Bits and Pieces of Our Life Lately

On Sunday evening my Mom, Dad, and little sister came in to town. Yay!It was a special day, not only because it was the day that they came to Seattle, but also because it was my mom's birthday! She is 55 years old now. Can you believe it? To me she looks like she is about forty. And for those of you who have never met my beautiful mother and are looking at that strange blond woman in the picture below, yes, that is my mom. What? Can't you tell?

I felt so special that I got to have my Mom with me on her birthday. I love my mom so much and admire her so much. We celebrated by having a nice dinner, then going for a walk on our scenic river path, and then concluding with some shortcake with whipped cream, and freshly picked wild black berries and peaches. Yum.

Olivia was practically doing front flips when she saw Jenny walk in the door. From the time she was here to the time they left this morning it was constant giggles coming from Liv. I know that Liv is at her happiest state of being when she just keeps laughing and giggling for no reason at all. I love it.

My parents and Jen left Monday around noon to make a visit to some more family up in Bellingham, Washington. They will be back on Wednesday. We can't wait. Until then, Chelice should be arriving any minute now. And we're so excited to see her!

Amongst other news:

-Last saturday our car window was bashed out while we were off canoing up the Cedar River. Two hundred and sixty five dollars later we have a new window. To look on the bright side of things, they didn't steal anything, not that there was anything besides a diaper bag inside the car to steal. Very lame.

-I found a new treat; that is if you consider vegetables treats. The other day my friend who is also pregnant, told me that she had been craving artichokes, and as soon as she said that I decided I was craving them too. So, I went and bought me an artichoke. The last time I cooked an artichoke I didn't really know what I was doing. I boiled it in a pot and then dipped it in melted butter. It tasted really watery and mushy. So, this time I decided to steam the artichoke. I flavored the water with a clove of garlic, a bay leaf, and a slice of lemon (I got this idea from Simply Recipes). For the sauce I mixed together mayonnaise and a little bit of balsamic vinegar. Oh, I'm telling you, if you like artichokes this is the way to go! I'm already craving it again!

Anniversary Fun and Shots of The Small Fry

This paragraph is more for memorial purposes and for those of you who are interested in our fun weekend. Jaron and I were originally planning on staying the night at a bed and breakfast on one of the islands around here to celebrate our anniversary, but decided instead to save a little money and do what our neighbor refers to as a "Staycation". The idea being that you save on hotels and travel and do fun, local activities.

Friday night we got a babysitter and went out to eat at a great seafood restaurant called Anthony's Pier 66. They seated us outside on the patio overlooking the Puget Sound. Jaron just happened to make the reservation for our meal to be during sunset and it was so beautiful. Not to mention I ordered the best tasting salmon that I've ever had in my life, and my Mom cooks some dang good salmon, so that is saying something!
After dinner we walked around the piers. It was a beautiful night and was so fun to just talk and hang out.
Saturday was a blast! My good friend Natalie babysat Liv from 8:00 in the morning until 4:00 in the afternoon. After we dropped Liv off at the babysitters we jumped on our beach cruisers and headed to the nearest bus station where we took the bus to down-town Seattle. From there we rode our bikes onto a Ferry that took us over to a little island called Bainbridge.
In Bainbridge, we rented some kayaks and Kayaked around a beautiful harbor and out into the ocean. It was so much fun! Some times we would row as fast as we could and enjoy the wind on our faces as we cruised across the harbor. Other times we slowed down to go under little bridges or to check out barnacles on big thick ropes.
After our kayaking adventures we cruised around the main drag in Bainbridge and found a little cafe called Cafe Nola, which is apparently a pretty renowned place in Bainbridge. To say the least, it lived up to its name. Jaron ordered Carmel Pecan French toast, and I ordered a dungeness crab melt open faced sandwich. Both of us were so happy. (Sorry for the food details. I like food!)
We had such an awesome time. The only bad news is that we didn't take our camera! With our backpacks full of snacks, sunscreen, rain jackets, and water bottles we didn't really have room. I'm so sorry we don't have any pictures, but to make up for it I did take a bunch of pictures of Liv at the park yesterday for you to enjoy!
Next week my sister in-law Chelice and her fiance are coming in town as well as my Mom, Dad, and little sister, Jennifer. Look forward to more adventuresome posts. . . with pictures next time I promise!

Introducing:

Small Fry

Here are some more pics of us at the park on our anniversary:



Yummy blackberries. . .

Attitude of Gratitude

It's really easy to feel grateful for your life when. . .

1. You go to the dentist for the first time in four years scared at what you might be told, only to find out you don't have any cavities and your teeth look great! Yay!

2. On your way home from your morning walk you grab a handful of blackberries and the sweetness oozes into your mouth.

3. Today is the day you celebrate your fourth wedding anniversary and you realize that you know you married someone that is so perfect for you in so many ways.

I love you JaRone! Thanks for being my best friend, my confidant, my emotion-easer, my comedian, my adventurer, my teacher, my counselor, and my love. Happy Anniversary!

What weve been up to lately. . .

This post is going to be a bit jabbery and un-oraganized just to warn you. That seems to be my mood of late.

A week after I got back from Utah, I flew to California for the weekend to attend my child-hood friend Laura's wedding.
Jaron was nice enough to keep Liv for me, and with the help of a good friend she was very well taken care of the whole time I was gone! It was so fun to see Laura. She looked so beautiful. And her reception was so pretty too. I was so glad that I got to be there for such an important day in her life! Maybe I'll post a picture or two when my mom sends me some from her camera (hint hint Mom). Don't worry, I did take my big camera all the way to California and then didn't take a single picture; not even of the beautiful beach that we went to! Why you ask? Because when you feeling like throwing up, taking pictures is the last thing on your mind. Which was pretty much how I felt the entire trip! :( I felt bad for Mom and Jen who had to put up with my lazy mood.

I was so happy to be back from my travels and just be able to enjoy the summer time in Seattle. I really love it here. It is so beautiful. Lately it has been perfectly cloudless and sunny with temperatures in between 75 and 80. Perfect.


Last weekend Jaron, Liv, and I decided to skip on over to Lake Washington to check out the Blue Angles air show!
It was so cool. We took our beach cruisers and the bike seat for Liv, and rode down to a perfect spot right on the lake. These huge jets looked so close to us as they zoomed right over our heads and up into the sky to go backwards, forwards, sideways, and all around the sky. I was afraid Liv would be afraid of the noise, as her current and biggest enemy in this world is our vacuum, but she absolutely loved it. She didn't take her eyes off of the big jets the whole time! And the best part about this wonderful activity? It was free!! Yay for free!!

So for those of you who like cooking: When I got back from California I decided it was time for me to step it up a notch with my house wifey duties. I was excited to organize my house, get caught up on laundry, update our budget, and try some new recipes. So I decided to look up one of my favorite food blogs before I went to the grocery store. Here is what I came up with and ended up cooking last week:

Thursday- Asian Noodle Salad

Prep Time: Three Hours! I thought My hands were going to fall off after all that chopping. You have no idea how much I now despise the phrase: "Thinly chopped"!
Taste Factor: Very yummy. Jaron and I both give it a 10, but I will never make it again lest I desire a severe case of tendinitis.

Friday: Left over Asian Noodle Salad and Homemade zucchini Bread

Prep Time: 10 minutes plus baking time which was one hour.

Taste Factor: 10! I had never had zucchini bread before, but come to find out it is so moist and delicious. It was a major hit with Jaron. It think he ate half a loaf in ten minutes.

Sunday: Salmon Cakes with Lemon Aiolli

Prep Time: About an hour.

Taste Factor: Oh I give it about an 8. It was pretty good, it just depends on if you like sea food.







Monday: Summer Pea Soup served with fresh Rhodes Rolls.

(This recipe actually came from Simply Recipes )

Prep Time: 15 minutes

Taste Factor: 9. This was so delicious and nutritious and easy. It was really yummy dipping the fresh Rhodes Rolls into it too.

Tuesday: Shredded Chicken smothered in barbecue sauce (Head Country Barbecue Sauce) served with fresh Rhodes Rolls and Couscous salad

Note: The chicken is just something I make not a recipe I looked up. :)


Prep Time For the Salad: 30 minutes.

Taste Factor: The salad I give an 8. It tasted great, but not as good as the Asian noodle, but it is so healthy with lots of veggies in it. And the barbecue chicken always gets a ten!

What's on the Menu for tonight you ask? Cereal and Toast. Real fancy. . .I'll let you know how we rate it. :)

Round Two??

Back aches, nausea, mood swings, large thighs, cravings, squished bladder, bring it on! Thats right folks we're pregnant with number two! Right now I'm currently 9 weeks pregnant. My first appointment to go see the OBGYN was supposed to be last Wednesday, but I decided to change the appointment because I got a bad case of the flu. So, next Monday is the big day. We'll hear the heart beat of this new little Embryo growing inside me, and also find out the due date, which should be in February sometime. Were so excited for a new little one to come into our lives and feel so blessed!

The big question of coarse is WILL NUMBER TWO be able to survive in the same abode as the feisty little NUMBER ONE??

What do you think?

So I guess I'm going to have to put up one of those little things on my blogs that looks like a baby in a washing machine so that I can start the count down. Maybe I'll find one that doesn't look quite so scary. . .

A Short Summary of our Trip

Alright I have a question for all of you before I get into my trip, I'm so bored of putting my pictures in the same center large format on my blog. I have seen of few of you do these awesome collages, will you share your secret with me on how this is done? It would be especially nice for lots of pictures on one blog. Ok sorry, that was a side note.

Farmington, New Mexico is a place that we love to go. Not only is there family there from both sides of Jaron's family, but the little desert town has unique beauty to it. Flying their from Seattle with a 3 and a half hour layover however and a one and a half year old, NOT So Beautiful. All is well, and luckily it is over.

New Mexico: Long chats with Grandmother Lola, nice long fire work show from Lola's castle on the fourth of July, fire works of our own on the Fourth of July, a few trips to Durango, which included some of the best Chile Rellenos that we've ever tasted, and a visit with Grandpa and Grandpa Boyd.

Grandpa Boyd, Liv, Jaron, and Grandma Boyd. I love this picture of Grandma Boyd talking to Liv, and Liv listening intently, yet with a slight grudge. :) She's got too much sass for her own good.

This is a view of the Boyd's backyard. This sandstone hill in the background provided lots of fun for Jaron and his siblings when he was growing up.

Jaron and Liv with Grandmother Lola. Lola's favorite and most quoted phrase of the trip was "I have never seen a baby that good in my life". She obviously hasn't been camping with Liv. :)

By the way Liv had a hair spurt. How do you like her new doo?
After the long day of traveling we let Olivia air out a little. She found this soft rug on Grandmothers floor and it was love at first sight.
Liv's favorite toy of the trip, this toy horse on wheels, which Lola kept trying to hide from her, but she miraculously kept finding. I think we underestimated Liv's sneakiness.

On the way home we stopped by Jaron's Daddy John and granddad Carl's graves. It meant a lot to me to see it. Its not like I necessarily believe that their spirits are just hanging out there, because they probably have better things to do, but there was something special about seeing their graves. I kinda felt like I was meeting them for the first time. It was cool. I think Liv liked it too.
Goodbye New Mexico!

UTAH: Hobble Creek, Grandma and Grandpa Pope, bon fires, yummy food, four-wheeling, swimming, staying up until 5:00 in the morning, boating, playing with kittens, not sleeping, seeing old friends, shopping, riding motor bikes, fishing, and just generally playing.
Jen definitely wins the award for being Olivia's favorite. I often went looking for where Liv was in the house and would find her sitting on Jenny's lap in front of the family room TV watching Jen's movie of choice with her.

In spite of the pearl necklace and girlie outfit, doesn't Liv just look bad to the bone here?

This is Emily, the cutest red headed baby I know. She is Drew and Natalie's baby.

Grandma Pope got a kitty to capture and eat the mice that occasionally visit their garage. Liv discovered said Kitty and practically strangled her with love, literally.
Ribs and Salmon. . . mmmmm. . . So . . gooood.

By the way, if you're wondering who the crazy guy dipping his black stockinged feet in the balmy water is, that is my brother Drew. He's going to be the next Warren Buffet one day, so don't make fun.

Grandma and Grandpa Pope were so nice to let us come stay in Hobble Creek for a few days. They're awesome. Liv, once again strangling the kitty.

More pictures will come later, it took me one hour just to shrink all these pictures, and another half hour to post! So I will post a slide show later with more pictures for those who are interested!

Until next time, thanks for the fun trip in Utah Mom and Dad!

Goodbye for a bit

Hi friends. Jaron, the babe, and I are off for a vacation to New Mexico to visit grandmother Lola, and Utah to visit my family, so posting may be scarce for the next little while! Ta ta for now blog friends! Enjoy the sunshine I know I will be, as Utah is supposed to be 100 degrees today!