Monday, May 10, 2010

To-Do List

It's been a horribly long time since I posted anything to our lovely blog and I apologize to the people who are interested in the happenings of our life! Life has been a whirlwind the last month and a half so rather than writing several pages worth of "blogage", I'm going to share my "t0-do list" that I managed to accomplish (with my handsome hubby's & wonderful friends' help) over the last 6 weeks...

√ Answer the siren call of California and spend 4 gorgeous days with my best friend, Miss Bear. The weather was gorgeous, the activities refreshing and relaxing and the company supreme!


√ Complete gardening project - involved staking out the area, rototilling, putting down pavers, finishing out a flowerbed, laying down weed mesh, building the gardening boxes, buying/mixing/placing compost in all the boxes, planting the seeds and starts and put down pea gravel (last step to complete).


√ Clean the house - that's been done a few times I'm thankful to say!

√ Grocery shopping - also done a few times.

√ Laundry - Nick is very happy this has been done a few times.

√ Ironing - least favorite thing to do, finally done today.

√ Order garden pea gravel - delivered next Monday, soooo excited!

√ Attend first market Saturday at Redmond Farmer's Market - flowers, pie, mustard and asparagus!






√ Have coffee with Miss Jessalyn and adorable little Kolbi!

√ Get Jack a much needed haircut with Tia at Tia's Doggy Spa. Best dog grooming spot in Washington state!

√ Get out and do some cycling - tried a new trail, Snohomish Centennial Trail and my legs still hurt. Gorgeous scenery, uphill the whole way north, but all downhill on the way back! Much less crowded then our regular trail ride, wider and feels safer despite the few crazy road crossings between overlapping gates. We will definitely be riding on this trail again!

√ BLOG!! Hope everyone enjoyed all the updates!

Tuesday, March 30, 2010

Sick Days...

  • Coughing
  • Jack looking at me with longing eyes that say, "Why aren't you taking me for a walk?"
  • Trash cans overflowing with Kleenex
  • Coughing
  • Watching TV programs and movies to the point of wanting to scream, "How do people become lifetime couch potatoes?!?"
  • Falling asleep while trying to read a book
  • More coughing
  • Gallons of orange juice, massive quantities of fresh oranges (thanks Mama!) and liters of water
  • Cheery yellow daffodils on my table
  • Still more coughing
  • Antibiotics
  • Sudafed
  • Nighttime Sudafed (even better)
  • Feeling like I might be able to go back to work tomorrow... while still coughing...

Monday, March 15, 2010

It's a love/hate thing...

  • I detest how late Nick works at night... I love that he trys so hard to come home, eat dinner together and work here where he's only 5 feet away from me!



  • I detest daylight savings time... I love all the spring flowers, that the light hangs in the sky so late at night and that the sun is tinging the horizon while I drive to work in the morning.


  • I detest exercising... I love the results I get when I do exercise, how good I feel and that it's so much nicer outside so I can ride outside instead of inside on a yucky trainer!


  • I detest watermelon, cantaloupe, honeydew and grapefruit... I love pomelo! For those who haven't heard of this divine fruit - the pomelo is a citrus fruit native to South East Asia. It is usually pale green to yellow when ripe, with sweet white (or, more rarely, pink or red) flesh and very thick pudgy rind. It is the largest citrus fruit, 15–25 cm in diameter and usually weighing 1–2 kg.




  • I don't have a "detest" for this one... I love getting together with friends to celebrate anything. In this case it is the soon arrival of Jessalyn's baby girl, Kolbi. The OPC girls got together for a tea party baby shower and had a delightful time!




  • I detest any and all pork products, the smell of bacon makes me want to hurl... I love veggie sausage links though! Along with some yummy hashbrown potatoes, eggs and some fruit of course.




  • I detest all of the work it is taking to put our garden together... I love the end result of hard work and effort!


  • See... you can always find a way to make lemonade out of lemons!

    Monday, March 1, 2010

    Hair Today... Gone Tomorrow

    18 inches for my sister... 14 inches for a friend of mine... 11 inches for me (22 if you put the braids end-to-end!)...

    It took about a year and a half and at some point when Nick and I didn't have the money for me to get regular haircuts I decided it would be really fun to grow my hair out for the purpose of donating it. As time went on I decided that I really loved having my hair long and I became really attached to it. At the end of last year I made the commitment to stick with my original goal and go through with cutting my hair and donating it to Locks of Love.
    With Lindsay's support and making the day a fun adventure, I spent 4 hours in Jodi's chair today at the Celsius Salon - being cut, colored and styled.

    Lindsay and I treated ourselves to lunch at Kafe Neo when it was all said and done. While I'm a little traumatized by the drastic length change, I know it was for a great cause and my hair will grow back!

    Wednesday, February 17, 2010

    What a Wonderful World...

    The last couple of weeks I've been reminded of Louis Armstrong's lovely song, "What a Wonderful World"...
  • Watching the opening ceremony of the Olympics and hearing the inspiring stories.
  • Soup, homemade soup (borscht with Greek yogurt)...
  • Seeing new, spring growth on my rose bushes, trees and my daffodils coming up. Spring is in the air - I hope!
  • Planting little seeds, that will become starts, that will grow into way too much produce for all of us to eat...
  • The smell of fresh potting soil and getting my hands dirty planting garden starts.
  • Eating a late Valentine's breakfast with my hubby and a belated dinner.
  • Reminders from when Nick and I got married of promises we've made to each other.
  • Lots of bike rides!! 16.6 miles on Saturday with Tim and Lindsay and 27 miles on Sunday with Nick. Perfect weather and so much fun!
  • Beautiful rainbows after all the rain we've had.

    It's a wonderful world we live in and I'm so blessed for every day I get!

  • Monday, February 8, 2010

    Super Bowl Weekend

    It was inspiring; how could you not cheer for a team that has never been there and came back from the brink of destruction? I have not been into football for a few years, just watching on the periphery, but the Super Bowl this year was awesome!

    The geeks all converge to *watch*
    the Super Bowl

    We ate one of Nick's and my favorite meals - sandwiches. Not just any sandwiches, these are sandwiches that have been creating memories since our dating days. Veggie turkey meat, mind-blowing cheeses, organic tomatoes, crisp lettuce, cucumbers, hummus, savory avocados all smothered between two pieces of fluffy ciabata bread. Are you drooling yet? All finished off with homemade, soft-serve ice cream from our favorite little coffee/ice cream shop - my favorite flavor is honey lavendar. Yummy!


    Our weekend also included a gorgeous, 23.6 mile bike ride with Tim and Lindsay and lunch at the Chipotle Mexican Grill. My favorite item there is the veggie burrito with lots of pico de gallo and guacamole.

    Great food, great weather, great friends = FANTASTIC weekend!

    Tuesday, February 2, 2010

    A Few of My Favorite Things...

    Flowers for my birthday - thanks Simmons' Family!!
    My new on-counter composter. Find this adorable little can at Bed, Bath & Beyond!
    A storage map for my state quarters - I only need 4 more!
    A new gardening book
    Yoga goodies