summer to-do lists I’ve been reading on various blogs, and decided to put one of my own together. This most glorious of seasons always seems to fly by a bit too quickly, so it makes sense to apply my list-making tendencies to summer enjoyment, and with Midsummer coming up, there’s not a moment to spare.

Try to become a better surfer – As comfortable as I am in the ocean, I’m not nearly as comfortable as I’d like to be on a surfboard and end up eating a fair amount of sand and seawater on a regular basis. Plus, my husband’s one of those people that’s annoyingly good at things like that, and I’d really like to be able to at least give the appearance of being able to keep up with him.

Visit a beach I’ve never been to – As someone who loves the beach as much as I do, I sure don’t venture much outside of my regular coastal haunts very often. North Carolina has some pretty sweet coastline, and I’d like to explore more of it.

Make a different type of sangria weekly – Self-explanatory

Experiment with homemade ice cream – Again, self-explanatory

Cook an entire meal made solely of items from our garden – We’ve got a pretty sweet garden growing in our backyard and it’s pretty satisfying to supplement our meals with stuff we’ve grown ourselves. A full dinner from our yard would be that much more satisfying.

Host an outdoor party – I love entertaining, and I love dining outside, so this one’s a no-brainer. Weekends tend to get especially busy in the summertime, so it’s important to make a point to get simple time with friends scheduled somewhere in the crowded calendar.

Go on a camping trip – My parents used to drag me on camping trips when I was little, and I pretty much hated it. Fast-forward to my early twenties when I headed off on a month-long NOLS trip to Baja California, and I fell in love with the wilderness and the awesome feeling that comes with being a place where there’s not a soul in sight. I haven’t slept outdoors in far too long, and I’m happy to say that I’ll be checking this one off the list this weekend with a little trip to the Carolina mountains.