A summer highlight growing up were the early morning trips to Madison for the farmers market. With a pocket full of change, my sister and I would walk from vendor to vendor, taking full advantage of the free samples. After circling the Capitol Square once, we would make the tough decision on how to spend our money. Usually it came down to honey sticks or maple suckers. Clearly, we were all about the sweets!

Attending college at UW-Madison allowed me to continue the weekend farmers market tradition. It was on the Square that I learned of Ian’s sharp cheddar love, bought my first succulent, and satisfied my never-ending craving for Stella’s Hot and Spicy Cheese bread.

I have to admit, when Ian accepted the job offer miles away from Madison one of the things that tugged at my heart was the realization that our farmers market tradition may come to an end. Luckily, after a bit of online research I discovered our new town hosted a Wednesday night farmers market! It didn’t take long after we settled in before we were roaming down the main street enjoying samples from new vendors.

While I no longer can stock up on spicy cheese bread, I’ve found new favorites to fill my shopping bag. Our guilty pleasures now include macrons, beef jerky, local honey, and fresh berries. It’s one of our favorite summer traditions and has helped us feel apart of our new community over the past few years.

What are your favorite summer traditions?