4th of July - Blood Orange Bloody Marys + American Glory

This 4th of July was a relaxing one. 

Every year, I feel like I spend my Independence Day

battling crowds in the Hamptons, or Fire Island or

{insert some other insanely popular Long Island spot here}

and I've come to learn one thing about myself --

I HAVE NO PATIENCE IN GENERAL

let alone for CROWDS.

I don't do well waiting in lines -

at the amusement park, at grocery stores, 

for friends who take longer than me to get ready, etc.

It's something I'm working on.

Throw heat + alcohol + crowds

in the mix and I really REACH MY LIMIT.

Legit, can't deal.

So this year, I decided to switch it up a bit

and stay home, hang with the family, and just relax.

Wise Choice.

And I was happy with it.

I slept in, RARE these days

and had a really lazy morning.

My lazy and your lazy probably vary drastically,

so my lazy was waking up at 9am

not doing my hair or makeup, 

throwing on sunglasses (I highly recommend going incognito)

and shopping.

I was surprised so many places were open,

so I took advantage of just leisurely strolling the aisles.

You know those trips - no grocery list,

just aimlessly wandering the aisles 

looking for nothing in particular...

Fun, but bad for your wallet!

After wandering around Target

(got the new Dream C.D, which is good -

but ummm, I accidentally bought the explicit version

& my ears are bleeding by the end of the C.D)

 playing in HomeGoods for a while looking for 
new bathroom towels

(I know, SUPER lame -

THESE are the stores I CHOOSE to shop?)

I grabbed an iced coffee and set out for my

parents house, where I was to spend the day.

What daughter shows up empty handed to

a 4th of July gathering?

So I decided I was going to whip up a batch

up Bloody Mary's and settled on this recipe.

I'd been meaning to try it for a while...

GREAT SUCCESS!

On loan from: A Beautiful Mess

Blood Orange Bloody Mary Recipe:

What You'll Need:

1. Blood Oranges OR Blood Orange Juice (I took the easy route, hey who wants to do work on the 4th?! NOT ME!)

2. Tomato Juice or V8

3. Hawaiian Sea Salt (or some fun color for the rim)

4. Tabasco 

5. Worcestershire Sauce 

6. Lime

7. Celery

8. Ice (I like my summer cocktails COLD!)

9. Mason Jars/Cute Straws (a MUST for presentation purposes/Instagram Photos!)

10. Vodka

How to Whip it Up:

1. Combine a can of tomato juice or V8 (don't skimp out here, get the good stuff!) with blood orange juice (1 cup), 1 teaspoon of Worcestershire Sauce, 1/2 teaspoon of Tabasco (or to taste, I'm a big baby!).  Stir well and taste (I am a big advocate of tasting the mix and adjusting from there). Add as much or little vodka as you wish - approximately one shot per mason jar (they also taste great virgin!)

2. Use lime juice to rim the mason jars and then add sea salt. Add your liquor to each mason jar, then top with ice (filling ice about half way). 

3. Pour mix over ice, throw in a cute straw, and garnish with a blood orange slice and celery stalk. Adorable and delicious!

They look glorious, right? 

I sipped my Blood Orange Bloody Mary

and read by book in a lawn chair by the water,

a beautiful breeze blowing.

I wanted to work on my tan (or lack thereof)

and opted for a low S.P.F (I think I used either an 8 or a 15)

which was a terrible choice

because given the fact I was in above SAID CHAIR

from 11am to 4pm, I got severely burned.

I guess with the breeze, I didn't feel myself

frying - pretty upset about this.

Haven't gotten this burned in a while.

Blast my Ukrainian fair skin!

OUCH! :(

The day was easy, breezy, and relaxing -
however I did not get to see any fireworks
because I was too burned/uncomfortable to stay out.

The amazing show at the Crescent Country Club
the following night definitely made up for it though! :)

God Bless America!

How was your 4th?
Any good pics or recipes to share?

xo,
Rach