a front porch in summertime

my husband and i moved into our new house in november and now that warm weather is here, our favorite thing to do is sit in the rocking chairs on our wrap-around front porch.  front porches have always been important in the South, as they provide a place to catch some shade and breeze during the summertime.  before air conditioning, the porch was often cooler than the house!

now, if we could only figure out how to keep the bugs away.

here are a few inviting front porches from around the web...

from new york times

from martha stewart

from the designer pad

from southern living