These Days

It's been nice having some extra days off this week. Got a chance to catch up on some sleep and now actually getting some stuff done around the house, hanging out with friends, relaxing and enjoying the now nice weather that has finally decided to show up. This is going to be a little picture heavy... 

Starting inside...My curtain material turned into a body pillow cover.

Kitty being interested in everything, per usual.

Hemming the curtains finally, 2 down, 4 to go.

On the fridge :)

Sleepy kitty

Getting back on the chapter a day thing, figure I have til the end of summer to finish.

Moving outside...Alliums, such cool flowers!

Neighbor's yellow roses growing all over our fence.

Cilantro growing.

Dill plant, took the flowers off to see if it will grow better.

Mint doesn't even have a dent in it, after a good trimming/harvest. Hooked on the T shirt skirts, they are awesome!

Hostas leaves are gigantic!

So many buds on the hydrangea this year! Yay!

Window box with pink geraniums and bacopa starting to fill out.

Lovely pastry celebrating the start of summer!

Out and About ... Finally getting some SUNSHINE around here!!

Joe hitting some sweet jumps at Beacon Hill. I hiked in and took pictures :)

Perfect "northwest" smell here! Warm dirt and pine needles. Ummm... makes me smile.

Fall Happenings

I always look forward to the change in seasons, it's kind of like a new beginning. New smells, the change in weather, seasonal foods and all the different festivities. With fall, I look forward to warm drinks, pulling out cozy sweaters and coats, the crisp cool air after hot summer days, crunching leaves on walks, all the vibrant fall colors and the smell of autumn. Plus, there is Thanksgiving, gathering with family, and trips to Greenbluff to pick pumpkins and apples. This fall, I'm thankful to be living in a place with four distinct seasons, thankful for having my family nearby, and for having so many wonderful supportive people in our lives. Right now, I'm sitting out on my porch drinking a pumpkin spice latte and listening to the rain pattering on the patio and the X-Country race going on across the street.

Enough of the mushy stuff... I've had some time off work and it's been nice getting stuff done around our place. Of coarse the to do list is never completely finished and things always seem to take longer than expected. But none the less, it's nice to be crossing some things off! Did a goodwill run today and dropped off eight bags of no longer needed stuff, we've been trying to trim down around here, which also means exercising restraint in what I "find" and take home from thrift stores... Today, we mowed the lawn, weeded some of the backyard beds and got some new shrubs, on a side note Joe actually told the guy at Judy's we were looking for "a shrubbery" just like the guy says it in Monte Python. Epic. We rode the Hiawatha Trail on Saturday, then came home and had a lovely barbecue with friends, Joe made ribs! They were delicious! Yesterday, we had a family get together at my aunt's house, my great uncle was in town from California. We ended up having an "indoor picnic" instead of going to Arbor Crest since the weather was threatening to rain. Anyways, hoping to get a few more things scratched off before I go back to work in the next few days.

Some pictures from our ride on the Hiawatha Trail. The ride is on the route of an old train track near the Montana/Idaho border. It takes you through ten tunnels and over seven high trestles. The longest tunnel is 1.7 miles, and is absolutely pitch black inside so you need either a head lamp or a lamp on your bike. Its a gradual downhill grade so is a fairly easy ride, about ten miles long I think. Definitely far from hard core biking, but was a fun experience!

We're Back

We're back from a vacation on the coast, and it feels good to be home! Here's pictures from start to finish - watch out, there's a BUNCH!

At Sitka and Spruce - favoritest restaurant ever! Absolutely the best!!

Westhaven Beach - Near Westport, WA

 Our yurt in Grayland State Park! Really fun to stay in, everything stays nice and dry!

Drove down the Oregon coast and stopped at a bunch of things on the way. This is in Seaside, statue of Lewis and Clark in the background. This is supposedly where they came to the Pacific Ocean.

Cannon Beach and Haystack Rock. Pretty overcast.... but we got to walk all the way out to the rock and see all the tide pools around it.

Little sea things on the side of Haystack Rock.

Roseanna's Cafe in Ocean City, Oregon.  Romantic little spot. Below is the view from Ocean City.

Fairly certain this is Beverly Beach, right next to the "Devil's Punchbowl" and Otter Rock. Was fun watching people try to surf! ...looks difficult. Then took a nap in the sand.

Next stop was Yaquina Lighthouse, very interesting.

The last city we stopped in was Newport, Oregon. Decided to lay off on the driving and relax a few days. Was nice being able to adjust our plans as we went though. Below: Crabbing equipment on the sidewalk.

Rogue Brewery - took a free tour.

The last night we had a blast staying at the Sylvia Beach Hotel. Really awesome bed and breakfast. Each room is themed after an author - I'll give you one guess which author our room was themed after. There's a library on the forth floor, plus an attic full of more books, puzzles and reading nooks! There's a "Coffee room" with coffee and tea all the time and spiced wine in the evenings. There's also a cat named Shelly that lives there. Highly recommend it if you're ever in the area.

Lovely little garden area out front - the Tolkien room is right off the garden, would love to go back and stay there again some time. 

Good night and enjoy the last few days of summer!!

New Tricks

They say old dogs can't learn new tricks... I can't really speak to that. Malcolm on the other hand, is finally figuring out a few things around here. He has finally learned how to use his kitty window, which is great since he no longer whines incessantly when he wants to go out. It took him awhile to understand he could open it by himself. 

The other thing he has learned recently is how to climb the hawthorne tree,which is kind of cute and funny (because it's short and would be easy to get him down if he got stuck). Hopefully, this doesn't translate into climbing bigger, taller trees soon (fingers crossed)!

In other news, summer is finally trying to get started here, we've been getting lots of yard work done, garden post coming soon. We're gearing up for a garage sale at my folk's this weekend. Yesterday, I got "fitted" for a bike and Joe's been looking for a good deal for me, hoping to get a lot of single track riding in this summer. 

Seattle Foodie Trip

Ever since switching to day shift, it seems I haven't had more than a few days off in a row. Rough, I know... but I've been itching for a nice stretch off. So I'm finally on a six day stretch off and it feels absolutely wonderful, I'm not going to lie. And if while reading this you feel insanely jealous, there is nothing to stop you from going back to school to become a nurse... but I digress. On with the fun stuff!

Friday, we headed off to Seattle with some friends, in a quest to show them some of Seattle's wonderful hole-in-the-wall places and unique spots (i.e. can't find in Spokane). Friday night we had some terrific Korean BBQ at my in-laws. Also on the list, Paseos for Cuban sandwiches (the main attraction), Top Pot Doughnuts for their delicious apple fritters, Cupcake Royale - their salted caramel cupcake is killer, Anne's Teriyaki for Vietnamese sandwiches, Kiko's for sushi, Red Mango for Asian frozen yogurt and of course Dick's and several coffee shops. We also tried out a place called Pam's on the Ave, which serves cuisine from Trinidad and Tobago. They make a dish with goat meat which I tried, pretty good actually, but very spicy!

To try and offset a few of the calories and to enjoy the wonderful weather, we also did some touristy stuff. Went for a walk at Golden Gardens, did some window shopping at U Village and picked up a few presents (and a few of Fran's salted caramels), checked out the Ballard Locks and fish ladder, and my favorite, rode beach cruisers at Alki Beach!

Now for some proof...

Top Pot Doughnuts

Tiff and I at the Ballard Paseo's


Marina next to Golden Gardens Park


Hanging out, drinking coffee - what's Seattle without some good coffee?


Goat curry dish


Ryan and Tiff at Cupcake Royale


Sushi roll at Kiko's in Bellevue


Riding a beach cruiser at Alki Beach. Joe took this pix while riding a bike, now that's some raw talent ;)


And a parting shot of the Seattle skyline from Alki Beach.