70.

Happy 70th birthday to a wonderful grandfather to my children.

Garden.

Anyone else have giant kale this year?

My son kale can beat up your son kale...

These edible flowers were sweet and delicious!  

& the rosemary was pretty great this year too!  

Happy Spring!  

Lunch box.

L's auntie decided to come pick her up to take her to have lunch with her cousin, at her cousin's school.  She was ready 20 minutes early & could not WAIT to eat out of her lunch box.

One, two, THREE - Dig in!

My sweet boy is turning three in one week!  Sadly, I'll be out of town for part of it so, we decided to celebrate him seven days early.  I wish I could say that he loved every minute of it but, I'm pretty sure this will be his last birthday party...  He loved playing with his cousins but, he was embarrassed & didn't like the attention during gifts & cake... (At least he didn't punch anyone this year while we sang him "Happy Birthday.") - Is he his father's son, or what!?  We promised him we would not do another party, but will think of something that will be equally as special to replace future parties.

Almost 3! 

J & I had a great time designing this dump truck, digger, roller cake!  

Bathroom ;)

Cones & caution tape everywhere!  

(This is exactly why we only invite family to birthday parties...  10 little cuties are enough to prep for thankyouverymuch. )

Thank you to ALL who came out to love on our little man & support our family.  I know it was so special for him to have everyone together (minus the birthday song...)  :)  Love you all!

-Axey's mama

Girlie date night.

J took Ax out for boy donuts & gummy worms, I took little Ingi to get some warm beverages at my fav hot chocolate place. 

We had a great cozy time sipping our cocoa & chatting.  Our conversation consisted of things like:

Me: "What are you excited about for Kindergarten next year?"
L: "Umm playing on the playground, learning about bugs & learning cartwheels."

Baby H.

Mom & I threw a baby shower for my cousin & his wife today.  It was basically a family reunion with lots of cupcakes & pink.  CanNOT wait to meet this little dollie.

Love you Melis & Dalen!!! 

First cone.

I don't think Axel has ever had an ice cream cone before.  Since Jason wasn't around for this meal, I wanted to document.  As you may recall, L's first cone was in a fabulous ice cream shop in San Diego.  This place was almost as great.  Fabulous pizza, fabulous gelato and fabulous friends.

Gram.

Just 2 weeks after back surgery & mom is still in a neck brace but, doing great!  We paid a visit to Fran's with Grandma Fran for some treats.

Julia.

We became friends in 5th grade!  Julia has lived all over the place since high school & is now back in Seattle for a quick visit with family.  I was able to steal her for a quick (wet) run around the lake & a 'post run' donut up on beautiful Queen Anne.  Loved & cherished our time together!

Family Dinner.

I've been much more intentional about having traditional family dinners & having the kids in the kitchen to help prepare the food.  It's brilliant!  Today we did 'build your own pizza'.  When Axey wasn't eating the uncooked toppings, he was quite the helper.  The kids were so proud to have made dinner for us!

Breakfast brilliance.

Bored with the same-old breakfast stand-bys?  Try this super easy savory oatmeal!

Oatmeal  (For one serving, I used 1/2 c oats with 1 c water.)
While oats are cooking, whip up an 'over easy egg'.
After oatmeal is fully cooked, mix with as much chopped fresh spinach as you'd like.
Pour oatmeal/spinach combo into your dish.
Place a few slices of cheese over the oatmeal, I use Tillamook (of course) medium cheddar but, swiss or mozzarella would probably be yummy too.
Then place your cooked egg on top.  Wa-la!

I feel so great after eating this healthy meal & it stays with me for hours.  Let me know what you think!

I heart you, golden beet salad.

Golden beets

Pomegranates

Parsely

Olive oil

Lemon juice

Salt & Pepper
(we threw in grilled chicken)

What's not to love?

We ate this for dinner & breakfast!  SO good.
(You'll find the recipe here.)  

Family day filled with downtown & gingerbread.

The 2011 Gingerbread Village at the Sheraton, followed by strolling through Pike Place Market, eating-our-hearts-out at DragonfisH & strolling downtown.  Capping off the evening decorating our own GB house & having story-time with Gram.

Sheraton Gingerbread Village theme:  Holiday Express (with Polar Express playing in the background).

Know how to tell if someone is an out-of-towner?  They say, "Pike's Market".  
Tisk.  Tisk.  

Mesmerized by the Beechers Flagship curds separating from the liquid
(my mouth is watering as I type.)    This pic is dedicated to you MJ!  

We all equally enjoyed DragonfisH.  They do not disappoint.  

wa-la!