Wonderful Weekend

This weekend has been undoubtedly the hottest of the summer- triple digits every day with an equally and unbearably high humidity range.  Even so, and perhaps maybe because of the heat, it has been filled with those quintessential summer moments.  Dance, pizza, movies, popsicles, friends, and family have lead to quite a wonderful weekend.

Friday was an absolutely beautiful day, save the scorching heat.  For my job, I teach young girls to sing and dance at a fairy tale ballet studio, and on Fridays (at the end of the week-long camp) we put on a show for the parents.  This past week I was teaching a "Lili at Ballet" themed ballet camp for 3-4 year olds and a "Mary Poppins" themed Broadway camp for 3-5 year olds.  The shows were magical, and the girls performed with bubbling excitement for equally excited parents.  These girls were the absolute sweetest, as the little ballerinas usually are, and several even brought me flowers or little presents they had made themselves.  The love that these little girls are capable of is overwhelming and never fails to put a smile on my face and in my heart.  They are so open with their emotions- temper tantrums therefore can happen, but more often the emotion they share is a loud "I love you."

After work, I had the pleasure of meeting one of my best friends for a girls night out.  We got delicious pizza at a new restaurant in Bethesda- Vapiano.  It was one of the most unique places I have been to eat. The restaurant was set up more as a lounge than a traditional restaurant, with a modern but still thoroughly Italian decor.  We ordered directly from the chefs at the pizza station and were given a buzzer to indicate when our pizza was done.  When we were done eating we took a card, which held the information for the food we had ordered, to the hostess at the front and paid there.  There were so many delicious options, but we were saving ourselves for popcorn at a movie later.

Since baking in the 100 degree weather is not the most pleasant experience, I decided to make popsicles instead.  Greek yogurt, honey, and a teaspoon of brown sugar combine splendidly, especially when frozen, for a summer treat.

Finally, to round off the summer food was a delicious peach salad I made for lunch today.  It was inspired by Sweet Green's "July Salad" which was composed of mixed greens, basil, sunflower seeds, and peaches.  For my July Salad, I used spinach, pine nuts, and (of course) fresh peaches.  Delicious, refreshing, and oh-so-summery!

 Happy Summer!
Margaret